


The Evil Queen's Brother

by 64thVanSull



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga, Once Upon a Time (TV), The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Genre: A lot of elements from FMAB, F/M, Graphic Violence, How the series would have been different if Cora and Henry had a son after Regina, NO SEASON 7!!!, New characters not seen in the show (typically LXG Agents), Nicholas is basically Hoenhiem, Original Storyline will follow the end of altered Season 6, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, Storybrooke gets the darker plot setting it needed, Strong Language, The LXG is expanded upon and more organized, This story has very dark elements (but nothing too dark), Unexpected Twists and Turns, WARNING! (Repeated Mentions of Child Slavery)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:29:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 101
Words: 580,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25994485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/64thVanSull/pseuds/64thVanSull
Summary: This is my own version of the show if Regina had a younger brother.  As far as I know, this is the first and only fanfic of this show with such a character.  See how Nicholas Mills' existence and mysterious past affected the lives of the heroes and villains of Storybrooke.  Originally posted of FFN but now on this site because FFN looks like it's having some issues.  Comments on all chapters are always most welcomed and appreciated; like and follow this, as well.  Also, for those who have been reading this on FFN, I am still looking for a cover-art.  Enjoy!
Relationships: Ariel/Captain Hook | Killian Jones, Emma Swan/Original Male Character(s)
Comments: 37
Kudos: 5





	1. The Queen's Brother

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own OUaT or any of its characters.

Over twenty-eight years ago, in a land called the Enchanted Forest, the handsome Prince Charming dressed in red rode his steed hoping to win his race against time. As he rode further into the forest, he came upon the sight he prayed he wouldn’t have to meet; Snow White, the woman he loved, lying in a glass coffin surrounded by seven weeping dwarves. At this sight of his true love, Charming too began to silently cry.

“You’re too late.” Doc said sadly.

“No, no!” Charming refused, “Open it.” he demanded.

“I’m sorry, she’s gone.” Grumpy apologized.

“At least let me say goodbye.” he pleaded. Understanding the prince’s pain, the dwarves removed the glass covering Snow White’s face. Charming then kneeled down to kiss his love one last time and not a second after their lips met, a wave of magic erupted from them. It was then that Snow White woke up with a loud gasp causing everyone around her to be filled with joy.

“You found me.” she said to her prince.

“Did you ever doubt I would?” he asked playfully.

“Truthfully, the class coffin gave me pause.” she replied happily.

“You never have to worry,” Charming reassured, “I will always find you.”

“Do you promise?” Snow asked.

Months later at their wedding, Charming gave his response. “I promise.”

“And do you, Snow White, take this man to be your husband and love him for all eternity?” asked the minister.

“I do.” she said smiling like never before, not once taking her eyes off of Charming.

“Then by the power vested in me, I pronounce you husband and wife.” the minister declared causing the huge crowd around them to cheer at the top pf their lungs. But just as they were about to have their first kiss as husband and wife, the Evil Queen, dressed in black, interrupted them simply with her presence.

“Sorry I’m late.” she mocked darkly as she approached the happy couple. As two guards attempted to stop her, she simply waved her arms and sent them flying with her magic.

“It’s the queen, run!” Doc cried while Snow took Charming’s sword and pointed it at her step-mother.

“She’s not the queen anymore!” she cried, “She’s nothing more than an evil witch!”

“Don’t stoop to her level, there’s no need.” Charming coaxed before he spoke to the queen, “You’re wasting your time, you’ve already lost. And I will not let you ruin this wedding.”

“Oh, I haven’t come here to ruin anything.” sweetly corrected the Evil Queen, “On the contrary, dear, I’ve come to give you a gift.”

“We want nothing from you!” Snow snapped.

“But you shall have it.” the queen retorted, “My gift to you is this happy, happy day.” she said in disgust, “But tomorrow, my real work begins. You’ve made your vows, now I make mine. Soon everything you love, everything all of you love will be taken from you. Forever. And out of your suffering will rise my victory. I shall destroy your happiness…if it is the last thing I do.”

With nothing more to say, the Evil Queen sharply turned and made her way out of the castle. But just then, Charming cried out to her as he threw his sword. But just as it was about to impale her, she disappeared in a puff of purple smoke. In an instant later, Regina was back in her castle huffing in anger at the memory of Snow White’s happiness.

“So,” asked a young man, roughly a few years older than Snow, from a desk in the room, “How did it go?” He had dark brown hair, slightly lighter than Regina’s and wore a forest green trench coat over a matching vest and black button down shirt with black slacks. He also wore crescent moon reading glasses over his hazel brown eyes and had his desk covered with papers and scientific equipment.

Regina responded by smacking a few perfume bottles off of her cabinet in anger before plopping on a love seat. “That bad, huh?” he asked not wanting to poke the bear. “Vowing to destroy everyone’s happiness. Big words. Think you can deliver?” he asked.

“I can and I will.” Regina replied hotly as she stared at the outside view from her seat, “You don’t think I can, do you?” she asked as she glared at the young man.

“I’d rather you didn’t. But I know just how stubborn you can get.”

“He does prove a valid point, your Majesty.” remarked the face of her magic mirror as Regina’s father came in with a tray.

“Would you like something to drink?” Henry asked his daughter.

“Do I look like I need a drink?” she asked hotly.

“I was only trying to help.” he defended gently as he handed her a glass of wine.

“Thank you.” Regina replied as she calmed down. Henry then went over to the young man with a clay mug.

“Here’s your coffee, Nicholas. Though I suggest you save it for later and get some rest.”

“No time, I’m in the zone.” Nicholas replied not taking his eyes off of his research, “Out of curiosity, how do you plan on taking away their happiness?” he asked Regina who smirked darkly.

“The dark curse.” she replied.

Twenty-eight years later in a small town in Maine called Storybrooke, a young man named Nicholas was napping in his cozy little office he had in the large home he shared with his sister. He wore a black vest over a forest green button down shirt and wore dark jeans and hiking boots he had propped on his desk.

His slumber was interrupted by his cell phone ringing in his pocket. With a groan and stretch he answered his phone. “Go for Nicholas.” he said groggily.

“Nicholas, Henry’s run away!” a frantic woman shouted on the other end.

“What?” he asked suddenly awake.

“He never showed up for school this morning- no one’s seen him all day!”

“Okay, okay. Regina, calm down.” Nicholas soothed, “Everything’ll be alright. Call Graham and tell him what happened and come back to the house.”

“Okay, I’ll be there soon.” she replied no less worried. It wasn’t until past midnight when Regina, who’d been staring out the window all day, spotted her son coming up the yard with a blonde woman wearing a red leather jacket.

“Henry!” Regina cried as she ran out to hug her son, “Are you okay? Where have you been? What happened?” she asked.

“I found my real mom!” Henry shouted as he ran into the house completely ignoring Graham and Nicholas.

“You’re Henry’s birth mother?” Regina asked trying to keep her emotions under control.

“Hi.” the blonde sheepishly greeted.

“Oh, boy.” muttered Nicholas knowing that Regina was already unhappy.

“How would you like a glass of the best apple cider you ever tasted?” she offered.

“Got anything stronger?” the blonde asked. After leading her into the den, Nicholas poured the two ladies some cider while he got himself a mug of beer. “How did he find me?” the blonde now known as Emma Swan asked.

“No idea,” said Regina, “When I adopted him, he was only three weeks old. Records were sealed, I was told the birth mother didn’t want to have any contact.”

“You were told right.”

“And the father?” Nicholas asked.

“Doesn’t even know. No reason to be worried about him, Mr…” Emma carried off.

“Nicholas, Regina’s younger brother.” he replied.

“Do we need to be worried about you, Ms. Swan?” Regina asked.

“Absolutely not.” she reassured as Graham came down the stairs.

“Madam Mayor, you and your brother can relax. Other than being a tired little boy, Henry’s fine.” he informed.

“Thank you, Sheriff.” Regina replied as he left, “I’m sorry he dragged you out of your life. I really don’t know what’s gotten into him lately.”

“The kid’s having a rough time,” said Emma, “It happens.”

You have to understand, ever since I became mayor, balancing things has been tricky. You have a job, I assume?” Regina asked.

“Uh, I keep busy. Yeah.”

“Imagine having another one on top of it. That’s being a single mom. So I push forward. Am I strict? I suppose. But I do it for his own good. I want Henry to excel in life. I don’t think that makes me evil, do you?”

“I’m sure he’s just saying that because of the fairytale thing.” Emma replied.

“What fairytale thing?” Nicholas asked after taking a drink of his beer.

“Oh, you know, his book. How he thinks everyone’s a cartoon character from it. Like his shrink is Jiminy Cricket.”

“I’m sorry, we really have no idea what you’re talking about.” Regina replied, she looked at her brother who just shrugged in confusion.

“You know what, it’s none of my business. He’s your kid. And I should really be heading back.” Emma said hopping to avoid an awkward situation.

“Of course.” Nicholas nodded. After Emma had left, Nicholas and his sister went upstairs to talk with Henry only to find his door locked. “Hen-Henry, open the door!”

“Sweetie, we just want to talk.” Regina reassured gently, her brother was a bit more upset.

“Henry, you know the rules: no locked doors in this house!” A minute later, Henry opened the door dressed in his pajamas and his hair messed up like he was already asleep before; not a bad trick, but Nicholas wasn’t that easy to fool.

With a yawn Henry said, “What’s up?”

“Oh, don’t you ‘what’s up’ us, young man.” Nicholas snapped, “And none of this pretending like you were just asleep nonsense either. Especially when it’s only,” he then checked his watch and noticed how late it was, “Quarter ‘til two. Alright, you can go back to bed. But don’t expect that this the end of this discussion. Got it?”

“Yes, Uncle Nicholas.” Henry mumbled before his uncle and adoptive mother got on their knees and pulled him into a tight hug.

“Don’t ever do that again.” he muttered as he stroked Henry’s hair. The next morning, Regina went upstairs to wake up Henry for school while Nicholas made breakfast. As he was pouring himself a cup of coffee, Regina yelled from upstairs causing him to spill the hot liquid on his hand.

“Nicholas, Henry’s gone!”

“Sigh, again?” he asked.

As quick as they could, the two siblings went to the Sheriff’s Station and as soon as they went inside for Graham, they saw Emma behind the bars of one of the two cells. “What is she doing here? Do you know where he is?” Regina asked as she approached the cell.

“Lady, I haven’t seen him since I dropped him off at your house.” Emma replied, “And in case you haven’t noticed, I got a pretty good alibi.”

“Well, he wasn’t in his room this morning.” Regina retorted.

“Did you try his friends?” Emma asked.

“He doesn’t really have any friends.” Nicholas replied, “He’s a bit of a loner.”

“Every kid has friends. Did you check his computer?” she asked, “If he’s close to someone, he’d be emailing them.”

“And you know this how?” Regina asked.

“Finding people is what I do. Here’s an idea. How about you let me out and I’ll help you find him.”

“Done.” Nicholas replied before Regina had time to think.

In Henry’s room, Emma browsed through his computer hoping to find something. “Smart kid. He cleared his inbox. But I’m smart too. A little hard disk recovery utility I like to use…” Emma trailed as she used her little device.

“I’m a bit more old fashioned in my techniques.” said Graham trying to sound cool, “Pounding the pavement, knocking on doors, that sort of thing.”

“You’re on salary, I get paid for delivery.” Emma replied, “Pounding the pavement is not a luxury that that I get.” she said before pulling up the last website Henry went on. “There’s a receipt for a pretty expensive website. He has a credit card?” she asked.

“He’s ten.” Regina bluntly replied.

“Well, he used one. Let’s pull up a transaction record. Mary Margaret Blanchard.” Emma informed, “Who’s Mary Margaret Blanchard?”

“Henry’s teacher.” Nicholas replied with a sour look, he didn’t exactly feel like watching his older sister act like a bully to the poor woman again. When they arrived at the classroom, they saw Mary Margaret say goodbye to her students as they left the room. She was a beautiful young woman with short black hair around Nicholas’s age if not a year or two younger and had a natural friendly attitude.

“Madam Mayor, Nicholas, what are you doing here?” she asked slightly nervous at the sight of Regina.

“Where’s my son?” she asked hotly.

“Henry? I assumed he was home with you.”

“You’d think I’d be here if he was?”

“Regina,” Nicholas warned as he began to grow annoyed with her attitude.

“Did you give him your credit card so he could find her?” Regina asked as she pointed at Emma.

“I’m sorry, who’re you?” Mary Margaret asked.

“I’m-I’m his-”

“She’s the woman who gave him up for adoption.” Regina cut off.

“You don’t know anything about this, do you?” Nicholas asked already knowing the answer.

“No, unfortunately not.” Mary Margaret replied as she searched through her purse for her credit card, “Clever boy. I never should have given him that book.”

“What in the hell is this damn book I keep hearing about?” snapped Regina.

“Just some old stories I gave him. As you well know, Henry is a special; so smart, so creative, and as you might be aware, lonely. He needed it.” Mary Margaret replied.

“What he needs is a dose of reality.” Regina countered, “This is a waste of time. Have a nice trip back to Boston.” she said to Emma before leaving in a huff but not without knocking over some books.

“Well, that wasn’t a nice thing to do.” Nicholas muttered as he went over to pick up the books. “Sorry about that, Mary Margaret.”

“It’s alright, Nicholas. I’m used to it.” she replied as she helped him out, “Besides, I feel like this was partially my fault.”

“How was giving Henry a book supposed to help?” Emma asked as the three of them began to walk through the hall.

“What do you think stories are for? The classics?” Mary Margaret asked, “There’s a reason we all know them. They’re a way for us to deal with our world. A world that doesn’t always make sense. See, Regina hasn’t always been the most easy going person.”

“Yeah, she seems like a real…” Emma said before she and Mary Margaret realized who they were saying this around.

Nicholas noticed this and shrugged before saying, “Hard-ass, prima-donna, uptight, bitch? Ladies, I’ve been dealing with that woman for almost thirty years. I know better than anyone how she can get.”

“Not only that, he’s like any adopted child.” Mary Margaret added, “He wrestles with that most basic question they all inevitably ask: why would anyone give me away.” As soon as she said that, the young school teacher immediately regretted it and quickly apologized.

“It’s okay.” Emma replied.

“Look I gave him that book to him because I wanted Henry to have the most important thing anyone can have; hope. Believing in even the possibility of a happy ending is a very powerful thing.”

“No arguments here.” Nicholas agreed as he checked his watch, “Damn! I’m late!” and with that, he ran out of the school as fast as he could. About twenty minutes later, Nicholas was on the roof of a strange little building he owned. He was working on a strange looking machine that was clearly hand made from scraps.

“Alright, it’s almost ready.” he muttered.

“I hope you don’t plan on recreating your little 4th of July fiasco with that gadget of yours up there, Mister Mills.” an older man wearing an expensive suit with a cane called from the ground.

“Oh, you kill one cat and seven squirrels with fireworks one time and suddenly you’re a hazard to society.” said Nicholas, “Sounds like you’re still holding that over my, Mr. Gold.” he yelled back in annoyance.

“On the contrary, I’m just being a good citizen and looking out for the safety of my neighbors.” Gold replied flashing his gold tooth.

“Good citizen my ass!” Nicholas spat, “You’re just upset ‘cause one of my Roman Candles broke your window.”

“I still haven’t received any compensation for that window.” Gold reminded, “You may be the mayor’s younger brother, Nicholas, but this is still my town.”

“Oh, really?” he asked sarcastically, “Gee, and all this time I thought you were just wondering around town every day to show off that cane of yours and the compensation it has for you.”

“And some people say that you’re the genius of the town.” mocked Gold.

“And other people say you’re the Ebenezer Scrooge of the town even when it’s not Christmas.” Nicholas shot back.

“Well, as much I do enjoy these little conversations of ours, I do have places to be.” Gold relented, “Have a lovely day, Mister Mills. Oh, and tell that dear nephew of yours I said hello.”

“I hate that guy.” Nicholas muttered before he continued to inspect his invention. It wasn’t until hours later when Nicholas returned home only to see Henry in his room through his window and Regina steaming with anger in the den.

“So,” Nicholas trailed as he sat in his usual leather chair and pulled out a long pipe from his coat and lit a match, “How was your day?” he asked as he began to smoke.

“She’s staying.” Regina growled.

“Who?” he asked already knowing the answer.

“That Emma Swan. She’s staying for the week at Granny’s Inn.”

“Really? You don’t sound too happy about that.”

“That woman is here to take away my son-your nephew. How could I be happy?” Regina snapped.

“Is she, Regina? Is she?” Nicholas asked bluntly as he continued to smoke, “You’re being paranoid. All she did was bring Henry home after he ran away and has been trying to make sure he’s safe.”

“Safe from what, Nicholas?” his sister asked hotly.

“Anything that would hurt him. But if you continue to make yourself look bad in front of her, that perspective will change to where she will want to protect him from you.” he warned as he met Regina’s glare with his own, “She may not have raised him, but that woman has just as much maternal instinct as you do for that boy. And if you start a battle with her, the one who gets hurt in the end will be Henry. He already thinks you’re evil, try not to make it worse for yourself.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the two of them could hear the sound of the town’s old clock tower chime; for the first time since anyone could remember. “Well, what’d ya know? The clock’s started ticking.” Nicholas said with a devious grin while his sister continued to glare at him.


	2. The Thing You Love Most

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Once Upon a Time or its characters.

The next day, Nicholas once again made breakfast for his family with a happy grin on his face. He made Henry his favorite oatmeal with black berries, Regina a cup of coffee with cream and one sugar with cinnamon toast, and black coffee with marble rye toast for him. He then heard the sound of his nephew come down the stairs and watched him come in looking handsome in his school uniform.

“Morning, bed head.” Nicholas teased, it was what he called Henry every morning when he came down to eat even when his hair was neatly combed.

“Morning.” Henry replied, though it wasn’t as cheerful as it used to be. As he sat down, he looked down at the bowl and looked nervous all of a sudden.

“Better eat that while it’s still hot, kiddo.” Nicholas suggested while munching on his toast.

“I don’t like apples.” Henry muttered as he scooped the oatmeal and let it drop back into the bowl.

“Sigh, it’s honey oat, Henry.” Nicholas replied as he held up the box, “I bought it for you because you said that you didn’t like apples anymore last week. Which is odd considering that your mom and I have been feeding you apples your whole life straight from the tree outside. Then again, most people do grow tired of eating something if they eat a lot of it, so given that you’ve been eating them just about every other day for a little over nine years I guess you could already be growing tired of them.” he mused as he became lost in thought. It was then that his sister came down from her room with Henry’s book in her hands.

“The missing pages, where are they?” she asked as she held it in front of her son across the kitchen island.

Henry shrugged and said, “It’s an old book, stuff’s missing. What do you care?”

“I care because you think I’m some Evil Queen.” Regina replied, “And that hurts me, Henry. I’m your mother.”

“No, you’re not.” Henry sneered.

“Well, then, who is?” she asked, “That woman you brought here? I don’t like what she or this book are doing to you. Thankfully both are no longer an issue.”

But Henry just scoffed and left his chair leaving his uncle and mother to talk. “Both are longer an issue?” Nicholas asked, “And just how exactly do you plan on taking care of Emma Swan, sister dear?”

Regina only smirked at the question before she picked up a basket and headed outside.

“The dark curse.” replied the Evil Queen causing Nicholas to spit and choke on his coffee.

“Are you sure, your Majesty?” Henry asked.

“But you said you’d never use it.” the magic mirror reminded in fear.

“You made a deal when you gave away that curse.” Henry added.

“You traded it away. She will not be happy to see you.” Nicholas warned.

“Since when do I care about anyone else’s happiness but mine?” she asked with venom in her voice, “Prepare the carriage. You’re coming with me to the Forbidden Fortress.”

“What?!” he asked.

Later that day, the Evil Queen and Nicholas arrived at the Forbidden Fortress and sat before a fire as Maleficent spoke with them. “How are you, dears?” she asked.

“We’re doing fine.” Regina replied trying to sound friendly. Nicholas just sat there uncomfortably as Maleficent took own seat as she winked at him. This sent disgusted shivers down Nicholas’s spine.

“Are you? If it were me, I’d be simply tortured, watching that flake of snow so happy.” Maleficent commented, “Weren’t you about the same age when you were to be married before she ruined it all?” she asked, “Yes, you were.”

“Yes, it was about the same age you were when that sleeping beauty got the best of you, my dear Maleficent.” Regina retorted while Nicholas laughed through his nose.

“I soldiered on, as will you, hopefully.”

“Enough games.” Regina interrupted, “You know why we’re here. I need my curse back.”

“It’s not yours anymore.” Maleficent replied, “A deal’s a deal. I gave you my sleeping curse.”

“Which failed. Undone by a simple kiss.” Regina reminded, “Now please, return what’s mine.”

“The dark curse? Really?” Maleficent asked.

“Would we be here for any other reason?” Nicholas asked dryly.

“The both of you must know that even its unholy power can bring back the one Regina loved from the dead.” Maleficent reminded, “Besides, wasn’t destroying one kingdom enough for you, Nicholas?”

Nicholas then crushed the glass in his hand as his anger began to show itself, “Watch it, fairy.” he warned with a growl.

“You should consider a pet, Regina.” Maleficent suggested as she stroked the mane of the little black unicorn at her side. “They can be quite the comfort.”

“The only comfort for me is Snow White’s suffering.” Regina replied.

“Well, it’s her wedding night. I doubt she’s suffering right now.” remarked Maleficent.

“Depends on how bad Prince Charming is.” Nicholas thought bluntly as he pulled out his long pipe and lit it.

“I need that curse.” Regina stressed, “We know you keep it hidden in the orb above your staff.”

“Hidden for the good of all, old friend.” she replied playfully, “Whoever created that monstrosity makes the three of us look positively…moral. Who did give it to you?”

“Where I got it is none of your concern.” Regina responded as she rose from her seat. The wind began to whip and the furniture began to shake. “Hand it back!” she demanded as Nicholas stood by her side.

“Must we do this?” Maleficent asked.

“Alas, we must.” Nicholas replied as he tucked away his pipe. Regina made the first move by throwing a ball of fire at Maleficent who easily deflected it. At that point, Nicholas, using tremendous strength, picked up a rack filled with weapons, gave himself a boost of momentum with a quick spin, and tossed all the razor sharp blades at Maleficent’s pet.

“No!” she cried as she defended both herself and it. Taking the chance, Regina used her magic to trap the fallen fairy with an iron chandelier above her and tightened it around her with the weapons pointed within an inch of her face.

Nicholas then picked up her staff, smashed the orb and took the scroll which held the dark curse. “If you two are going to kill me, kill me.” Maleficent spat.

“Why would I do that?” asked Regina, “You’re my only friend.”

“Don’t do this.” she pleaded, “This curse-there are lines even we shouldn’t cross. All power comes with a price. Enacting it will take a terrible toll. It will leave an emptiness inside you-both of you. A void you will never be able to fill.”

“So be it.” Regina said flatly as she poofed herself and Nicholas back to their castle. It took nearly eight months to gather the necessary ingredients for the curse. On the night Regina decided to cast it, she summoned a group of the foulest creatures she knew of so they may fulfil their purpose for the curse. Both Henry and Nicholas stood at her sides as she gave her speech.

“Who among us is tired of losing? That’s why I called you here, to put an end to our misery.” Regina informed as her father handed her each of the ingredients which tossed into the fire before them all. “Today we claim victory and move to a new, better realm. A place where we can finally win. But first, I need something from you; a lock of hair from those with the darkest souls. You must trust me, because if you don’t, there are other ways.” she warned.

As soon as she said this, she used her magic to make the branches of the surrounding trees come closer and closer to her guests’ necks. Needless to say, they quickly tossed pieces of their hair into the fire.

“A wise decision. All that remains is the final ingredient: a prized heart,” Regina said as Henry presented her with the heart, “From my childhood steed. The glorious beast whose passing will fuel our victory. Let my wrath be unleashed.”

As the heart was tossed into the fire, the curse was activated and let loose a cyclone of purple smoke from the fire pit. However, it didn’t last more than a few seconds leaving everyone confused as to why it didn’t work. After that, a little gnome began to laugh at Regina; her response was turning him into stone.

“Why didn’t it work?” the Evil Queen asked herself.

Coming out of Granny’s Diner in Storybrooke, Emma listened to Henry as he explained to her what exactly the curse was. “So what’s the deal with you, your mom and your uncle?” she asked as they walked to Henry’s school.

“It’s not about us. It’s about their curse.” Henry replied.

“Their curse?” Emma asked, “I thought it was the Evil Queen who cast the curse.”

“Well, Nicholas didn’t cast it exactly, but he did help her do it.” Henry clarified, “Anyway, we have to break it. Luckily, I have a plan. Step one-identification. I call it Operation Cobra.”

“Cobra?” asked Emma, “That has nothing to do with fairytales.”

“Exactly. It’s a code name to throw the queen and her brother off the trail.” he explained.

“So everyone here is a fairytale character, they just don’t know it?” she asked.

“That’s the curse. Time’s been frozen, until you got here.” Henry said before noticing that Emma was about to take a bite out of an apple, “Hey! Where’d you get that?”

“Your mom.” Emma answered in confusion at his outburst.

“Don’t eat that!” he exclaimed as he took it and tossed it behind.

“Uh, alright, what about their pasts?”

“They don’t know. It’s a haze to them. Ask anyone anything, and you’ll see.”

“So for decades, people have been walking around in a haze, not aging, with screwed-up memories, stuck in a cursed town that kept them oblivious.” Emma deduced even though she didn’t believe a word of it.

“I knew you’d get it.” Henry said cheerfully, “That’s why we need you. You’re the only one who can stop their curse.”

“Because I’m the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming?”

“Yes, and right now we have the advantage. My mom and uncle don’t know that. I took out the end, the part with you in it.” Henry informed as he gave her the missing pages, “I know the hero never believes at first. If they did, it wouldn’t be a very good story. If you need proof, take them, read them, but whatever you do, don’t let them see these pages. They’re dangerous. If either of them finds out who you are…it would be bad.” he said as they arrived at the school.

“I gotta go, but I’ll find you later and we can get started. I knew you’d believe me!” he called as he went in.

“I never said I did!” Emma argued with a grin.

“Why else would you be here?” he countered as he ran past Mary Margaret.

“It’s good to see his smile back.” she said kindly as she walked up to Emma.

“I didn’t do anything.”

“You stayed.” Mary Margaret countered, “So does the mayor know you’re still here?”

“Oh, she knows.” Emma nodded, “What is her deal? She is not a great people person. I could understand her brother but how did she get elected and not him?”

“Nicholas isn’t really into politics and she’s been the mayor as long as I can remember. No one’s ever been brave enough to run against her. Fact of the matter is he’s the only one not intimidated by her. She inspires quite a bit of…well, fear. I’m afraid I only made that worse by giving Henry that book. Now he thinks she’s the Evil Queen.”

“I meant to ask him, but who does he think Nicholas is?” Emma asked.

“After he told me who he thought everyone else was I asked him the same question.” Mary Margaret explained before taking a deep breath and exhale from her worry, “And then he told me that the Evil Queen’s brother was a terrible monster capable of wiping out an entire kingdom in just a single night.”

“Wow.” was all Emma said while Mary Margaret just nodded, “I guess Disney forgot about him and that little detail when he made that movie.” she joked causing both of them to laugh. “But seriously, Nicholas a monster? The guy’s a complete 180 of his sister. He’s actually friendly, and nice, and a people person.”

“I know, I know. But nowadays, Henry can’t even look at him without looking a little scared. He’s been like the father he never had for Henry. Ever since Regina brought him here, he’s helped her raise him. All because of what he read in that book.”

“Who does he think you are?” Emma asked.

“Oh, it’s silly.” chuckled the teacher.

“I just got five minutes of silly. Lay it on me.” Emma smirked.

“Snow White.” she replied, “Who does think you are?”

Emma paused for a moment before telling her that she wasn’t in the book.

Soon after the dark creatures left, Henry and his son consoled Regina as she stared at the extinguished fire pit. “Maybe it’s for the best. The forces you’re summoning are darker than we can conceive.”

“Oh, now you’re trying to protect me?” Regina asked hotly.

“It’s what we do.” he replied with love.

“I know. You’re the only ones who do.”

“Helping you is my life.” Henry added.

“Well, then help me understand why this curse isn’t working.”

“If you want to know that, then you need to go back to the person who gave it to you in the first place.” Nicholas provided, “Revenge is a dark and lonely road. Once you go down it there is no turning back.”

“What is there for me to head back to, Nicholas?” Regina asked softly.

In Storybrooke, Nicholas walked up to his sister on the ground picking up apples next a severed branch from her tree. “The hell happened to the tree?” he asked as he smoked.

“Three guesses who.” Regina bluntly replied.

“Ah. So my options are your temper, your paranoia or Emma Swan who was pissed at you and retaliated against that frame job you set her up on this morning.” Nicholas listed off as he blew a puff of smoke.

“Are you just going to stand there and watch the clouds go by or you going to help me?” his sister asked harshly.

“Oh, I’d rather jam this thing and all its hot cinders up your nose after I heard that stunt you pulled with Emma at your office earlier.” Nicholas retorted as he examined his pipe.

“It was for his own good. Now Henry knows what that woman really thinks of him.”

“Goddammit, Regina!” he snapped gaining her attention, “This is exactly what I was talking about. You’re letting your personal issues with this woman cloud your view on how you should actually be handling the situation. And in case you have your head stuck too far up your ass to not know what that is, allow me to clarify: stop making it look like you’re mistreating Henry.”

“How am I mistreating him?”

“Well, for one thing, you went as far as to break his little heart by tricking Emma into saying this whole fairytale thing of his is crazy right in front of him.” he snapped, “Sometimes I think you forget that while you may have your hands in everything in this town, there’s only one person that has your back; me. And if you pull another stunt that hurts Henry like that again, I’ll go over to Team Swan in a heartbeat, sister dear. Got it?”

“Is that so?” Regina asked as she stood up.

“You may be my sister, Regina. But Henry is my nephew and a child. He’s not as hardened as we are. You might want to remember that before you do something that’ll break his spirit again.” Nicholas warned as he stomped off.

In the Enchanted Forest, Nicholas watched his sister through the magic mirror as she placed a black rose on their father’s grave after she enacted the dark curse. Tears streamed down his face over the death of his father and of what his sister had become as the smoke of the curse enveloped him.


	3. That Still Small Voice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own OUaT or its characters.

A few days after Emma and Regina’s first battle, Nicholas found himself enjoying a mug of beer over at Granny’s. It was late and the diner was getting ready to clean up before closing for the night. Aside from himself and the staff, Mary Margaret and Dr. Whale were sitting at a table on a date. 

Personally, Nicholas wasn’t entirely fond of the doctor, given his reputation for being a bit of a pervert, so naturally he wasn’t happy that he was on a date with his friend. Especially when he was openly staring at Ruby’s butt while Mary Margaret was talking. Needless to say, the date didn’t end well and Mary Margaret ended up paying.

A few minutes later outside, Dr. Whale was strolling down Main Street without a care in the world. That is until he was suddenly pulled into an ally on his right. Surprise, surprise, it was Nicholas.

“That was a lousy thing to do, Whale.” he spat as he pressed the doctor against the wall, “A gentleman,” he said as he kneed him in the gut, “Always,” elbowed his spine, “Pays,” grabbed his hair before punching pervert doctor in the nose, “For the date!”

“It’s not like I was getting anywhere with her.” Whale reasoned as he tried to picked himself up and wiped the blood off his face.

“No excuses!” Nicholas countered as kicked Whale in the chin knocking him face down on the ground. He then felt around for Whale’s wallet, “Don’t think you’re getting anywhere with me tonight just because my hands are a little down south. I don’t judge, but I don’t swing that way. Aha!” he said as he found the wallet, “Let’s see here, you, a doctor, let a fourth grade teacher pay for a crappy date when you have…$340 in cash. Wow.” he said in disappointment.

Nicholas then took the money and looked down the street to see Mary Margaret talking with Emma in her yellow bug. Taking the chance, he walked behind Mary Margaret and slipped the money in her purse without either her or Emma noticing. It was quick, but he did catch that the school teacher was offering Emma a spare room in her apartment. Regina wasn’t going to like that.

But it’s not like he was going to be the one to tell her. The next couple of days Nicholas kept himself preoccupied with his inventions; he even missed the whole lost John Doe event and Ashley Boyd’s little act of rebellion before giving birth to her daughter. Turns out the man was a local named David Nolan and married to one of the teachers at the school.

Now, you’re probably wondering what kind of inventions Nicholas has, right? Well, the list is too long for all of them to be explained. He was sort of the “Doc Brown” of Storybrooke, always spending his time when he wasn’t helping around town with his inventions. Don’t worry, he hadn’t been looking for a DeLorean lately so he’s not too much like Doc.

But besides that, three days after Mr. Nolan was found, Nicholas was taking a much needed nap in his house’s den; unfortunately, he wasn’t having pleasant dreams. In his dream, a young child with the same hair and eye color as his own was bound in chains wearing a filthy white tunic and sandals standing on a wooden platform in a desert before a roaring crowd.

It was then that a fat ugly middle aged man grabbed the boy’s hair and presented a better look at his face for the crowd. “Yes, ladies and gentlemen, a fine specimen right here!” he shouted, “A rare breed he is in these lands. Freshly caught from the Enchanted Forest. Young, healthy and ready to serve. You won’t find a better looking slave than this one. Just take a look at the hair and eye color. Brown as mud. Perfect for working out in the dirt with all the other mongrels. Let’s start the bidding at ten silver pieces!”

“Fourteen!” a woman cried over the shouting.

“I hear fourteen silver pieces. Do I hear fifteen?” the slave trader asked. The boy’s eyes looked soulless and filled with despair as he watched the crowd bid on him.

“Seventeen!” shouted a man.

“Seventeen!” the slave trader cried back, “Do I hear eighteen?”

“Thirty!” one man shouted causing the crowd to gasp and clear the way for him. He was an older bald man roughly in his late forties with pale skin, golden eyes and golden eyebrows dressed in violet robes. “I’ll pay thirty silver pieces.”

“Thirty silver pieces going one, going twice…sold to the gentleman from the east!” the slave trader happily cried as he finally let go of the boy’s hair. Minutes later, he was thrown into a cage being hauled by the wagon owned by the man who purchased him. Later that day, the boy had his shackles taken off and was given a broom as his master brought him to one of his many rooms.

“You are the twenty-third slave of this house. Now get to work.” he said as he left the boy to sweep the sand covered floors. As soon as he slammed the door, Nicholas awoke with a loud gasp and cold sweat.

Panting and looking around the room to catch his bearings, he saw Regina hurry over to him looking worried. “Nicholas. What’s wrong?”

It took him a moment to steady his breath and compose himself before he replied, “It’s nothing, sister. Nothing at all. Just a bad dream.”

“Do you need anything?” she asked in concern.

“No. Thank you, but I’m fine. I just need a moment.”

“Of course. But if you ever need anything, you know I’ll be there for you.” said Regina as she rose and placed a kiss on her brother’s forehead before leaving the room. It took him a while, but Nicholas finally calmed down enough to leave the house and go into town. Although, he still looked shaken from his dream. Night had fallen and everything seemed alright and quiet, that is until a massive earthquake shook the town.

Nicholas was able to discover the source of the earthquake when he saw a group of people head over to the area where the old town mines were located. By the time he got there, both his sister and Graham arrived in their cars to control the situation and forming crowd. Oddly enough, Emma got out of the car with him; he quickly noticed the badge on her belt and realized that she was Graham’s new deputy.

“Everyone, please step back.” Regina said to them.

“Is that a crater?” Ruby asked Marco, the town’s carpenter.

“No, there were tunnels, uh, old mines. Something must’ve collapsed.”

“Sheriff, set up a police perimeter.” Regina ordered, “Ms. Swan, this is now official town business. You’re free to go.” she said to the blonde.

“Well, actually, I work for the town now.” Emma replied.

“She’s my new deputy.” Graham clarified.

“They say the mayor’s always last to know.” Regina said obviously displeased with this choice.

“It’s in my budget.” Graham defended.

“Well, it can’t hurt to have an extra arm of the law now, could it?” Nicholas asked as he joined them.

“Nicholas, haven’t seen you in a while.” Emma noted.

“Well, I’ve been busy.” he replied, “How about you set up a perimeter before my sister here orders you to do it in her usual rude manner?” This earned him a glare from his older sibling.

“People of Storybrooke, don’t be alarmed.” Regina reassured as she gave her speech to the crowd, “We’ve always know this area was honeycombed with old mining tunnels, but fear not. I’m going to undertake a project to make this area safe, to rehabilitate it into city use. We will bulldoze it, collapse it, pave it.”

“Pave it?” Henry asked as he approached her, “What if there’s something down there?”

“Henry, what are you doing here?” Nicholas asked as he went over to his family.

“What’s down there?” Henry asked.

“Nothing, now step back.” Regina said, “In fact, everyone, please, step back.” As the crowd cleared, Nicholas picked up a piece of glass and hid it in his coat pocket.

“What was that?” Henry asked Emma.

“Henry, enough.” Regina snapped as she and Nicholas took him to her car, “Listen, this is a safety issue. Wait for us in the car. Deputy, Sheriff, cordon off the area.” she said to the law enforcers. However, he didn’t stay there long and had his own little conversation with Emma and Archie.

Nicholas spotted this and went over to fetch him, “Henry, we told you to wait in the car.” he said as he took him back to the vehicle and kept an eye on him. While he waited for his sister, Nicholas spotted her having a heated, one sided conversation with Archie. Normally he could read lips, but they were far enough away to where he couldn’t make it out without his reading glasses. Though, he could tell that Regina had definitely made a threat against him.

“What was that about?” he asked with a glare as Regina got her keys out.

“Nothing.” she said meeting his glare with her own, “Just clearing some things up with Dr. Hopper is all.” she replied as they got in.

The next day, Nicholas was enjoying a cup of coffee with his Ruben from Granny’s as he worked in the designs for his next invention. As he took a sip his phone went off showing the caller ID was Emma’s.

“Go for Nicholas.” he answered.

“Your sister is the devil.” Emma spat over the phone.

“Tell me something I don’t know.” he muttered as he ran his hand through his hair, “What’s she done now?”

“She made Archie tell Henry that he needed to end this whole curse nonsense or else he would have to be locked up like a crazy person if he didn’t.”

“Oh,” Nicholas asked growing deathly quiet in anger, “Is that so? Emma, the next time you see Regina, don’t be surprised if you find some scars on her face aside from the one on her lip later today.”

“Worry about that later. Henry’s gone down to the mines to look for proof of the curse.”

“He’s what?!” Nicholas shouted as he rose out of his seat, “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

As he arrived he saw Emma, Archie and Archie’s Dalmatian Pongo looking around the entrance of the mine as they called for Henry. “I don’t think he’s here.” Emma said to them.

“He’s here.” Nicholas replied as he went over to Archie and saw a candy bar on the ground. “What ten-year-old wouldn’t take candy bars as food supplies?” he asked just as the ground began to shake again.

“Henry!” Archie called out, “Henry, it’s not safe!” he shouted as he went into the mine.

“Archie, Henry! Emma and Nicholas cried, but it was too late, Archie and Henry were trapped inside. Nicholas wasted no time in calling his sister, Graham, a group of contractors, and other people to help them.

“Archie’s smart. He will keep the boy safe until we get to them.” Marco reassured as the workers tried to remove the rubble and debris. Unfortunately, another tremor suddenly occurred.

“Stop! Stop!” Regina cried as the shaking subsided, “You’re making it worse!”

“I am trying to save him!” Emma retorted, “You know why he went down there in the first place, don’t you? Because you made him feel like he had something to prove.”

“And why does he think he has to prove anything? Who’s encouraging him?” Regina accused.

“Do not put this on me.” Emma warned.

“Oh, please! Lecture me until his oxygen runs out!” she shouted.

“Enough!” Nicholas cried, “The two of you can do this sort of bickering AFTER we get Henry and Archie out of there. And if you two can’t do even that, so help me I will throw both of you in that mine. Got it?!”

“What do you want me to do?” Emma asked Regina after they took in what Nicholas said.

“Help me. We need to find some way to punch through the ground.” Regina suggested.

“There’s a better way.” Nicholas corrected, “Miners dig out tunnels that lead to the surface for air in situations such as this. If we could at least find an air shaft or an old elevator, we could send someone down and bring them up.”

“Where would something like that be?” Emma asked as Nicholas noticed Pongo with Ruby.

“Ruby, let the dog go.” he said to her.

“O-okay, why?” she asked as she fumbled with the leash.

“He’ll be able to sniff out the air flow from the mine.” He replied as he followed the dog a little way up the hill.

“This is where they must be.” Emma said as Nicholas cleared off all the dirt and grass, “Quick, bring over the lift!” she called to the workers.

“No time.” Nicholas said as he rolled up his sleeves and attempted to take off the cover.

“Nicholas, I don’t think you’re gonna be able to-”

“Gah!” he cried as he pulled off the cover with ease and tossed it away leaving everyone impressed.

“Hello, Mr. Mills.” Ruby muttered as she checked out Nicholas. He didn’t hear her, but Emma did and gave the waitress a baffled look.

“Alright, bring the lift and a harness belt over here!” Nicholas called out. As they came over, Emma managed to convince Regina to let her be the one to get them out, which she did in succession.

Later that day after the small family of three went home and Henry was put to bed, Regina found her brother in his usual chair in their den. And he did not look happy.

“Have a seat, sister dear.” he said as he gestured to the couch next to him. Regina did so without question.

“You look like you have something you want to get off your chest.” she observed.

“Indeed I do.” he said softly in anger, “There I was in my office today, enjoying my lunch and working on a new invention. When suddenly, I received a phone call from Deputy Swan who had something rather interesting to say.”

Regina just sat and slightly fidgeted in discomfort.

“She told me that you told Dr. Hopper to…adjust his methods regarding Henry’s therapy. Shortly after we got him out of the mines, I asked him what it was you said to him exactly. And they both told me that you threatened the good doctor with ruining his life if he didn’t obey you. They told me that you told him to take Henry’s imagination and his belief of the curse and…what was it again? Crush it?”

Regina said nothing. She wasn’t easily intimidated, but the Mills family was skilled in that field; and Nicholas had always been able to put her intimidation skills to shame. All she could do was try to swallow the lump forming in her throat.

“I warned you the other day about how your actions can hurt Henry. Now, I’m not going to go over to Team Swan. Not just yet. But I am warning you, you have two more chances. That’s all I’m giving to you. If you ruin those two chances and Henry gets hurt, you will have to deal with me and all the dirt I have on you, Regina. And you don’t want that.”

“No. I don’t.” she whispered, “I can assure you, brother, I will not be so careless with my actions again.”

“Good.” Nicholas nodded as the fire place shined in his eyes.

“But know this,” Regina informed as she gave her own glare, “Henry is my son. And I will not lose him to that woman. I will do whatever it takes to keep her away from him. And in the end, the only one who’ll be hurt will be Emma Swan as she realizes she’s lost and is on her way out of my town.”

“We shall see.” Nicholas replied as Regina stood up to leave the den, “Oh, right. I almost forgot something.” he said stopping her in her tracks, “Just before we left, I heard the sound of crickets chirping down by the mines. Strange isn’t it? I can’t remember the last time I heard crickets here in Storybrooke. Can you, sister dear?” he asked smugly while Regina was fuming with anger as she stomped up the stairs.

“Won’t be long now.” Nicholas muttered to himself.


	4. The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own OUaT or its characters.

A couple of days after the mine incident, Nicholas was having his usual evening stroll through town. Feeling happy, Nicholas decided to pop in Granny’s for a cup of coffee and say hi to his friends. As he walked in, he saw some of the customers watching Graham hit a bull’s eye on the diner’s dart board.

“Nice shot, chief.” Sidney complimented from his booth, “Bet ya twenty bucks you can’t do that again.” he dared.

Graham took another shot from Ruby and threw another dart hitting the exact same spot as the last two. “Next round’s on him.” he said to Ruby as Emma came from the restroom. Though she didn’t seem too happy to see the sheriff.

“Emma, what can I get you?” Ruby asked.

“Nothing.” she replied as she glared at Graham. As she walked past him, he took one of the darts and threw it in her direction and hit the door frame.

“What the hell?” she asked, “You could have hit me.”

“I never miss.” Graham defended with a slight slur in his voice, “You’ve been avoiding me since last night when you saw me.”

“Leaving the mayor.” Emma finished bluntly.

“Oh, boy.” Nicholas muttered.

“And, yes, that is a euphemism. I’m not avoiding you, Graham. I just have no interest in having this conversation.” she defended, “It’s your life, and I really don’t care.”

As Emma left, Graham followed her. Nicholas waited a few moments before heading outside just to make sure his old buddy didn’t do anything he would regret the next morning. What he saw next was a shocker, he saw Graham pull Emma into a kiss.

“The hell was that?!” she asked as Nicholas came over.

“What’s going on here?” he asked.

“Did you see that?” Graham asked looking shocked and somewhat scared.

“How much have you been drinking?” Emma asked, “That was way over the line.”

“I’m sorry. I just-”

“What? You what?”

“I need to feel something.”

“Graham, buddy, listen to me.” Nicholas coaxed, “You’re drunk and full of regret. We get that. But whatever it is you are looking to feel, I can tell you one thing. Emma’s not gonna let you get it with her. Am I right?” he asked the deputy.

“Oh, hell yeah.” she nodded as she walked away in a huff

“Emma, I’m sorry!” Graham called out only to be ignored.

“Come on, man. Let’s get you home.” Nicholas said to his friend only to be shrugged away.

“Oh, I’m fine.” Graham whined, “I-I don’t feel anything with Regina, Nicholas. I’m sorry, I don’t. I’m just so confused and lost right now. All I want is to feel something for a change.”

“Hey, look at me.” Nicholas coached, “You have nothing to be sorry for. Okay? If you don’t feel anything, then break things off. Your happiness counts too, ya know.”

“Thank you.” Graham said as he pulled Nicholas into a hug, “Thank you, Nicholas. You’re a true friend.”

“I’ve always got your back, Graham.” he said as he patted him on the back, “Now go home and get some rest. And no detours. Got it?”

“Right.” Graham nodded. Unfortunately, he did make a detour to Regina and kept themselves preoccupied for the night.

In the Enchanted Forest, Queen Regina looked down from the balcony and watched as her step-daughter placed flowers on her father’s grave. “Goodbye, Father.” Snow said as tears began to form in her eyes.

It was then that the queen with her brother at her side walked up behind her and offered their condolences. “We’re so sorry, Snow.” lied Regina.

“I loved him so much.” Snow whispered as the tears began to fall.

Regina then pulled her into a hug and continued her act. Only Nicholas actually felt sorry for his step-niece as she sobbed in his sister’s embrace. “So did I, dear. So did I. The loss I feel for my husband must be nothing compared to the loss you feel for your father. If there is anything we can do, please let us know. We may only be your mother and uncle through marriage, but we’re here for you, dear. Truly and forever.”

Snow White believed every word and pulled her step-mother into another hug. After they left Snow to her grief, they returned inside to the lounge. “Congratulations.” said the magic mirror, “Your revenge is almost complete, my queen.”

“One down. One to go.” she said in triumph as Nicholas plopped at his desk with a sigh.

“She has no idea, does she?” the mirror asked.

“That I’m responsible for his passing?” Regina asked, “She sought comfort with me. Sickening.” she spat, “I could have ended her miserable existence right there. Believe me it was tempting.”

Nicholas just shook his head as he began to jot down more of his research notes as his sister spoke. “The kingdom’s still loyal to her, however. They would turn on me if anything had happened to her. They don’t know the wretchedness inside her as I do. They don’t know what she did to me. We must be delicate in this next phase. Her demise must be handled with care.”

“Are you going to give the task to one of your knights, then?” Nicholas asked not looking up from his notes.

“No.” she replied, “I need someone adept at murder, bereft of mercy.”

“Someone with no heart.” the mirror summed up.

“Now you understand.”

“Sounds like you need a huntsman.” Nicholas suggested in a bored tone. The mirror then showed the queen a huntsman mercilessly kill two men in a nearby tavern in an instant.

“He’s perfect.” smiled Regina wickedly, “Bring him to me.”

In Storybrooke, Emma walked into Granny’s and found Nicholas sitting in the corner booth reading the paper and drinking coffee. “Hey.” she greeted as she walked up to him.

“Hey.”

“Did you know Graham was sleeping with your sister?” Emma asked getting to the point.

“Well, that’s definitely not something a younger brother wants to hear as he enjoys his coffee.” Nicholas said in disgust, “But to answer your question, I knew they were…an item, if you can call it that.”

“Why didn’t you tell me when you learned I’d taken the job as Graham’s deputy.” she asked grinning at the look on his face.

“Well, what guy wants to discuss his big sister and best friend’s sex life?” Nicholas asked bluntly, “Besides, it wasn’t my place to spread the word on that and I figured either Graham would tell you as soon as he felt guilty enough or whenever Regina decided to flaunt it in your face.”

“Sounds about right.” Emma nodded, “Though I would’ve preferred either of those instead of watching him climb out her window the other night.”

“Trying having to hear them go at it. Before Henry came along, they would often forget I was in the house, if you catch my drift.” Nicholas said bluntly.

“Yeah, I-I got it.” Emma said growing disgusted as well, “By the way, have you seen Graham? Mary Margaret called earlier and told me he’s been wondering around town looking sick all day.”

“Nope, haven’t seen him. He might be at the animal shelter, doing his rounds, or maybe waiting for Regina back at our place. I think he might be breaking it off with her soon.” he informed.

“You think he might be there?”

“Maybe.” Nicholas shrugged.

“As long as your sister’s not there, then that’s where I’ll head first. You coming?”

“Can’t. I got a couple of errands to run before it gets dark. Though, call me if Graham gets too out of control.”

“Right. See ya later.” Emma said as she left the dinner.

As night fell, both Nicholas and Regina, each holding a bouquet of flowers walked up to their family mausoleum. As they got closer, Nicholas noticed one of the doors was open and the sound of voices could be heard and the light from a flashlight could be seen.

Regina, however, managed to see who was inside; it was Graham and Emma for some reason. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she asked them from outside.

“What are you two doing here?” Emma asked as they came out.

“Bringing flowers to our father’s grave like we do every Wednesday.” Regina replied.

“Don’t blame her.” Graham defended, “It’s my fault. I wanted to look in there.”

“Why’s that?” Nicholas asked, “What were you looking for?”

“Nothing.” Graham replied, though it was clearly a lie, “It was, uh…nothing.

“You don’t look well, dear.” Regina observed, “Let’s take you home.” she as she tried to pull him along.

“No, I-I don’t want to go home.” Graham refused as he pulled away, “Not with you.”

“Oh? But you’ll go with her?” Regina asked.

“Hey, this is between you two. Leave me out of it.” Emma said.

“She’s right.” Graham replied, “It’s between us, and things have to change.”

“And I wonder why that is all of a sudden.”

“It has nothing to do with her.” he defended, “You know, I’ve realized that I don’t feel anything, Regina, and I know now it’s not me. It’s you.”

“So you’re leaving me for her.” Regina accused.

“I’m leaving you for me.”

“Graham, you’re not thinking straight.” Regina tried to reason.

“Actually, for the first time, I am. I’d rather have nothing than little for less. Nothing is better than what we have. I need to feel something, Regina, and the only way to do that is to give myself the chance.”

“Graham.” Regina begged.

“I’m sorry. It’s over.” he said looking her in the eyes.

Regina took in what just happen and directed her glare over at the blonde across from her, “I don’t know what I ever did to you, Ms. Swan, to deserve this. To have you keep coming after everything I hold dear.” she said on the verge of tears.

“I told you, it’s not her.” defended Graham.

“None of this happened until she got here.” Regina argued.

“I’m sorry, but have you ever stopped to think that maybe the problem isn’t with me, but with you?” Emma asked having enough of Regina’s accusations.

“Excuse me?” Regina asked.

“I don’t like where this is going.” Nicholas thought.

“Henry came and found me. Graham kissed me. Both were miserable. Maybe, Madam Mayor, you need to take a good, hard look in the mirror and ask yourself why that is. How long do you think it’s going to take before even Nicholas decides to leave you? Why is everyone running away from you?” Emma asked.

“Now hold on just a min-” Nicholas began to say only to stop as he watched his sister throw a punch at the deputy’s jaw. “Regina!” he shouted with Graham as Emma got back up and slugged his sister in the face before pinning her against the mausoleum.

Just as she was about to punch her again, Nicholas grabbed her fist, twisted it behind her back and pulled her away while pressing his other hand against Regina to keep her in place. “Enough! Both of you!” he shouted, “Sheriff, take Deputy Swann anywhere but here. And you,” he said to his sister, “You and I are going to drop these off, pay our respects to father and then you’re going back to your office. Understand?!” he asked them as he let them go.

Emma huffed for a moment before walking off, “Not worth it.” she spat at Regina as she and Graham left.

In the Evil Queen’s bedchamber, the Huntsman laid awake in her bed covered with sweat and feeling a bitter emptiness inside. The woman who hired him to take a life, the woman sleeping next to him, ended up being the to take his life; only not giving him the freedom of death. Instead of bringing her the heart of Snow White, he brought her the heart of a stag instead because he showed the princess mercy. So the queen retaliated by taking his own heart and used him as her own personal pet.

“Psst.” he heard coming from the open balcony doors, “Psst!”

Wondering what the noise was, the Huntsman climbed out of bed and went outside. He looked around and saw nothing and just as he was about to return to bed, something pulled him over the balcony and made him fall into the bushes below.

“Thank goodness you decided not to yell on the way down.” Nicholas said as he approached the confused hunter. In one hand were the Huntsman’s clothes and weapons, and in the other his red, glowing heart. “You may want to put these on before you catch something.” he said as he tossed him his clothes.

“Wait, I-I don’t understand.” the Huntsman said in confusion, “Why, why are you helping me?” he asked as he got dressed.

“If there’s one thing in this world I can’t stand, it’s any innocent creature being kept a slave against his will.” Nicholas replied, “Trust me, I speak from experience. Being someone’s property is a lowly feeling. I made a vow to myself that if I could help it, I would free any person who deserves freedom from their enslavement.”

“Even if I do manage to escape, the queen will just find me again. And I don’t think she’ll be willing to keep me alive next time.”

“Don’t worry about, I’ve already made sure that she won’t be able to find you any time soon. That mirror of hers is exactly the bravest of souls.” Nicholas smirked before shoving the heart back into his chest, “Now get out of here while there’s still time.”

“Thank you.” the Huntsman said happily as he made his escape.

“Regina,” Nicholas said as he looked up at the balcony above, “What have you become?”

As Nicholas and his sister placed their flowers on their father’s grave, Regina walked around to its side with an angry look on her face. “What are you doing?” he asked as Regina began to push it. Beneath the coffin, a hidden stair case was revealed and Regina made her way down them with Nicholas at her heels.

As she walked into the depths of her secret vault, Regina went over to her heart collection and pulled out one of the many she owned. Nicholas didn’t need to ask who it belonged to, he already figured it out.

“You took it back?” he asked in horror.

“Just before the curse hit, I found our dear Huntsman in the woods and decided to re-add him to my collection.” Regina replied with a grin Nicholas hadn’t seen since the Enchanted Forest, “And I wasn’t about to let your compassion rob me of the leverage I had over him. He failed me when I asked him to kill Snow White, so told him if he ever disobeyed me, all I had to do was squeeze.”

And squeeze she did. Nicholas tried to stop his sister, but he hadn’t realized she was squeezing it the whole time she was talking. So just as he was about to take it from her, it was reduced to dust. Nicholas sighed in defeat, for he knew that his friend was now dead and if Emma was still with him, he would be receiving a call from her in tears any second.

“You may have had me worried about all the dirt you had on me for a while, Nicholas.” his sister admitted, “But then I remembered that while I have none one you, there was something I could use against you should you ever decided to turn against me. Your love of the people in this town and your ridiculous idea of the ‘friendships’ you’ve made with them.” she said in his ear.

“Now, I may not have the hearts of all your so-called friends, but I’m still mayor of this town. And if I wanted to, I could make anyone of them disappear and no one would be none the wiser. So if you ever feel like threatening your big sister again, just remember, I run this town. And everyone in it.” Regina spat as she walked past him.

“Hey, Regina,” Nicholas said as she walked up the first few step.

“What?” she barked.

“You might wanna clean your lip up a little bit. You still got some blood on it thanks to Ms. Swan.” he mocked dryly as she stormed off. As soon as she left, his phone went off, he didn’t need to look at the caller ID, he just answered it.

“Hello?” he asked hoarsely.

“Nicholas,” Emma said through her tears, “Graham-Graham’s dead!” she wailed.

“I’ll be over there soon, Emma.” he said to his friend still lacking emotion in his voice.

After the funeral several days later, Nicholas stood alone before Graham’s grave. While he had only encountered him the one time in the Enchanted Forest, he had twenty-eight years of friendship with the man in Storybrooke.

He didn’t shed a single tear since he saw his sister crush his friend’s heart. The last time he allowed himself to cry was when Regina killed their father in order to enact the curse. Before that was…well, when his life changed tremendously thanks to someone he thought was his friend.

As Nicholas stared at the tombstone lost in thought, he heard the soft sound of whimpering coming from a wolf sitting by his leg. It was gray and had two unique eyes, one red as blood, the other black as night. It was the Huntsman’s old companion.

“Yeah,” Nicholas said as he gently rubbed the wolf’s head to comfort it, “I miss him too.”

While Nicholas was known to be a gentle soul, he could feel a raging fire of anger in his stomach. While he loved his sister, he knew that she needed to be stopped. While he knew he wasn’t the one to do it, he knew who was and as long as his Regina kept taking action the way she was, he knew it wouldn’t be long before Emma Swan, the Savior, would break the curse.

All he had to do was wait and then he could set his own plans in motion.


	5. Desperate Souls

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own OUaT or its characters.

A long time ago, in a desert devoid of life, a younger Nicholas with longer hair wearing old robes and sandals stumbled through the sand dunes about ready to pass out from the heat and lack of water.

He muttered to himself strange words and names, though due to his dry lips, the words couldn’t be understood. As his strength left him, he collapsed and rolled down the hot sand dune falling unconscious as his hood came off.

Sometime later, a group of men riding camels came along and noticed the man’s body. Each of them were dressed for the environment but it was clear that they had quite a bit of money to their name’s.

“He’s got brown hair.” one of them observed as they surrounded his body, “Not very common in these lands. He must be from the west.”

“Oh, well. I guess we should at least take the time to bury him.” another man suggested as he took a shovel ready to bury the body. However, Nicholas’s body twitched as he grunted in pain sending the men into shock.

“Wait, he’s still alive!” one of them cried.

“Impossible!”

“Just hang on!”

“Hey, are you alright?!” they asked in concern for him, “Water! Get him some water!”

As they helped elevate him, one of the men was kind enough to cover Nicholas’s head with his hat for shade as another gave him some of their water.

“Just drink it nice and slow.” he coached, “Only take little sips. Can you understand us?” he asked, “We’re traveling merchants from Arendelle.”

But Nicholas was too weak to respond. The merchants then helped drape him over one of their spare camels so they could take him along with them across the desert.

“What were you doing out here in the desert?” one of them asked.

“…I’ve got nowhere else to go. No place to return to.” Nicholas whispered, “I had to get as far away from there as I could. Too scared.”

The merchants were confused by what he was saying and looked at each other hoping someone understood what he meant. “I’m sorry.” Nicholas apologized, “I’m sorry, I couldn’t stop him. I’m sorry.” he whispered as he began to cry, “I’m so sorry, everyone.”

**OUaT**

Two weeks after Graham’s passing, Emma received a phone call from Mr. Gold for her to stop by his pawn shop. “Gold,” Emma called as she entered, “You in here?” she asked before finding the man in the back of his shop and a foul odor in the air, “Oh! What is that smell?”

“Oh, this is lanolin. Used for waterproofing.” Gold replied.

“It smells like livestock.” shuddered Emma.

“Well, it is the reason why sheeps’ wool repels water.”

“It stinks. Um, if there was a reason you called the sheriff’s department, if you want to talk about that quickly or outside.”

“Yes.” Gold nodded, “I just wanted to, uh, express my condolences really. The sheriff was a good man. You’re still wearing the deputy’s badge.” he observed, Well, he’s been gone two weeks now. And I believe that after two weeks of acting as sheriff, the job becomes yours. You’ll have to wear the real badge.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Emma somewhat agreed, “I’m just not in a hurry. So, um, thank you for the kind words.”

“I have his things.” Gold alerted as Emma was about to leave.

“What?”

“The sheriff.” Gold clarified, “He rented an apartment that I own. Another reason for my call, really. I wanted to offer you a keepsake.”

“I don’t need anything.” Emma denied.

“As you wish. I’ll give them to Mayor Mills.” Gold replied, “It seems like she was the closest thing he had to family.”

“I’m not sure about that.” Emma commented as she took a look inside the box which help Graham’s belongings.

“No love lost there, I see.” Gold mussed, “I’d offer you his jacket, but I called Mr. Mills this morning and offered it to him. He and the sheriff were rather close friends and despite our differences, I felt that Nicholas deserved a bit more of his friend than just memories.” he informed as he pulled out a pair of walkie-talkies.

“Your boy might like these, don’t you think?” he offered kindly, “You could play together.”

“I don’t-”

“No, please. They…they grow up so fast.” Gold reasoned.

“Thanks.” said Emma as she took the walkies, “You said that you and Nicholas have some differences?” she asked.

“Yes, well…let’s just say, our first meeting was a bit…less than as friendly as yours.” Gold replied mysteriously.

**OUaT**

“So this is Arendelle?” Nicholas asked as he and one of the merchants he befriended walked through the streets.

“Yes indeed,” he replied proud of his home, “Now, it’ll be a few days for the next ship to take us to the Enchanted Forest and from then it’ll be a week’s journey to it’s port. Why is it you wish to go there?” he asked.

“I was born there. I was captured by slave traders when I was young and I was sold to a man from the desert kingdom. Hopefully, I’ll be able to find my family once I return.” Nicholas replied.

“I see.”

“By the way, could you point me in the direction of a tailor?” Nicholas asked, “While these are some of the kingdom’s finer robes, they are still the clothes of a slave and I’d rather leave that life behind.”

“Of course.” his friend nodded, “Just down the road across from the fruit stand is the best tailor in the kingdom. He’ll set you up good and right. Just tell him to charge the bill to me.” he advised.

“Thank you.” Nicholas nodded, about an hour later, he came out of the shop wearing a charcoal gray button down shirt, a dark turquoise vest with flower and vine designs on it with a matching tie and dark slacks. Draped over his arm was a forest green trench coat that he quickly put on. The only thing he left on from his previous wardrobe were his sandals.

“Well, now,” his friend said looking impressed, “Don’t you look dashing.”

“Think so?” Nicholas asked while the merchant nodded. He then caught a glimpse of a strange looking shop across the street next to the fruit stand. An elder Asian man stood outside and tried to welcome customers in. “What’s that place over there?”

“A new business set up by travelers from the east. People can get images or word imprinted on their skin permanently. I believe they call them, ‘tattoos.’ Personally, I wouldn’t get one, but some people like the idea of them.”

“Can they do custom designs?” Nicholas asked.

“I’d say so, yes.” 

“…I’ll be right back.” he informed before entering the tattoo parlor. A little while later, he came out taking careful steps and wincing as though he were in pain.

“So,” his friend asked, “What’d you get?”

“I’ll tell you later.” Nicholas replied before glaring at him, “Why didn’t you tell me getting those things hurt like hell?!”

“You didn’t ask.” he replied with a hearty laugh before smacking Nicholas on the back causing him to loudly hiss in pain, “Oh, got one on your back, did you?”

“Big one.” Nicholas grunted.

“What did you get?”

“I’ll tell you later.” he said as he walked off.

OUaT

After night fell on Storybrooke, Nicholas came out of a much deserved shower. As he was drying his hair off, his bare back could be seen and on it was a large, strange tattoo the covered his entire back just below his neck. It was a red crown and pair of wings floating above a red cross with a red serpent with a black outline barring its fangs draped over the cross with its tail wrapped around the lower end.

After he dressed himself and put on Graham’s old jacket, Nicholas went out for his usual walk outside and heard quite the commotion coming down the road. He ran over to find his sister being pulled out of her flaming office by Emma. Which was surprising considering that his sister had fired the woman just before she could become sheriff and was now running against her candidate Sydney Glass.

“Oh! Oh! Ow! My Ankle!” Regina cried as Emma helped her, “Set me down gently!”

“Seriously?” Emma said trying to catch her breath, “You’re complaining about how I saved your life?”

“The firemen are here. It’s not like we were really in danger.” Regina snootily remarked.

“Fine. Next time, I’ll just…no, you know what?” Emma asked hotly, “Next time, I’ll do the same thing, and the time after that because that is what decent human beings do. That’s what good people do.” she said before storming off.

“Seems like I miss all the exciting things going on nowadays.” Nicholas muttered as he went over to Emma. “Hey.” he said.

“Hey.” she said in return, “Aren’t you going to check on your sister?” she asked.

“She’s gotten out of worse.” Nicholas said flatly, despite his concern for Regina, he was still pissed at her, “What about you, you okay?”

“I’m fine.” she said as their friends came over to check on her.

The next day the election took place and Emma revealed that Mr. Gold started the fire to help Emma’s campaign by making her the hero. That evening, Emma sat with Nicholas at Granny’s thinking she had lost the election.

“I can’t believe Gold would go as far as setting your sister’s office on fire just to help me win this thing.” Emma said breaking the silence.

“Oh, trust me, he’s capable of doing worse.” Nicholas remarked as he took a drink of whiskey.

“Another?” Ruby asked them politely.

“Oh, hell, yes.” Emma replied causing Nicholas to snicker as Henry entered the diner.

“Hey, kiddo.” Nicholas greeted warmly only to see his nephew tense up and sit next his mother. Needless to say that sent a pain to his heart. “Ruby,” he called softly while Henry handed Emma a walkie-talkie, “Make mine a double.”

“You stood up to Mr. Gold.” Henry praised Emma, “It’s pretty amazing.”

“Well, he did something illegal.” Emma reminded.

“That’s what heroes do, expose stuff like that.” he said before leaving in to whisper, “I shouldn’t have given up on Operation Cobra. We can’t let him and the queen win.” he said indicating to Nicholas who heard every word.

“I thought I might find you here,” Regina said to Emma as she and Sydney walked inside, “With a drink. And my family.” she added in distaste.

“Here to gloat, sister dear? Sheriff?” Nicholas asked as he took a swig of his drink.

“Well, not at all.” Sydney replied, “In fact, I think I’ll join you.”

“Here? I don’t know. I think they’re setting up a back room for the victory party.” Emma informed.

“Well, you’ll have to tell me what that’s like.” said Sydney as Regina handed her the Sheriff’s badge.

“Congratulations,” she said dryly, “Sheriff Swan.”

“Wait. What?” Henry asked.

“It was a very close vote. But people really seem to like the idea of a sheriff brave enough to stand up to Mr. Gold.” Regina informed.

“Are you joking?” Emma asked.

“She doesn’t joke.” Nicholas whispered in her ear as all of Emma’s supporters filled the diner.

“You didn’t pick a great friend in Mr. Gold, Ms. Swan, but he does make a superlative enemy.” Regina warned.

“Ain’t that the truth.” Nicholas muttered.

OUaT

As the ship weighed anchor at the Enchanted Forest’s port, Nicholas quickly made his way off the ship; his merchant friends stayed behind in Arendelle. But before he left, they gave him a piece of advice on how he’d be able to find his family. It was dangerous but Nicholas was a desperate soul.

After walking far enough into the woods away from any innocent bystanders, he spoke aloud, “Rumpelstiltskin. Rumpelstiltskin, I summon thee.”

“Indeed you have, dearie!” came an impish voice from behind him. Nicholas turned around and saw the Dark One grinning madly with his golden, leathery skin showing where his dragon skin clothes didn’t cover.

“I hear you’re the one to go to if someone wants to make a deal.” Nicholas said keeping a close eye on the imp.

“Correct!” he replied insanely happy, “So what are we in the mood for today? Glory? Riches? An enemy you want to suddenly drop dead?” he asked in a singsong voice.

“My family’s whereabouts.” Nicholas replied flatly, “I was taken from them by slave traders when I was four. Now that I’m free, I want to find them.”

“And what will you offer me in return should I bring you to them?” asked Rumpelstiltskin.

“Here’s the deal I’m offering,” Nicholas informed as the Dark One paced around him, “If I can knock you to the ground five times, you have to take me to my family. If you manage to knock me to the ground five times, I’ll be your humble servant forever.”

Rumpelstiltskin giggled at the proposal thinking it was foolish, “A newly freed slave wagering his freedom? Well, it’s not like you have anything else to offer. Very well, dearie. But before we begin, tell me the name of one of your parents.”

“My mother’s name is Cora.” Nicholas replied causing Rumpelstiltskin to stop smiling and look at him in utter shock.

“…We shall see.” he replied before sending a blast of magic. In a blur, Nicholas managed to get behind the Dark One and kick his back causing him to tumble over and fall to the ground.

“That’s one.” Nicholas said coolly as the imp got up.

“You’re light on your feet, dearie.” Rumpelstiltskin said through his teeth as he summoned a sword, “But you’re not light enough to beat me.”

“Says you.” Nicholas replied as red lightning sparked around him. Suddenly two hands formed from two craters at Rumpelstiltskin’s sides and crushed him. More red lightning flashed and the two hands were destroyed. After they were reduced to rubble, Rumpelstiltskin collapsed to the ground for a second time.

From there, a column made from the ground sprung up underneath the Dark One and sent him into the air. Nicholas then jumped to meet his height and slammed his leg on his solar plexus and sent him to the ground for the third time.

“Wh-what is this magic?” Rumple asked feeling scared for the first time in centuries.

“It’s not magic.” Nicholas coolly replied as red lightning flashed around his arms. As it cleared, they were covered in black metal and his hands now had razor sharp nails for claws. He knocked the wind out of Rumple and said in his ear, “It’s Alchemy.”

Rumpelstiltskin then fell for the fourth time. As he laid in the dirt, in a fit of rage he used his magic to snap Nicholas’s neck sending him to the ground. “Nice try, dearie.” he growled, “But the Dark One is immortal.”

After he said this, red lightning surrounded Nicholas’s neck for a second just before he leapt to his feet. “That’s definitely going to take some getting used to.” he muttered while stretching his neck, “See, the thing is, Dark One,” he said before smirking at him with a gleam in his eye, “So am I.”

In a split second, he ran behind him, slammed his fists on his back and watched him fall for the fifth and final time.

“Who-what are you?” Rumple asked as he looked up at the young man who beat him.

“I’m an immortal Alchemist named Nicholas Flamel. Now take me to my family.” he ordered.

Rumpelstiltskin said nothing. He just waved his hand and sent them both to another region hundreds of miles away. Next thing Nicholas knew, he was standing before hills and a beautiful home he hadn’t seen in thirteen years. He ran as fast as his legs would take him without using his powers and went to the home.

However, he was stopped in mid-stride by a magical force. It was coming from an elder woman on his left. She wore a black gown, had ginger red hair and eyes just like his own. It was a face he remembered through all the hardships and pain he faced as a slave; it was the face of his mother.

“If it were that easy to break into my home, dear, anyone would do it.” she said in a sweet yet intimidating manner; just like he remembered. His eyes were the only things he could move, as they met with Cora’s, her heart (if it was still inside her) stopped. The magic was released and she looked stunned at Nicholas.

“Who are you?” she asked softly as though she were trying to recognize him.

“…Thirteen years ago…did you lose your four-year-old son one day while he was playing with your daughter?” Nicholas asked as the tears began to form in his eyes.

“…It can’t be.” Cora denied before she walked up to him and gently cupped his face and looked into his eyes. It took a moment, but Cora was able to see the same beautiful hazel eyes that once looked up at her filled with nothing but love. “It is you.” she whispered as tears of her own formed in her eyes. She then pulled her crying child into a hug that was thirteen years past due. “Welcome home, sweetheart.”

“Mother!” Nicholas sobbed in her embrace. Nicholas Flamel was finally home.


	6. Skin Deep

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT

About a week after the election, a massive storm hit Storybrooke and caused quite a bit of damage. One of the first citizens to check on their property was Henry checking on his makeshift wooden castle. As he rode his bike, he went past his birth mother as she waited for him.

“Hey, kid.” she greeted.

“The storm!” Henry cried as he ran over to the broken down castle.

“It’s okay. We can fix it. I’ll talk to Marco.” Emma reassured.

“Do you think it’s still here?” he asked.

“What are you looking for?”

“My book.”

“Why’d you bury it here?”

“So my mom and uncle don’t find it.”

“Hiding it under your mattress wasn’t good enough?”

“That’s the first place the Evil Queen and her brother would look.”

“How about leaving it with me?”

“That’s the second place.” Henry replied as he opened the box which held his book. Much to his relief, it was still there. “It’s still here. Good.”

“So your mom and uncle don’t know about the castle?” Emma asked.

“No. This is our secret.” Henry sweetly said touching Emma’s heart. Unfortunately, the moment was ruined by Regina and her brother calling out for the boy.

“Henry!” Regina called over the wind, “We’ve been looking for you everywhere. You know you have a session with Archie this morning.” she lectured before glaring at Emma, “I should’ve known he was with you.”

“Henry, get in the car. Now.” Nicholas said sternly.

“You let him play here?” Regina asked.

“The storm hit it hard, but we can fix it.”

“Well, can you fix a cracked cranium?” Regina asked, “Because that’s what you’ll have on your hands if one of these boards collapses under his weight. You’re not thinking about Henry or his safety, just ways around me.”

“Oh, relax, Regina.” Nicholas retorted, “The boy weighs what? Eighty-five pounds? Besides, ten year olds are supposed to get hurt ever now and then. Builds character, gives him some new scars to show off.”

“And you say I don’t think about Henry’s safety?” Emma smirked at the mayor who stormed off.

“If you think it’s bad having her as an enemy, trying living with the woman for as long as I have.” Nicholas joked causing Emma to laugh. About a week later and after Emma and Sydney’s failed attempt to ruin Regina, the little town of Storybrooke was preparing for Valentine’s Day. Unfortunately for Moe French, the owner of Storybrooke’s flower shop, the day prior to the holiday was not so kind to him; or rather, Mr. Gold wasn’t.

Due to not paying his weekly loan, Gold confiscated his truck. While that happened, Nicholas was enjoying his morning coffee over at Granny’s. As he was sipping his beverage, he noticed David and Mary Margaret smiling fondly at each other at separate tables and chatting about a book they were reading. Emma soon joined her roommate and friend.

“So, how’s your day going?” she asked.

“Henry’s fine.” Mary Margaret replied.

“That’s not what I asked you.” Emma said as her friend gave her a knowing look, “You sure?”

“Well, believe it or not, he’s his normal self again.” Nicholas answered as he turned his stool towards the two women, “Don’t worry, Emma. Regina won’t keep you separated forever.”

“He’s right,” Mary Margaret nodded, “When people are supposed to be together, they find a way.”

“So he’s his normal self. He’s fine. He’s happy?” Emma asked.

“Yes.”

“Oh, yeah.” they replied causing Emma to frown.

“We mean no!” Nicholas corrected immediately, “He misses you a lot.” he said over a baby’s crying.

“Yeah, trust me. I’m with him, like, six hours a day.” Mary Margaret added.

“Six hours?” Ashely Boyd asked as she handed Granny her baby, “You take newborns? ‘Cause I’d love six hours off.”

“I know how that feels.” Nicholas muttered with a chuckle as he drank his coffee.

“Ashley, I didn’t even recognize you.” said Mary Margaret.

“Oh. Baby on the outside?” Ashely asked as she joined their table.

“How’s it going?” Emma asked.

“It’s, uh…it’s, uh…I mean, the baby’s great, but, uh, we really haven’t had time to do the whole getting married thing so that’s been rough, and Sean’s been working double shifts at the cannery.

“Well, he has to work.” Nicholas reasoned.

“On Valentine’s Day? Yeah. He couldn’t get out of it.”

“I’m sorry, that sucks.” Emma sympathized.

“It doesn’t have to.” Ruby denied, Come out with me. Let’s have a Girl’s Night. We can all go. Mary Margaret, Emma, too, if you leave the badge at home.”

“I’m not really in the party mood, but you guys can all go have fun. Besides,” Emma grinned before slapping her hand on Nicholas’s shoulder, “Nicholas’ll be going with you.”

After she said this, the entire diner was quiet. “Uh…why would I be going with them, Emma?” he asked slowly in confusion.

“Well, they’re having a Girl’s Night, it’ll be a good way to meet some guys.” she replied honestly with a friendly smile. The others, including David off to the side, were trying not to laugh.

“……………Huh?!” Nicholas asked loudly after a long pause. It was then that Emma caught on.

“Oh!” she gasped, “Oh, wait! You-you’re not…?”

“No!” he exclaimed while he blushed and the others started laughing, “W-wh-what exactly have I done to make you think that I was gay?!”

“I-I…I don’t know. I thought you were trying to get a little something from Graham the night he almost hit me with a dart.”

“No!” Nicholas replied as the three woman laughed so hard tears were rolling down their faces, “I was trying to help him home because he was drunk off his ass that night!” he cried, “The only Mills in this town that ever wanted to get to third base with the guy was my sister!”

The laughter had only gotten worse; it was hard to tell who was blushing with embarrassment more, Emma or Nicholas.

“So let me get this straight. You have thought that I was gay the whole time?! What the hell, Emma?!”

“I am so sorry!” she apologized, “It’s just that I’ve never really seen you show an interest in women before.”

“Oh, I can vouch for that,” Ruby interjected, “Nicholas has a hard time handling girls when they flirt with them. Like me.” she informed and ended with a peppy smile.

“Okay, but’s only because ever since you saw my tattoo, you’ve been looking at me like a wolf would a piece of meat.” Nicholas debated.

“You have a tattoo?” Emma asked chuckling.

“Oh, yeah.” the other women replied before Nicholas could.

“Wait, how do all of you know that?” she asked,

“Sigh, because when Henry was five, I signed him up for swimming lessons over at the swimming pool. It was a hot day so everyone and their mother was there. Normally, I wear a shirt when I go swimming, but the instructor told me that they weren’t allowed in the pool.”

“Thank God.” Ruby muttered.

“So I took it off and everyone there saw my tattoo.” he explained.

“Not to mention a six pack.” Ruby added.

“Broad shoulders and chiseled pecks.” Ashely nodded.

“Huge biceps.” Mary Margaret agreed surprising everyone that she noticed.

“Oh, great.” Nicholas groaned, “Even Mary Margaret saw me as eye candy!”

“I still don’t get why his tat made you flirt with him more than anyone else, Ruby.” informed the sheriff.

“That’s because it’s mostly red.”

“Yeah, Nicholas. Does it?” Mary Margaret asked with a similar look to Emma’s; Ruby and Ashely gave him the same look as he face once again flushed.

So with a cough to his fist to clear his throat, Nicholas replied, “There is no proper way to answer that. Good day, ladies.” he said politely as he picked up his coat and left the diner as they women laughed once again.

**OUaT**

On a road in the Enchanted Forest, the Evil Queen and her brother road in their carriage along a road. The only one on it was a young, beautiful, hooded girl with hair as brown as Flamel’s and eyes as blue as the sea. As they were about to pass her, the queen stopped the carriage.

“Did our carriage splash you?” she asked politely after opening the door.

“Oh. Oh, no, I’m-I’m fine.” the girl replied with a lovely smile.

“You know, we’re a bit tired of riding.” Regina informed, “Let us stretch our legs and walk with you for a spell.”

“You carry very little.” Flamel observed as he walked with his sister and the stranger; though, he was jotting down notes in his little notebook with his glasses slipping.

“I don’t want to be slowed down.” she replied.

“You’re running from someone.” Regina speculated, “The question is, master or lover?”

“Straight to the point as always, your majesty.” he murmured while the stranger gave his sister a look that said it all.

“Oh, master and lover.” Regina grinned.

“I might take a rest.” the stranger informed clearly uncomfortable with the topic, “You two go on ahead.”

“So if I’m right,” Regina said as she wrapped an arm around her, “You love your employer, but you’re leaving him.”

“I might love him.” she admitted, “Maybe as a lover or maybe just as a friend I want to help. Something evil has taken root in him.”

“While magic isn’t exactly my particular field of expertise, sounds a bit like a curse to me.” Flamel observed as he fixed his glasses, “Though, I do hear all curses can be broken.”

“A kiss born of true love would do it.” Regina added, “Though, I wouldn’t encourage a young girl to kiss a man who held her captive. What kind of message is that?”

“One that compares to the romantic novels of young maidens falling in love for swashbuckling privateers who stole them as they would treasure?” Flamel asked causing the beautiful stranger to softly chuckle, “Even so, if he loves you, he would’ve let you go. And if he doesn’t love you, well, then the kiss won’t even work.”

“Exactly.” Regina nodded.

“Well, he did let me go.” the girl replied.

“Yes, but no kiss happened.” Regina reminded.

“And a kiss-a kiss is enough? Even if I only wanted to save him as a friend?” she asked.

“Love is not just limited to what a couple feels, my dear.” Flamel informed as he tucked away his book and looked her in the eyes, “Love is like an enormous tree with many branches. The branch of true love between lovers is but one. The true love of friendship, however, is just as powerful; and each of these branches are as sturdy as the trunk. True love’s kiss, no matter what kind, will break any curse. And that is an encouraging thought, don’t you agree?”

“Yes, I-I do.” she replied happily, “In that case, I will go to him and find what branch we rest on. Thank you, both of you, so much.” And with that, she hurried along the road back to her employer.

“I have to hand it to you, sister, this is actually an excellent plan.” Flamel praised once the girl was far enough away, “If things go one way, the dark one will no longer have his powers.”

“And if they go another way, he’ll lose control and finally reveal that even he has a weakness.” Regina wickedly smirked as they returned to the carriage.

“So devious, yet commendable.” he grinned.

“Indeed. Though, I am surprised that you agreed to this plan, Nicholas.” his sister admitted, “You normally oppose my schemes. If it wasn’t for the imp, you probably never would’ve found your way home.”

“Yeah, well, he broke my neck because I kicked his ass.” Flamel shrugged causing Regina to laugh.

**OUaT**

The morning after Valentine’s Day, Nicholas leaned up against the kitchen counter while munching on an apple as his sister walked in with a happy smile. “Guess what Sydney’s bug just told me.” she said to her little brother.

“What?”

“Gold kidnapped and attacked Mr. French last night. He’s sitting in a prison cell as we speak.”

“Do tell.” Nicholas said gaining a similar wicked grin, “Say, Regina, how’s about the Mills family take a little stroll into town? Maybe pop by the sheriff’s station so we can finally have that little chat with Mr. Gold?”

“Sounds like a plan. But what about Swan?” she asked.

“Make everybody but Gold happy and let her grab an ice cream with Henry?” he suggested.

“Just this once.” Regina nodded. About twenty minutes later, they did just that and after Emma and Henry left the office, Nicholas and Regina sat in front of the cell which contained the crippled man.

“Well,” Gold said softly in anger as he stared at the siblings, “The two of you really wanted that little chat, didn’t you?” he asked.

“Apparently, this is the only way we could do it.” Regina replied.

“Please. Sit.” Gold hissed, Regina had no other choice but to do so, “Now when two people, or rather in this case three people, want something the others have, a deal can always be struck. Do the two of you have what I want?”

“Yes.” they replied wickedly. Hearing this made Gold look absolutely shaken.

“So…you did put him up to it, then?”

“Oh, we merely suggested that strong men take what they need.” Nicholas answered.

“Oh, yeah, and you two told him just exactly what to take didn’t you?”

“We used to know each other so well, Mr. Gold.” said Regina, “Has it really come down to this?”

“It seems it has, yeah.” Gold nodded, “But both you and your brother know what I want. What is it you want?”

“Well, I want you to answer one question.” Regina replied giving her answer, “And answer it simply. What’s your name?”

“It’s Mr. Gold.” he replied with a smirk.

“Your real name.” Regina clarified as her anger began to show.

“Every moment I’ve spent on this earth, that’s been my name.” Gold admitted.

But what about moments spent elsewhere?” Nicholas asked.

“…What are you asking me?” Gold whispered.

“We think you know.” Regina answered, “If you want us to return what’s yours, tell us your name.”

Gold glared at them as he softly chuckled before giving his answer, “Rumpelstiltskin. Now give me what I want.” he growled.

“Such hostility.” Nicholas remarked.

“Oh, yeah.” growled Rumpelstiltskin. Regina reached into her purse while Nicholas reached into his coat pocket, from these compartments were the cup and the broken off handle of an old, white, chipped tea cup.

“Now comes what I want.” Nicholas informed as he watched the dark one tremble in rage at the sight of his broken possession, “I want to make a deal with you, Rumpelstiltskin.”

“I’ve only ever made one deal with you, Flamel,” Rumple said through his rage, “And it was the last one.”

“Come now, don’t be like that.” Nicholas teased with a pout, “It’s a simple arrangement. If you want this returned to you in one piece, all you have to do is owe me a favor. But this will be a special favor. I’ll ask you to do something for me in the future and when I do, you will uphold these terms. One: you will give me your complete cooperation. 100%. Two: you will not try to find any way or thing at all that could benefit yourself when things are all said and done. Three: you will follow all my instructions and orders until I say that our arrangement has been honored. And four: you will not harm me or my loved ones after I release you.”

“And why should I agree to any of that?” hissed the imp.

“Because unlike you with your magic, I still have my alchemy.” Nicholas informed as little bolts of red lightning danced across his fingertips, “And just as I can easily repair it, I can easily destroy your little cup right here, right now. There won’t even be a speck of dust left of it.” he threatened, “So…do we have a deal or not?”

Gold continued to glare at the alchemist as he thought things over. He then stuck his hand through the bars, “We have a deal.” he growled as they shook hands. With a quick use of his alchemy, Nicholas repaired the cup and had his sister hand it to her former teacher.

“Such a sentimental little keepsake.” she mocked as Gold took it.

“Thank you, your majesty.” he hissed, “So…now that we’re being honest with each other, let’s remember how things used to be, shall we? And don’t let these bars fool you, dearies. I’m the one with the power around here. I’m gonna be out of here in no time, and nothing will change between the three of us.

“We shall see.” the siblings replied darkly before leaving.

**OUaT**

In Rumpelstiltskin’s dark castle, the Evil Queen and Flamel entered the collection room of the dark one and found him sitting in a corner at a spinning wheel spinning straw into gold. “Flimsy locks.” Regina commented, “I have a deal to discuss. A certain…mermaid.”

“I’m not dealing today.” Rumple said under his breath.

“Are you angry with us?” Flamel asked, “What is it this time?”

“Your little deception failed. Neither of you will be more powerful than me. You can keep trying, dearies, but you’re never gonna beat me.” Rumple growled.

“Correction,” said Flamel, “I already am more powerful than you. And I already have beaten you. During our first meeting, if you recall correctly.”

“Is this about that girl we met on the road?” Regina taunted causing the imp to stop his spinning, “What was her name? Margie?”

“Verna?” asked Flamel.

“…Belle.” Rumple answered as he resumed his spinning.

“Right.” Regina nodded feeling strange at the sight of the dark one acting soft, “Well, you can rest assured we had nothing to do with that tragedy.” she said as she made herself a cup of tea while her brother started to smoke.

“What tragedy?” growled Rumple.

“You don’t know?” Flamel asked, “Wow. There’s a shocker right there. After she got home, he fiancé had gone missing.”

“And after her stay here, her…‘association’ with you, no one would want her, of course. Her father shunned her, cut her off, shut her out.” Regina said as she relished in the words she knew were getting under her teacher’s skin.

“So she needs…a home?” he asked with hope.

“He was cruel to her.” Flamel scoffed as he puffed away his smoke, “He locked her in a tower and sent in clerics to cleanse her soul with scourges and flaying. After a while, the poor girl threw herself off the tower.”

“She died.” Regina finished with an evil grin.

“…You’re lying.” Rumple whispered.

“Are we?” they asked.

“…We’re done.” he said as he took in what they said.

“Fine,” Regina sighed, “We have other calls to make.” she said as Flamel ran his finger on the dusty table.

“Hmm. The place is looking a little dusty, Rumple.” he informed, “You should get a new girl.”

“Looks like even the dark one is vulnerable to love.” Regina grinned as she transported them back to the castle.

“It would appear so.” Flamel nodded, “Tell me, what did you do with that girl, Regina?”

“Don’t worry about her.” was all she said before leaving her brother to his pipe.

**OUaT**

In Storybrooke’s General Hospital, Regina made her way into the secret mental ward below. As she ventured through the hall, she found the room she was looking for and looked at the patient inside; she bore a striking resemblance to Belle.


	7. Red Handed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT

A few days after Gold revealed the return of his memories, Regina and Nicholas found themselves in high spirits. So much in fact, they decided to get a gift for Henry since he was still upset over the loss of his book. On the coach in Regina’s office, Henry sat between his adoptive mother and uncle with a metal tin with a blue bow on top in his lap.

“Go on,” Nicholas urged with a smile on his face, “Open it up.”

“What’s the occasion?” Henry asked.

“The occasion is that we love you.” Regina said in honesty with a smile of her own. Henry opened his gift and pulled out an old video game, “Now we know you miss your book, but with this, you can do the heroics.”

“You can save the princesses. You can be the hero.” Nicholas added as he pulled his nephew into a hug; though, he still looked depressed.

“Henry,” Regina said gently, “You have to believe me. When I tore down the playground, I did it for your safety. Please don’t be upset with me. I really didn’t mean to destroy your book.”

“It’s not just the book.” Henry replied.

“Okay. Then what is it?” she asked.

“It’s Emma. I want to see her.” he said just before Kathryn Nolan busted through the door.

“Regina, you got a min-” she said only to stop herself as she saw Henry and Nicholas, “I’m sorry.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it.” Regina gently waved off.

“Why don’t we head home so you can get started on your homework, okay, kiddo?” Nicholas asked as he led Henry out of the office. The next day, Kathryn went missing after it was revealed that Mary Margaret and David were having an affair. Two days after that on Miner’s Day, David was brought to the sheriff’s station for questioning.

**OUaT**

In the Enchanted Forest, Flamel wondered through the snow covered hills of the area he was in. It was just only two weeks after Snow White escaped the Huntsman and his sister’s wrath. That being said, he wasn’t in pursuit of the runaway princess; he has no desire to help his sister take revenge/Snow’s life. Instead, he was on an expedition of his own for his research.

The region he was currently in was notorious for its monthly wolf attacks. He had studied the books on similar stories before venturing out into the wild so he had an understanding of what he was getting himself into. Plus, seeing as he was immortal, he figured he didn’t have to worry about his life being on the line if his theory was correct.

Wearing a fur-lined red cloak over his winter clothing, he treaded down a steep hill where he saw two young women by a well, one wearing a red hood and the other a white one, looking in horror at a gruesome massacre.

He was just about to go over to them to ask what happened when he caught a glimpse of the woman in white; it was his step-niece Snow White. Thankfully, she didn’t notice him so he quickly took the chance to use his alchemy to turn himself into the first thing that popped into his head, a black cat. Why? It was just the only option he could think of.

“Red, the wolf did this?” Snow asked in horror as Flamel walked over to them.

“They were last night’s hunting party.” her friend informed, “They came to our cottage just before setting out hoping Granny and I would help.” she said as Flamel gave a convincing meow. Snow looked at him with fondness and picked him up so she could cuddle him.

Later that day, the three of them along with Red’s granny attended the village’s meeting over what was to be done with the wolf. “The one thing I know,” the villager who called the meeting said over the shouting, “Is that last night was the very last massacre. You know, if I had stayed with that party for another ten minutes, I, too, would be among the dead. And when I think if I’d only doubled back, maybe I could’ve caught it in the act. Maybe I would’ve been able to slay the creature.”

“You would not.” denied Granny, “This creature is more powerful than you can imagine. You wouldn’t have a chance. Stay inside. Hide your children. Forget your livestock.” she warned.

“You’ve said all this before.”

“But I haven’t said how I know.” Granny retorted, “Nearly threescore years ago, I was a child with six older brothers-big as oak trees, all of them veterans of the second ogres-war, and my father-the biggest of them all. Come one wolfstime, he decided to go out and take on the wolf. A different wolf back then, of course, but just as fearsome. They went out there to protect me. I was supposed to be asleep, but I crawled out on the roof to watch and lay down in the thatch. They had the beast surrounded, the seven of them, with spears all pointed in at it.

“And then it started. It was lunging-not at the men, at the spears, grabbing with its teeth, breaking the shafts. They stabbed it with the splintered end, but it didn’t matter. It tore their throats so fast that not a one of them got a chance to scream or pray…or say goodbye. When my father died, I tumbled from the roof, and I landed in the blood in front of the wolf. I felt its breath on my face. Then it clamped its hot jaw on my arm, and I rolled away.” she said as she revealed deep scars on her right forearm.

“Then it looked at me with eyes so black they weren’t even there, and it walked away. You ever see a wild animal just turn its back and walk away like you don’t matter?” she asked the crowd, “If this wolf is like that one, there is no defeating it. It’s already won just by existing in our world. You don’t kill it. You just hide.”

“So your granny’s kind of intense.” Snow pointed out once she, Red and Flamel were back in the cottage.

“Yeah.” chuckled Red, “A bit. I feel like a rat in a trap.” she confessed.

“Is this trap keeping you from being with someone?” Snow asked as she stroked Flamel’s fur.

“How did you know?” Red asked.

“Well, I saw some looks exchanged back there, and I hate to break it to you, but it wasn’t subtle.” Snow said causing Red to giggle.

“Yes. Peter. We’ve been friends forever, but now things are…well, changing.”

“That must be nice.”

“Do you have someone?” Red asked.

“Oh, no. Uh, I’m not sure that’s in my future.” Snow replied, “You’re lucky, Red.”

“I know.” she nodded before leaning in to whisper, “And we’re talking about going away together. But I don’t even get any time with him. Granny’s too afraid of the wolf to let me out alone. You saw what the wolf did. Sometimes I wonder if she’s right.”

“Oh, she’s right about the wolf,” Snow agreed, “But she’s wrong to use it to keep you from love.”

“That all depends on if my theory is correct or not.” Flamel thought, “From what these people have said, it may not be the type of wolf most are accustomed to.”

“You think that’s what she’s doing?” Red asked slightly hurt; Snow didn’t know how to respond. “Let’s kill the wolf.” she declared.

“Hang on.”

“We’d be heroes.”

“Red, teams of trained hunters have been killed.” Snow argued.

“But they go at night when it’s got the advantage.” Red reminded, “If we go now, we could find it slumbering in its den and kill it in its sleep. Come on.”

“Red, I don’t know.”

“I’m going, with or without you.” she informed, “But you’re right. I can’t let her keep me trapped forever.”

As Red grabbed her hood and snuck out, Snow followed in pursuit leaving Flamel in his cat form on the bed. Roughly five minutes later, Granny kicked the door open and shot him with her crossbow.

“I know that didn’t kill you, whatever you are.” she said as she glared at the cat, “So why don’t you just come out and show me what you really look like. I can smell the evil coming off of you.”

“What you call ‘evil’ others, if there were others who knew of what truly happened, would call it an unfortunate accident.” Flamel said just before taking on his true appearance and yanking out the bolt from his chest.

“You’re him, aren’t you?” Granny asked as she reloaded her weapon, “The queen’s brother. I’ve heard stories about how you have even unholier magic than she does.”

“It’s not magic.” Flamel denied, “It’s the science of alchemy.”

“Like I give a damn what it’s called.” Granny snapped, “What are you doing here?”

“I came here to study that wolf that’s been causing trouble for this area.” he replied, “Looks like my theory on it being a were-wolf was spot on. Little did I know that it would have such a pretty face when not in the moonlight.”

“How do you know that?”

“You’re not the only one with a keen sense of smell. Despite it being faint, your granddaughter reeked of blood when I met her.” Flamel informed as he tapped his nose, “Though I wouldn’t expect any less from another were-wolf, albeit an elderly one.”

“I swear to the Gods, if you put one hand on my granddaughter-”

“You can relax, ma’am. I’m not going to harm her.” Flamel soothed, “I only planned on experimenting on the wolf if the person was aware of their condition and enjoyed tearing out the throats of innocent people. That being said, it’s dark out, so Red may just wind up doing just that.”

“Agreed.” Granny nodded as she lowered her weapon and put on her cloak, “We best go and find her, then.”

“Yeah. Last thing either of us want is to see her make a meal out of Snow.” Flamel said before wincing as he realized his slip up.

“Snow?” Granny asked, “Snow White?”

“…Well, seeing as my sister has her wanted dead or alive right now, you can’t really blame the poor girl for using an alias.” he defended.

“…Yeah, I’ll give her that.” Granny bluntly shrugged as they left the cottage. It wasn’t ten minutes later that they found Snow who was trying to look for Red as well; although, she wasn’t aware of the fact that she was the wolf and not her boyfriend Peter like they suspected.

“Snow!” Flamel called out softly. At the sight of her step-uncle, Snow’s face filled with fear just before she tried to run away, “Snow, wait!” he exclaimed as he grabbed her arm before they both fell into her namesake. “Snow-Snow, listen to me!” Flamel pleaded as she tried to get away and slapped at him, “I’m not here to capture you!”

“Why should I trust you?!” she cried as tears formed in her eyes, “You did nothing to stop Regina from killing my father. Why should I believe that you aren’t going to take me back to her?!”

“Because I don’t want to see you dead!” cried Flamel causing the runaway princess to stop her struggling, “Snow, I admit, I did nothing to prevent your father’s murder and for that, I am sorry. But I do not want to see you die because of my sister’s blinding hatred and needless desire for vengeance. I did not come here to take you back. I came here to study the wolf; and both Granny and I know for a fact that Peter is not the wolf; Red is.”

“…She is?” Snow asked as Flamel helped her up, “You knew?” she asked Granny.

“Of course I knew.” Granny said as they continued to trudge through the snow, “Her mother was one, too, before a hunting party killed her. I thought maybe Red didn’t get it, but when she was 13, it started.”

“Some teenagers get pimples, some deal with body odder, but Red was lucky enough to get excessive hair growth and cravings like no other.” Flamel bluntly joked.

“I paid a wizard for that cloak.” Granny continued to explain, “Keeps her from turning, but she doesn’t wear it, and she’s found some way out of the house.”

“Why didn’t you tell her?” Snow asked.

“I didn’t want her to have that burden. It’s a terrible burden.”

“That story you told,” Snow remembered as she pieced the puzzle together.

“That was her grandfather. He marked me that night, then came back, found me, and turned me.”

“Turned you?” Snow asked, “You’re…Granny? How are you tracking her?”

“By smell.” she replied, “I still have that, even though the rest of it has faded away. Gods, I was a fool to think I could keep this from her. I am a fool and I have cost so many lives.”

“But you didn’t mean to.” Snow defended, “That’s the main thing.”

“Is it?” Granny asked as they all heard the sound of a wolf’s howl. Granny then pulled out her crossbow, ready to use it. “A silver-tipped arrow will drop her.” she said as she hardened her heart.

“Oh,” Snow whimpered.

“Shh.” shushed Flamel, “Stay quiet. We’re approaching from downwind, so we have a chance. Best hurry though, that hunting party may be on her tail as well. Uh, no pun intended.” he clarified as he saw Snow’s look.

They then came across the sight of Red as a wolf feasting on the remains of Peter; the sounding of his entrails and organs squishing between her fangs could easily be heard. Unfortunately, Snow gave them away as she stepped on a twig and gasped. Just before Red could pounce, Granny fired her arrow and Flamel tossed the cloak over her.

“It’s too late.” Snow said as she looked at Peter’s remains, “He’s gone.”

“Who’s gone?” Red asked as she struggled to get to her feet.

“Get up, girl.” Granny advised, “Get ready to run.”

“What’s going on? Who is this?” she asked in a daze as she looked at Flamel.

“They are coming.” he warned as the hunting party could be heard.

“Come on, Red.” Snow pleaded, “We have to go.”

“Go?” Red asked, “I don’t understand.”

“No, I’ll explain it later. We must hurry.” stressed Snow.

“What? I’m confused. What’s happened?” she asked before finally noticing the sight behind her, “Where’s Peter?”

“…He wasn’t the wolf.” Snow said sadly.

“Granny?” Red asked as guilt and fear began to consume her.

“I was wrong to keep it from you.” the old woman admitted, “But now you have to go. Red. Go.”

“It’s me?” she asked as he lips trembled, “Oh, gods, it’s-it’s me.”

“Red, you must get away from here.” Flamel urged as he took her face in his hands so to keep her eyes off of the gruesome sight, “They will kill you otherwise. Now go! Snow!”

“I’ll get her out of here. Red, come on!” Snow said as she pulled her sobbing friend away and into the woods.

“They want a monster?” Flamel asked as he began to transform, “I’ll give them one.”

As Snow led Red away, she caught a glimpse through the tree branches of a terrifying, giant beast kill the men giving them time.

**OUaT**

Two days following David’s questioning, Nicholas walked into Granny’s Diner craving a nice cup of coffee. He had heard a rumor about Ruby quitting after a fight with her grandmother, but it seemed they were wrong when he saw her happily working the register. Although, she wasn’t wearing her usual skimpy clothes or jewelry or even the over amount of make-up. Instead, she wore black leather pants, boots, and a red plaid shirt over a white tank-top. Along with that, she only had on one wolf ring, a simple necklace and only one red hair extension; the most make-up she had on was just an average amount of what most women usually have on.

In blatant terms, she finally dressed herself like a grown woman her age and not a rebellious teenager. “Hey, Nicholas.” she kindly greeted, there wasn’t even the faintest sound of flirt in her voice.

“Hey,” he said back while surprised at her appearance, “I heard you quit.”

“Y-yeah.” Ruby admitted looking embarrassed, “I did. But then I realized what I wanted to do with my life. Turns out, it’s not dressing like a tramp and flirting with every guy I see.”

“Oh, come on,” Nicholas said gently, “You didn’t dress like a tramp. Yeah, you sure as hell were a flirt,” he chuckled causing Ruby to do the same, “But definitely not a tramp.”

“Thanks.” she chuckled.

“Although,”

“Although?”

“…I have to admit; this is a better look for you.” said Nicholas sweetly.

“Really?” Ruby asked feeling flattered.

“Yeah. It’s just that your last one didn’t seem like it matched your real personality. Well, at least that’s what I thought, anyways. Not that there was anything wrong with it, I just think that a person’s clothes should also match their personality.”

“And what’s mine?” Ruby asked with a smile.

“Well, that’s easy.” he replied honestly, “You’re a caring, kind person who wants to make everyone she sees smile when she thinks that their day could use a little ray of sunshine.”

“Wow. That’s really sweet, Nicholas. Thanks.” she said with warmth.

“I call them as I see them.” he replied as she got him his coffee. Later that day, Nicholas found out that Ruby found a human heart while she briefly worked with Emma. To make matters worse, it was found in a box that had Mary Margaret’s finger prints on it.


	8. The Stable Boy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or FMAB

Many years ago in the Enchanted Forest, a beautiful young girl of 23 years rode her horse bareback through a rigorous hurdle course. She jumped every hurdle with ease and had the happiest smile on her face. After completing the course, she hopped off her steed and went over to hug her proud and loving father.

“That was beautiful, sweetheart.” he praised.

“Thank you, Daddy.”

“Regina!” a voice called from over the hill, it came from a nineteen-year-old Flamel with an excited look on his as he ran over to his beloved sister, “Regina. Father. Both of you have to see this.” he said as he caught his breath.

“What is it, Nicholas?” his sister asked.

“First, a question of my own.” he replied causing her to playfully roll her eyes as though she had gone through this before, “What is it exactly that allows fire to be created?”

“Rubbing two sticks together or striking two flints together.” she replied with a grin.

“Yes, but what causes these everyday objects to do such a thing?” Flamel asked in excitement, “Friction.”

“The-what-now?” Regina asked.

“Friction.” her brother repeated, “See everything in this world is made up of tiny little things so small you can’t even see them without the proper equipment. These things are called molecules and they are constantly vibrating. Now if molecules vibrate at a slow pace, whatever they make up will be cold. But if they vibrate at fast speeds, they’ll generate heat and in cases like with using flint rocks, they’ll create sparks.”

“So…” she trailed.

“So I have discovered a way to where I can use this friction and accelerate it tremendously with my alchemy.” Flamel said as he shook his sister all the while their father laughing at his children’s antics.

“And how have you done that, my boy?” Henry asked.

“With these.” Flamel said as he pulled out a pair of grayish gloves.

“Gloves?” Regina asked.

“Not just any gloves, no, no.” Flamel corrected, “These are specially made gloves that when pressed together hard enough and moved fast enough, they will create a spark. Thus, when using my alchemy, I can generate these sparks into a fiery inferno. Watch.” he said as he put on one of the gloves.

He then readied his hand like he was going to snap his fingers and aimed it up towards the sky. And with a quick snap and slight surge of red alchemic lightning, Flamel sent a blast of flames from his fingertips.

Now most people would be afraid of such power, but Regina and Henry immediately congratulated Flamel and showed him nothing but love. “That was amazing, Nicholas.” Regina praised as she hugged her younger sibling.

“Well, it’s not as impressive or beautiful as your skills with a horse, sister dear.” Flamel chuckled bashfully.

“Beautiful?” scoffed Cora as she came down the hill with the stable boy Daniel, “I’d hardly call that beautiful.”

“You didn’t like it, Mother?” Regina asked slightly hurt.

“You ride like a man. A lady should be graceful.” Cora answered, “You should use a saddle.”

“I was just having fun.” she chuckled.

“You’re getting a little old for fun.” Cora lectured, “Who’s going to want to marry you when you behave like a commoner?”

“Not everyone wants a delicate flower as a bride, Mother.” Flamel defended.

“Neither does anyone want someone who spends their time playing all day or shutting their noses in books or making _gloves_.” Cora retorted.

“Touché.” admitted Flamel with a faint smirk.

“Honey, please leave them alone.” Henry pleaded.

“Stop coddling them.” Cora snapped, “Regina’s becoming and old maid. All the other girls her age are already married. I had such high hopes.” she sighed, “And Nicholas-”

“Will not have any more of his life be decided by others rather than himself because he had enough of that for thirteen years of his life.” Flamel cut off hotly as he met his mother’s gaze with his own.

“Milady,” Daniel said to Regina breaking the silence and tension, “Perhaps this saddle-”

“I’m done riding for the day.” Regina cut off as she brought her horse to him, “And don’t ever interrupt me and my mother again.” she warned as Daniel took the steed away, “Why do you always have to criticize us? Me most of all?” she asked Cora.

“I’m not criticizing either of you.” Cora gently defended, “I’m helping you.” 

But Regina didn’t want to hear her mother’s excuses, so she stormed off. “Uh, Regina?” Flamel asked nervously as he anticipated what was about to happen.

“Don’t you walk away from me.” Cora said sternly as she used her magic to hoist Regina into the air.

“Mother!” Regina cried as Cora pulled her back, “You know I don’t like it when you use magic.”

“And I don’t like insolence.” Cora chuckled, “Besides, you don’t seem to mind it when Nicholas uses his.”

Hearing this, Flamel groaned, “Mother, for the ten-thousandth time. Alchemy. Is. Not. Magic.” he stressed, but his mother simply scoffed and ignored his whining.

“I’ll stop using magic when you start being an obedient daughter.” she said only to see her daughter scoff.

“Why can’t I just be myself?” Regina asked still floating in the air.

“Oh, because you can be so much more if you’d just let me help you.”

“I don’t care about status.” Regina stressed, “I just want to be-”

But Cora cut her off as she lifted her daughter higher into the air. “Cora, please.” Henry begged as the belts from the horse reins Regina held wrapped around her.

“Mother!” Flamel shouted.

“Please,” Regina whispered, “I’ll be good.”

Cora smirked as she removed the belts and gently set Regina back to the ground. “Excellent.” she said, “That’s all I wanted to hear.” But Regina felt heartbroken, as tears began to form, she ran as fast as she could to the stables.

Later that day, Flamel was outside practicing his fighting skills; in his mind, he always believed that if one was to train the mind, one must also train the body as well. As he did this, the sound of a young girl screaming could be heard throughout the plains.

Flamel grabbed his coat and put it on as he saw a young girl dressed in pink hold on for dear life as her horse raced out of control. A moment later, he saw his sister on her own horse chase after her to try and help. Deciding to step in, Flamel began to run over to them as he used his alchemy to create a fence made out of the earth around the girl’s horse with his sister on the outside so to keep it from swerving away.

Once Regina grabbed the girl Flamel finally put an end to the fence with a wall causing the horse to stop and settle down. “What was that?” the girl asked in amazement as she looked at the fence and wall.

“You can thank my brother for that.” Regina replied as Flamel finally caught up with them.

“Everyone alright?” he asked as the girl fell to the ground.

“It’s okay, dear, you’re safe.” Regina soothed the girl. She seemed about ten years old and had a cute albeit chubby cheeked face.

“You saved my life.” she exhaled as she looked at the siblings.

“Are you alright?” Regina asked in concern.

“Yes. But I’ll never ride again.” the girl replied.

“Nonsense.” chuckled Regina, “The only way to overcome fear is to face it, to get back on that horse as soon as possible. Trust me, you don’t want to be like my brother here and become afraid of riding.” she giggled.

“I heard that.” Flamel spat as the girls giggled, “And I’m not afraid of riding, sister dear. It’s just that animals do not like me, remember?”

“They don’t?” the girl asked just before Regina’s horse hocked a loogey and spat it on the side of Flamel’s head. The girls covered their mouths as they tried not to laugh.

“Yep.” he growled as he slowly and stiffly brought his hand to his head to get it off, “As you can clearly see, animals do not like me.” he said before grabbing the horse’s reins and looked it in the eye, “Now I don’t know if you can understand me, but I’ll have you know that horse meat is very nutritious and not at all fatty. So if I was you…I would never do that again. Any questions?” Flamel asked hotly as he hissed each word.

The horse shook its head with a snort as though it was trying to say no. “Good.” Flamel growled, “Well, I better get rid of that fence. Mother hates it when I mess up the landscape.” he said as he used his alchemy to destroy that which he created.

“How did you do that?” the girl asked in wonder.

“I’m an alchemist, child.” Flamel replied with pride, “And a pretty good one at that.”

“Thank you for saving me.” she said.

“Regina.” his sister introduced.

“Nicholas Flamel.” he nodded.

“I’m Snow. Snow White.” she replied before hugging Regina with thanks.

**OUaT**

Out in the woods of Storybrooke, Nicholas kept looking up and down from the map in his hands, at his feet was Graham’s wolf sniffing the ground trying to pick up a scent. It was late at night so everything was quiet. “Okay…we should be just a few miles out from our destination. If all goes well, we should be back in time.”

He and the wolf then pressed on using only the moonlight as their means of seeing what lied ahead.

**OUaT**

Inside his room in his parents’ castle, Flamel awoke with a cold sweat and loud gasp from the horrible memories he dreamed of. Just then, his mother barged in using her magic to open the doors. “Nicholas,”

“Yes, Mother?” he asked as his voice shook. Cora noticed this and went over to him in concern.

“Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” she asked, but Flamel just kept his head in his shaking hands, “Look at your mother when she’s speaking to you, young man.” she lectured, “Did you have another nightmare?”

“I’d gladly have a nightmare over those horrible memories.” he whispered, “It’s been two years already. When will they end, Mother?” he asked as his past pains shook him.

“In time.” Cora replied with a loving smile only a mother could provide, “They’ll fade away in time, my child.”

“I hope so. I’m tired of seeing his wicked smirk every time I shut my eyes. That night will haunt for as long as I live.” Flamel bitterly spat.

“Shh.” Cora soothed before kissing his temple, “Come with me to fetch your sister, we have a guest this evening and I want the whole family to greet him.”

“Alrighty then.” he replied as he grabbed his coat. Once they found Regina, she was once again dressed in her ridding clothes; Cora, however, was quick to change that.

“No, this won’t do.” she said as she used her magic to change Regina’s clothes into a beautiful blue dress and her hair undone into curls.

“What are you doing?” Regina asked in confusion.

“We have a guest.” Cora informed as she fussed over her daughter, “He’ll be here any moment.”

“I can’t. I have a riding lesson with Daniel.” Regina argued.

“Well, that’s been canceled.” Cora informed, “Now smile. We don’t want to disappoint him.”

“Do you have any idea who she’s talking about?” Regina muttered to Flamel.

“Not a clue.” he mumbled back.

“The king, dears.” Cora informed having heard their muttering.

“Oh, hooray, royalty,” Flamel said dryly with sarcasm, “My favorite class of people.”

“Why is the king coming?” Regina asked.

“Because you’ve finally done something right.” Cora said bluntly, “That little girl you saved is the king’s daughter.”

“I got a bad feeling about this.” Flamel bluntly thought as Henry brought in King Leopold.

“Is that her?” he asked staring at Regina.

“Yes.” Henry nodded, “Regina, honey, this is Snow White’s father.”

Regina bowed to him, but Leopold immediately stopped her, “No. It is I who should bow to you. You saved my daughter’s life. There is no way to repay that debt. It is an honor to meet you.” he said with a deep bow.

“Regina, dear, the king’s honored to meet you. Say something.” Cora urged.

“Oh. The honor is mine.” Regina replied.

“You’re quite lucky to have a mother who looks out for you.” Leopold complimented, “My dear Snow has many things, but a mother is not one of them. We lost her years ago.”

“Oh, no, wait.” Flamel thought as he listened to the king and eyed the case his servant had behind him, “This guy can’t be serious!”

“I’m so sorry.” said Regina.

“Since then I have scoured the land looking for a wife. I’ve yet to find a woman with an interest in my daughter…until now.” the king said as he pulled out a ring. Regina looked beyond confused and scared. “Will you marry me, Regina?” he asked.

“Yes.” Cora answered when Regina said nothing, “Yes.”

“Wait a minute.” Flamel thought as everything played out in his head, “A widower king with more power than any comes near this land. He has his ten-year-old daughter ride a horse of her own, something frightens the horse causing it to scamper off and run near our land where Regina loves to ride…Mother, you conniving witch!” he realized as he glared at his smirking parent.

The following day, Flamel thought it’d be a good idea to keep an eye on both his mother and Snow White. Why the girl too? The previous night, Regina came him and told her brother of her plans to run away with Daniel, her secret love. Unfortunately, Snow had discovered them kissing after Daniel properly proposed to Regina.

Thankfully, she managed to convince the girl that he was her true love and that she needed to keep it a secret from everyone; especially Cora. Now you might be wondering how Flamel was able to do this, right?

Well, one of his many unusual alchemic abilities was him being able to control his shadow at will. But this wasn’t an ordinary shadow, it looked like curves and waves of darkness with red eyes and mouths filled with razor sharp fangs; it could even cut through just about anything like it was a blade and could spread out to far distances where Flamel could see and hear everything his bizarre shadows could.

Thankfully, both Snow and Cora were in the same room as the preparations for the wedding went underway. “Careful, sweetheart.” Cora gently warned Snow as she fiddled with a flower vase, “A flower is a delicate thing. Be gentle. You want it to grow and not pluck it before its time.”

“Sorry.” Snow apologized.

“It’s alright.” Cora warmly chuckled, “You needn’t fear me. I’m only trying to help. Perhaps you could be the flower girl at the wedding. I can already see how close you, Regina and Nicholas have become. She’s going to make a fine mother for you and he a fine uncle.”

“Please, Mother,” Flamel scoffed as his shadow’s eyes watched them from a corner in the ceiling, “We’re old enough to be that girl’s siblings.”

“They are kind to me.” Snow nodded.

“Indeed.” Cora chuckled, “It warms my heart how you three share everything…already. Perhaps you could share something with me.” she offered, “Why have they pulled away from me?”

“We never pulled away.” Flamel thought sadly, “You just push too hard sometimes.”

What do you mean?” asked Snow.

“A mother knows her children. Regina and Nicholas have pulled away. I love them so much, but Regina won’t let me help her, and I fear that Nicholas may be too broken that no matter what I do…he won’t ever be the same as he once was.”

“Broken?” Snow asked in concern.

“Oh, that is low, Mother.” he thought dryly, “Using my past to get information out of this girl.”

“Nicholas used to be a slave, dear. He was taken from us when he was very young and only just returned to us two years ago.”

“A slave?” Snow whispered in shock.

“For thirteen years.” Cora nodded, “I know they’re unhappy.”

“I’m happier now than when I was a slave!” he bluntly shouted in his head.

“Have either of them said anything?” she asked, “I’d do anything to make them happy.”

“…You’d do anything?” Snow asked.

“No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!” Flamel cried as the shadow’s eyes widened, “Don’t fall for it, Snow!”

“Of course, dear. You know, I’ve talked to the king about your mother. He told me how much she loved you. Losing her must’ve been so hard.”

“It was.”

“Hearing him, I realized he might as well have been talking about me and my own children. I already lost one of them once, I couldn’t stand to lose both of them. If only I could show them how I feel, that no matter what, all I want is their happiness.”

“…Oh, you are the lowest of the low.” Flamel spat.

“Then don’t make Regina get married.” Snow pleaded falling for the bait Cora clearly set up.

“…Damn.”

“I’m sorry?” Cora asked.

“She doesn’t love my father. She loves someone else. She made me promise not to tell. But she’ll lose you. She can’t lose her mother. No one should.” Snow said thinking it was the right thing to do.

“…Those two are screwed.” Flamel bluntly thought.

“Oh, sweet Snow, it’s alright.” Cora soothed, “She won’t lose me. Neither of them will. You can tell me. You must tell me.”

**OUaT**

Nicholas and the wolf eventually reached their destination, it was an old house in the woods. Nicholas had the wolf stay outside to keep watch while he went inside. He knew that this whole murder was a set up by his sister and he had had enough of her personal vendetta.

What he also knew was that Regina had Sydney kidnap her and kept her prisoner in the very house he was sneaking into. All he had to do was get her out and back into town by morning and everything Regina planned on would come crashing down and he’d have Emma one step further into breaking the curse.

He was as quiet as a ninja, he found Sydney sleeping in a Lazy-boy chair with the T.V. still on and a couple of empty beer bottles on the nightstand next to him. The stairs leading down to the basement where Kathryn was held was just behind him. 

Thankfully, Nicholas used his alchemy to change his appearance before sneaking in; the form he chose was Kathryn so that she would be confused enough to keep quiet as he got her out; who better to trust during an escape than yourself, right?

As Nicholas slowly crept down the stairs, he saw the poor woman and former princess chained to a bed in the corner. She was pale and her eyes were red and puffy, no doubt from crying in fear every day, but at least she didn’t have and injuries. 

He then turned his finger into a key for the cuffs and gently picked her up, surprisingly she didn’t make a sound or wake up; Sydney probably drugged her to keep her quiet so to help his guilty conscience.

Just as he was about to make it out the door, one of Kathryn’s limp arms knocked over a lamp causing Sydney to wake up. As soon as he saw Kathryn carrying herself out, Nicholas gave a loud, sharp whistle to alert the wolf. A second later, the wolf pounced through the window and began to attack Sydney. Not badly, at least, she just grabbed onto his sleeve and began to scare him.

Worked pretty well, too. Sydney was so scared that he fell down the stairs and hit his head rendering him unconscious. “Good girl.” Nicholas praised before getting out and into the woods as quick as he could.

**OUaT**

As soon as Snow left Cora, Flamel watched her poof away in a cloud of purple smoke; needless to say, he knew he had to hurry and stop her. He ran out of his room and through the castle as quick as he could. He looked everywhere for his sister to warn her, but she wasn’t to be found anywhere inside.

Flamel then thought that the only other place she could be was outside in the stables; he couldn’t risk using his super-speed due to his inability to properly control it, so he had no other choice but to run the normal way. Night had fallen, and dread filled Flamel’s very being with each step he took closer to the stables. All the doors and windows were shut; Flamel knew he was too late. He knew that his mother was there with Regina and Daniel.

The sound of his sister’s heartbroken screams and wails which filled the air told him that as well. He stopped running for a moment, for he knew that Cora had killed Daniel; and she made Regina watch.

“Your coldness and cruelty knows no depths or bounds, Mother.” Flamel said as Cora appeared beside him.

“Coldness?” she asked thinking it was a joke, “Cruelty? I just ensured your sister a long, happy and prosperous life, Nicholas.”

“You just killed the man she loved right before her.” he said flatly.

“And in doing so I have cleared the way for her to be queen. And you, her brother, shall be a lord. Lord Nicholas Flamel. Has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?” Cora asked.

“I think you’re drunk on your own power and blind to what’s in front of you.” Flamel retorted as he faced his mother, “Mother, you know that Regina wanted nothing but Daniel. That’s all she wanted. And you know I’d rather go back to that death ridden desert than become a royal.”

“Oh, please.” scoffed Cora, “You and I both know that you’d rather die than go back there. And that’s not going to happen anytime soon, correct? Nicholas, you can’t honestly say that when you were a slave, you didn’t want to switch places with those nobles and that king you severed for thirteen years.”

“Yes, I can!” he spat, “What I wanted more than anything was to come home. I have never wished slavery upon anyone in my life! I’m not bitter and vengeful like you, Mother. Can’t you see what you’ve done?! You’ve destroyed Regina!”

“Enough!” Cora shouted, “All I have ever done for your sister is raise her to have a better life than I had. I was going to do that for you as well…but fate, it seems, decided to give you an even worse life than I had. And for that, I am sorry.” she said as she cupped his hardened face, “But now Regina is set for life and you along with her.”

“…You have sealed the fate of this entire realm, Mother.” Flamel said as his voice shook.

“What?” she asked, “Come now, Nicholas. Stop pretending like you know the future.”

“Oh, I may not be able to see the future. But I know exactly what happens to a person whose soul has been crushed. When Regina finds out that Snow told you her secret, yes, I know you planned on doing just that. You will have finally pushed Regina over the edge.” he warned as he raised a finger in her face, “You will have finally created your legacy. A legacy more vicious and ruthless than you ever were. And all will suffer. She will unleash horrors you never even dared to. But you won’t be able to witness this. Because the first person Regina will rid herself of…is the person who set her on this path. You.”

“Hmm, I’m looking forward to it.” Cora smirked before poofing away.

**OUaT**

Everything had gone according to Nicholas’s plan. He was able to wake up Kathryn with a small dose of adrenaline and was able to get away before anyone could spot him. Before he left and woke her up, however, he gently left her behind the diner and knocked on the back door to get someone’s attention before giving Kathryn the adrenaline.

To make matters even better, as soon as Ruby spotted Kathryn, Emma came running over and saw that the woman was alive and well after all.

Nicholas was able to bring her back and in doing so, Mary Margaret was cleared of all charges. Ooh, was his sister going to be pissed~! But that’s exactly why he was smiling. He’d beaten his big sister at her own game.

And she didn’t even know it!


	9. A Land Without Magic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or FMAB.

A day or two after Kathryn was found, all of Mary Margaret’s friends decided to throw her a welcome home party at her and Emma’s apartment. “Hello!” Nicholas happily greeted the other guests as he and Henry walked in.

“Nicholas, hey!” Emma welcomed with a hug, “Hey, kid.” she said as she hugged Henry next, “So what’d you bring?”

“Shrimp puffs.” Nicholas replied with a friendly smile.

“Oh.” Emma said, “Well, that sounds-”

“Ah, I’m just screwing with you, Emma!” he laughed as he uncovered the plate in his hand, “It’s Snickers Pie.”

“Oh, thank God.” she laughed.

“Nicholas, Henry, hi.” Mary Margaret greeted.

“Hey.” Nicholas said back as he gave his nephew a little nudge, “Go on, give it to her.” he muttered.

“Give me what?” she asked.

“We made this for you in class today.” Henry said as he gave his teacher a big red card signed by all of her students.

“We’re so glad you didn’t kill Mrs. Nolan.” she read aloud.

“You didn’t tell me it said that.” Nicholas said in embarrassment at how blunt his nephew’s gift was.

“Thank you, Henry.” Mary Margaret said while everyone laughed, “Tell everyone I’ll be back soon.”

A week later, the Mills family was enjoying a nice quiet dinner at home when suddenly the doorbell rang. “I don’t remember us expecting any company.” Regina said as she got up to answer the door. As she opened it, she saw Emma standing before her. “Sheriff Swan. What are you doing here?”

“Henry and Nicholas invited me.” she replied stiffly.

“Do you honestly believe I’d allow you into my house for dinner after all the threats you made to my family?” Regina asked bluntly.

“I didn’t come for dinner.”

“Then what did you come for?” Regina asked.

“You.” Emma said. Regina then turned to look at her brother and son only to find them missing. Once she turned back, she saw all of those who she wronged with her curse. “We all did.”

“It’s the law of Equivalent Exchange, sister dear.” Nicholas said from behind. Regina looked and saw her brother with a psychotic look on his face and Henry with rope over his shoulder, “You robbed her of her family, now she’s robbed you of yours!”

Next thing Regina knew was that she was tied to her apple tree in the middle of town and each of the apples were black with rot and everyone surrounded her with torches. “No.” she pleaded, “No. Let me go. I command it!”

“After everything you’ve done to all of us?!” Ruby cried.

“My apologies, your majesty, but my conscience is clear!” Archie spat.

“You’re not queen anymore, sister!” Leroy shouted.

“Tighter!” Granny cried, “She needs to feel our pain!”

“You took our love and ripped it apart!” Mary Margaret yelled.

“And now you’re gonna pay!” shouted David.

It was then that Emma and Nicholas walked up to her and looked her in the eyes. Emma picked one of the apples and crushed it into black slime at the former queen’s feet. “Rotten to the core.” she said.

“Nicholas, help me, please.” Regina begged through her tears, “I just wanted to win for once.”

“Help you?” he asked madly, “Why would I do that? The only woman I’m helping tonight is my true love.”

“Your what?” Regina asked, suddenly, Emma was wearing her mother’s wedding dress and Nicholas an expensive suit with Rumpelstiltskin looking like he did in the Enchanted Forest in between them.

“Go ahead, dearies!” he giggled, “You may kiss the bride!”

And kissed they did, it was filled with passion and lust; and a little bit of tongue too. Regina looked absolutely disgusted before Emma grabbed her by the throat.

“You took away our happiness, and now it’s our turn to take away yours.” Emma spat.

“Kill her quickly, babe.” Nicholas whispered in her ear as he sucked on her lobe causing her to moan, “We still have our honeymoon to get to. Don’t worry, Regina has the softest bed in town.”

David then handed his daughter his sword all the while Regina begged, “Henry, Nicholas, please don’t let them do this to me.”

“You did this to yourself.” Henry spat as Emma readied her sword and swung.

Regina then woke up in her bed with a cold sweat and fear filled heart. She quickly got out of bed to check on her son. Little did she know, the lump in his bed wasn’t Henry. Henry was actually being driven out of Storybrooke by Emma herself.

The next day, Regina stormed into her brother’s office with an angry look on her face, “You son of a bitch.” she snarled as Nicholas sat in his chair reading the newspaper and smoking.

“That’s kind of a double whammy considering we have the same bitch for a mother.” Nicholas replied calmly.

“Sydney told me he saw Kathryn carry herself out over her shoulder. You’re the only one who still has his powers and one of them is a convincing way to change your appearance at will.” Regina snapped.

“Could’ve been someone wearing a mask.” Nicholas replied as he continued to read.

“Damn it, Nicholas!” Regina shouted as she threw everything off of his desk, “Are you trying to ruin everything I’ve worked for?!”

“Yes, I am.” he replied with a bored tone.

“What?” Regina asked not believing her ears, “Why?”

“Regina,” Nicholas began as he finally put down his paper, “When are you finally going to realize that I never wanted any of this to happen? I was against this whole ordeal the moment you told me you went to Rumpelstiltskin for training. Yes, I freed Kathryn. Why? Because I find your whole pointless need for revenge so…annoying.”

“Annoying?”

“Yes.” he replied before mimicking his sister, “ _Snow White told my mother about my secret boyfriend and rather than blame the real murderer, I’ll blame a ten-year-old. Snow White’s happy and I’m not! Emma Swan’s just like her mother so I’m going to act like a total bitch and try to make her miserable!_ Get over yourself, Regina. You lost.”

“…How could you?” Regina asked as she tried to get over her shock, “That woman went as far as taking Henry, my son and your nephew, last night!”

“And yet, here they are in town.” he countered, “I may not be able to see the future like Gold, sister dear. But I am pretty damn good at understanding how people think. And I knew that Emma would come back one way or another. Question is, how are you going to deal with that? That tree of yours is getting worse the longer she stays here. If I’d have to take a guess, the curse has been weakened enough to where all she needs to do is share true love’s kiss and the curse will be broken.”

“No.” she denied, “I haven’t lost yet. Henry is my son and I will get rid of the Savior once and for all by any means!”

“And how are you going to do that?” Nicholas asked unimpressed, “You can’t kill her or else the curse will be broken. You do nothing, the curse’ll still wind up breaking here pretty soon. You can’t make her leave and never come back, Henry’s still here. Face it, Regina. You’ve lost.”

“Why do you want the curse to end so badly?”

“That’s my business.” Nicholas replied hotly, “Besides, it’ll be quite a while before I have to deal with it.”

“Fine. But know this, Henry, and everyone else in this town will be as they should be. Under my control once I rid this place of Emma Swan. And I am willing to go as far as it takes.” Regina snapped as she pushed her sibling away and stormed out the house.

“We’ll see, sister dear.” he growled as he stuck his pipe in his mouth.

Later that day while Nicholas sat in Granny’s, he received a call from Emma; and it was certainly not a call he wanted to hear. Over the phone through her frantic shouting and worry, Emma told him that Henry had eaten an apple turnover his sister made for her and it sent him to the ground unconscious.

In the hospital, Emma just got through explaining what happened to Dr. Whale. Currently, she was digging through Henry’s backpack to see if anything other than the turnover was the reason for her son’s condition. As soon as she touched his storybook, flashes of everything Henry ever said poured into her mind. Emma had finally learned the truth.

“Where’s my son?” Regina asked as she barged in.

“You did this.” Emma said in a lowered voice before pulling Regina into a closest and attacked her, “You did this!” she yelled.

“What the hell are you doing?!” Regina cried as Emma threw her against the wall, “Stop this! My son-”

“Is sick because of you!” Emma cried, “That apple turnover you gave me-he ate it!”

“What?” Regina whispered before yelling, “It was meant for you!”

“It’s true, isn’t it?” Emma asked.

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s true isn’t it?!” Emma shouted, “All of it.

“…Yes.” Regina finally admitted.

“I was leaving town. Why couldn’t you just leave things alone?” Emma asked in a mix of emotions.

“Because as long as you’re alive, Henry will never be mine!” Regina growled.

“He’ll never be anyone’s unless you fix this. You wake him up!” Emma demanded.

“I can’t!” Regina cried.

“Don’t you have magic?”

“That was the last of it.” she admitted through her tears, “It was supposed to put you to sleep!”

“What’s it going to do to him?” Emma asked as fear filled her.

“I don’t know. Magic here is unpredictable.”

“So…” Emma whispered as her lips trembled and voice broke, “So he could…”

“Yes.”

“So what do we do?” she asked.

“We need help.” replied Regina, “There’s only two people in this town who can help us. One of them had magic…the other has alchemy which may help save Henry as a last resort.”

“Mr. Gold and your brother.” Emma deduced.

“Actually, they go by ‘Rumplestiltskin’ and ‘Nicholas Flamel’.” Regina corrected.

As night fell, Emma and Regina walked over to Gold’s pawn shop. However, before they could get inside, two streaks of red the lightning surged on the ground and head straight for them.

“What the hell is that?” Emma asked while Regina looked at it with dread.

“That would be my extremely pissed off younger brother.” she said just as a wall sprung from the ground behind her and bound her wrists and ankles to it as it moved forward.

“By any means, you said!” Nicholas shouted as he stomped over to his sister with his shadows directed at her, “Whatever the cost, you said! Tell me, sister dear,” he spat, “Did that include practically putting Henry on his death in the process?!”

“He wasn’t supposed to eat it!” Regina cried as she struggled, “It was meant for her!”

“Oh, well, that just makes everything all hunky-dory then, doesn’t it?!” Nicholas snarled while Emma watched his display in shock, “When I asked you what you were prepared to do, I didn’t mean become so desperate that you would feel the need to bring that goddamn fruit here!”

“Stop it!” Emma shouted as she pulled the alchemist away, “The longer you two waist our time shouting, the less time we have to save Henry. Nicholas, if you want to help, you’re gonna have to hold off on this little sibling spat of yours. Got it?”

Nicholas said nothing, but he did release his sister and undid his wall while putting his shadows away. “If that boy dies,” he growled in his sister’s face, “Then you’ll die too. Slowly…and painfully.”

“Do my eyes deceive me,” Gold asked as they all walked, “Or is that the look of a believer?”

“We need your help.” Emma said to the point.

“Indeed you do.” he nodded, “It seems quite the tragic ailment has befallen our young friend. I told you magic comes with a price.” Gold said to Regina.

“Henry shouldn’t have to pay it.” she said softly.

“No, you should, but alas, we are where we are.”

“Can you help us?” Emma asked.

“Of course. True love, Ms. Swan. The only magic powerful enough to transcend realms and break any curse. Lucky for you, I happen to have bottled some.” Gold informed.

“You did?” Regina asked in shock.

“Why am I not surprised?” Nicholas asked with a scoff.

“Oh, yes. From strands of your parents’ hair, I made the most powerful potion on all the realm, so powerful that when I create the dark curse, I placed a single drop on the parchment. Just a little safety valve.”

“That’s why I’m the Savior.” Emma realized, “That’s why I can break the curse.”

“Duh.” Nicholas said flatly.

“I don’t care about breaking the curse. All I care about is saving Henry.”

“Which is why it’s your lucky day.” Gold informed, “I didn’t use all the potion. I saved some for a rainy day.”

“Well, it’s storming like a bitch. Where is it?” Emma asked.

“Something tells me its location isn’t the issue.” Nicholas speculated.

“Indeed. Getting it is what should worry you.” nodded the dark one.

“Enough riddles. What do we do?” Regina asked.

“You do nothing.” Gold snapped, “It has to be Ms. Swan.”

“He’s my son. It should be me.”

“Considering that you’re the one who’s endangered him in the first place. You don’t get that luxury.” Nicholas snapped.

“And it has to be her. She’s the product of the magic. She must be the one to find it.” Gold explained.

“I can do it.” Emma declared.

“Don’t trust him.” Regina warned.

“Regina,” Nicholas snapped once again, “Hush. It’s not like we have much of a choice.”

“That’s right, dearie. What choice do you have?” Gold asked mockingly.

“Where is this magic?” Emma asked.

“Tell me something, your majesty. Is our friend still in the basement?” asked the dark one.

“Oh,” groaned Nicholas, “I cannot believe you two went and dragged her into all of this.”

“You twisted little imp. You hid it with her?!” Regina asked in shock.

“Oh, no, not with her. In her.” Gold clarified, “I knew you couldn’t resist bringing her over.”

“Who is her?” Emma asked.

“Someone you should be prepared for, Emma.” Nicholas warned.

“Where you’re going, Ms. Swan, you’re going to need this.” Gold said as he opened a case and revealed its contents.

“What is that?” Emma asked.

“Your father’s sword.” Rumplestiltskin replied flashing his gold tooth.

With the sword in her hand, Emma and the two siblings exited the pawn shop and discussed their next actions. “Before we do this, I want to see Henry.” Emma informed.

“So do I.” Regina nodded.

“I’ll stop by later. There are some things I need to check on.” Nicholas replied.

“More important than your nephew?” Regina asked hotly.

“Considering if I don’t check on them and something has tampered with them, not only will Henry’s life be in danger should we succeed, but everyone else’s as well? Yes. Presently, they are important enough for me to check on them fist before Henry.” Nicholas spat.

“Okay,” Emma nodded, “But as soon as you’re done, you’ll be over there with Henry?”

“I’ll be at his side before dawn.” he nodded. As Emma turned around and began to walk away, she suddenly stopped and turned back around.

“You’re seriously _the_ Nicholas Flamel?” she asked.

Nicholas shrugged and said, “What? Were you expecting somebody older? Not as good-looking?”

Throughout the night, Nicholas ran all over town to inspect his devices and made sure they were working properly while Emma dealt with Maleficent. After he finished, he raced over to the hospital and made it to Henry as the sun rose. Unfortunately, he wasn’t allowed in the room due to the doctors surrounding the poor boy.

“Nicholas,” Mother Superior said gently as she approached him, “I know you aren’t exactly a man of faith but…just know…if Henry doesn’t make it, just know he’ll be in a better place which one day you’ll find him in.”

“You keep all your words of comfort and faith to yourself, Mother Superior.” Nicholas said softly as he kept his eyes on his nephew, “If there is such a place after death…someone like me won’t find himself among those like Henry.”

Suddenly, the doctors stopped what they were doing one by one. Dr. Whale had his back to Nicholas, but he could see his head drop in defeat. At that moment, Nicholas felt his heart stop and break; but he didn’t shed a tear.

Both he and Mother Superior walked in and saw the boy’s still body on the bed. As the nun said her prayer, Nicholas saw all the fond memories he had with his nephew. From feeding him in his high-chair as a baby, to being there for his first steps and words, to his first day at school, to his fist swimming lessons, to the late-night movie and popcorn sessions with Henry tucked under his arm with a blanket.

But now, all that was gone and it would never happen again. It was times like this that made Nicholas curse his immortality and the one who gave it to him against his will. As he thought all of this, Emma walked in with a devastated look on her face while Regina looked crushed on the other side of the glass.

Emma trembled as she quietly sobbed over her son’s death. With one last act as the boy’s mother, Emma walked over to him, parted his hair from his cold forehead. “I love you, Henry.” she whispered before kissing his forehead.

As soon as her lips touched his skin, a wave of magic erupted from them and like his grandmother before him, Henry awoke with a loud gasp. All around them, the people in the room and all over town felt floods of memories inside their heads.

The curse was broken.

“I love you, too.” Henry said to Emma as joy filled her heart, “You saved me.”

It was then that the room filled with nurses, doctors and patients looking at Emma in awe. “Henry…what’s going on?” Emma asked.

“The curse. I think you broke it.” he replied happily.

“That was True Love’s Kiss.” Nicholas informed with a delighted smirk.

“No. No.” Regina said as she began to realize the situation.

“If I were you, sister dear,” Nicholas said as he looked at his defeated sibling, “I’d find a place to hide.”

“Henry,” Regina said as she went to his bedside, “No matter what you think, no matter what anyone tells you, I do love you.” And with that, the mayor of Storybrooke fled the hospital.

“It’s finally over.” Nicholas said aloud, “Won’t be long now before we see each other again, old friend.” he thought the last part in nostalgia.

“Henry, Nicholas, what’s going on here?” Emma asked.

“What do you mean?” Nicholas asked the sheriff.

“If the curse is broken, why hasn’t anyone gone back?” she asked only to see her friend smirk as he looked past her and out the window. “Nicholas?”

“…This just makes things even better.” he muttered. Everyone then looked out the window and saw purple smoke envelope the town.

Somewhere in the depths of Storybrooke, even further than where Maleficent was contained, a pale faced man with bleached brown hair and sullen brown eyes raised his head and sensed the smoke envelope the town. He wore white robes and sat in a chair made of stone and behind this throne were seven sets of red eyes glowing in the shadows; each one varying in height.

“Soon, Flamel,” the man said in a deep voice, “We shall settle our affairs once and for all.”


	10. Broken

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or FMAB

As Emma, Henry and Nicholas walked through the streets of Storybrooke, they saw Snow, David, Red, Granny and the dwarves embrace each other with happy tears in some of their eyes.

“Go on,” Nicholas said bumping the sheriff, “Go meet your parents.”

Emma looked reluctant and a little afraid, but she did so. As she approached them from behind she heard Snow say, “Now I find my daughter.”

“…So it’s true.” Emma said aloud gaining the crowd’s attention. Snow and David slowly approached their daughter as tears filled their eyes. Snow cupped her daughter’s face in her hands and pulled her into a hug long overdue.

“You found us.” Snow cried happily as David joined the hug.

Henry walked over to them and looked up at David and said, “Grandpa?”

Snow laughed at the fact that was true; both she and her husband at the age of twenty-eight were grandparents. “Yeah, kid. I suppose so.” David chuckled as he pulled his grandson into a hug.

“She did it.” Henry said happily, “She saved you.”

“She saved all of us.” Snow praised.

“I…well…” Emma said growing uncomfortable.

“Uh, then why are we still here?” Leroy/Grumpy asked.

“Yeah,” Emma said as she turned to the alchemist, “Why is that, Nicholas?”

Everyone turned and realized that Nicholas was indeed there with them; each of them had unreadable looks on their faces. Nicholas shifted uncomfortably at their gazes as he shrugged his shoulders, “Hell if I know.” he said, “I’m an alchemist. I don’t know why we’re still here.”

“You helped the Evil Queen cast the curse.” Henry argued.

“No I didn’t.” Nicholas replied looking displeased with his nephew’s attitude, “I spent the entire time trying to convince Regina not to cast the curse. And ever since Emma arrived, I did everything I could to help her break it. I was the one who freed Kathryn and brought her back to town.”

“You did that?” Emma asked, “Not Gold?”

“No, not Gold. I did.” he replied as everyone looked at each other in shock, “Henry, I don’t know what that book of yours says about me, but I have never supported any of the things Regina has done since she became the Evil Queen.”

“You still wiped out an entire kingdom when you were a slave.” the boy sneered.

“Henry!” Emma scolded.

Nicholas looked as though he was trying to control the rage his nephew suddenly unleashed. He trembled with anger and gritted his teeth as he raised a finger at Henry. “You don’t know a thing about what that night. If you’re only going to go off of what that book has told you now that everyone remembers who they are, you’re in for a rude awakening.” he growled as Henry got behind Emma, “And don’t you ever…ever speak to me like that again.”

“Nicholas,” Ruby gently said as she went over to soothe him, “It’s okay. He doesn’t know. Just let it go.”

“Henry,” Snow said as she bent down to her grandson’s level, “All Nicholas has ever done since Regina and I started fighting each other is try to end it without hurting both sides. There were a lot of times he helped us, all of us, when we were in trouble.”

“But my book never said that in any of your stories.” he argued.

“Maybe not,” Snow gently reasoned, “But if it weren’t for his help, we probably wouldn’t be here right now or even in the Enchanted Forest. Just because he’s your mother’s brother doesn’t mean he’s guilty of her crimes, too.”

“I can’t believe I was stupid enough to think he’d see me in a different light once the curse was broken.” Nicholas muttered as Ruby continued to try and calm him down.

“Nicholas, he’s just a boy.” she reasoned, “All he knows is what his book said. You just need to show him that it was wrong about you. What happened in Xerxes wasn’t your fault.”

“And yet, that damn book of his says otherwise.” he growled.

“But you know what happened.” Ruby reminded as she cupped his face, “All of us here have seen the good in you and the good you’ve done. Don’t let some pieces of paper tell you or anyone else otherwise.”

“…Why are you so good to me?” Nicholas asked as he finally calmed down.

“I’m your girl.” Ruby replied warmly before hugging the immortal alchemist.

“Uh, does anyone know what that smoke was earlier?” Leroy asked as Mother Superior approached them.

“Magic. It’s here. I can feel it.” she informed.

“Magic? In Storybrooke?” Henry asked, You’re the Blue Fairy. Do something magical.”

“It’s not quite that simple, Henry.” she replied, “No wand, no fairy dust. Matters are complicated now.”

“Let’s go to the person responsible for bringing it-the queen.” Leroy suggested with a growl while his brothers agreed.

“No. Wait.” Emma spoke up, “It wasn’t Regina. It was Gold.” Emma then marched off in anger towards the pawn shop.

“Is there anything you want to ask us?” Snow asked as everyone followed the savior, “You must have questions.”

“The only questions I have are for Mr. Gold. Why did he double-cross me, and what did he do to this town?” Emma replied, but Snow wasn’t about to give up.

“Uh…shouldn’t we talk about…it first?” she asked.

“What?”

“Us? Your life? Everything?” Snow replied with several examples.

“Can we do ‘everything’ maybe later, like with a glass of wine…and several bottles?” Emma asked with complaint.

“And I thought you had a drinking problem, Grumpy.” Nicholas muttered to the dwarf causing them to chuckle. Though, Snow heard this and sent them both a glare.

“I know it’s a lot to take in, for all of us.” David reasoned.

“And we don’t want to push, but we have waited for this moment for so long.” said Snow before Emma cut her off.

“Yeah, so have I! I’ve thought about this moment my entire life. I’ve imagined who you might be. But of all the scenarios that I concocted, my parents being…Snow White and Prince Charming…I-I just need a little time, that’s-that’s all.”

As she said this, the sound of a shouting crowd could be heard down the street led by Dr. Whale. Archie then came running down the street in a panic. “There you are.” he panted, “Come with me. I need your help. Dr. Whale’s whipped everyone into a frenzy. They’re going to Regina’s house. They’re gonna kill her.”

“Great. Let’s watch.” Leroy dryly suggested.

“Hey!” Nicholas scolded as he smacked the dwarf, “That’s my sister you’re talking about. Despite the fact that I’m still pissed at her, and that she can be a total bitch, and that she’s killed countless people and ruined the lives of everyone in this town-”

“Where are you going with this?” Snow interrupted.

“The point is!” Nicholas exclaimed, “I’m not about to just let my sister get torn apart by an angry mob.”

“Flamel’s right.” Archie nodded, “We cannot stoop to her level. No matter who she is or what’s she’s done, killing her is wrong.”

“Please.” Henry begged, “She’s still my mom.”

“We have to stop them.” Emma agreed as she looked at her reluctant parents.

“Guys,” Nicholas said as he faced them all, “All of you has every right to want Regina to be killed. But I won’t allow what’s left of my family to be torn away from me again. I lost her once, I don’t plan on going through that again.”

“If the Blue Fairy is right and magic is here, Regina could have her powers back.” David warned, “They could be marching into a slaughter.

“Nothing I can’t handle should she decide to retaliate.” Nicholas eased as they ran to cut off the mob. As they made it to the house, they could see Regina getting ready to attack the angry crowd.

“You wanted to see your queen?” she asked, “Well, my dears, here…she…is!” she said as the threw out her hands to cast a spell, only nothing happened.

“She’s powerless!” a man cried.

“What?” Regina muttered in confusion before Whale pinned her against the column.

“Now, where were we?” he asked. 

Just then, the sound of a loud snap and explosion of heat came from the start of the path to the house. It came from Nicholas wearing his flame alchemy gloves; and he did not have a happy expression on his face.

“If anyone doesn’t want to get burned alive,” he shouted as he lowered his hand and aimed it at them all, “Get away from my sister!”

“It’s Flamel!” one of them cried in fear.

“The queen’s brother!”

“He’ll kill us all!”

“Don’t tempt me!” he spat as Emma ran up and pulled Whale away.

“Let her go!” she ordered the doctor.

“Why should I listen to you?” he asked.

“Because I am still the sheriff.” Emma snapped.

“And because I have a twitchy finger, Whale.” Nicholas added as he joined his friend.

“She saved you, all of you.” David defended.

“And because no matter what Regina did, it does not justify this.” Snow lectured.

“We are not murderers here.” said Emma.

“Well, we’re not from this world.” Whale retorted.

“Yeah, well, you’re in it now.” Red said as she took Nicholas’s hand in her own.

“Okay, Whale,” David said as he pushed the man away from his daughter, “We’re done.”

“Back off. You’re not my prince.” he snapped.

“Who are you, Whale?” David asked.

“That’s my business.” he sneered.

“Well,” David scoffed, “My business is making sure this town doesn’t go to Hell, so whether or not I’m your prince isn’t the issue. We have a lot to figure out, and this isn’t the way to do it.”

“And Regina’s death won’t provide any answers.” Snow added as she spoke to the crowd, “She needs to be locked up for her safety, and more importantly, for ours.”

Regina was then escorted to the sheriff’s station and placed in one of the cells. “So I’m a prisoner now.” she stated as David shut the door.

“If the curse is broken, why didn’t we go back?” he asked.

“Because there’s nothing to go back to.” Regina replied, “That land is gone.”

“We should get to Gold.” Snow suggested as they all left.

“Nicholas, wait.” Regina pleaded as they made their way. Hearing his sister, he decided to stop while the others looked at him.

“You guys go on ahead. I’ll catch up.” he informed.

“Are you sure?” Red asked in concern.

“Yeah, I need to have a little chat with my sister.” he hissed. As the heroes left, Nicholas started at his caged sibling with a blank look.

“Well?” she asked impatiently.

“Well what?” he dryly asked.

“Grab the spare key. Use your alchemy-get me out of here!” Regina said in expectation.

“Do you honestly think after all that you’ve done; I’m just going to let you waltz out of here so you can do who knows what?” he asked, “Because of you and your personal vendetta against Emma, my nephew almost died this morning. Not to mention, because of the vendetta you have or had against Snow, you killed our father and I had to live twenty-eight years watching the one woman I have ever loved act like a tramp instead herself. I spent eight months trying to convince you to give up and move on with your life. But you just ignored me. You took me and father for granted and pushed the love we gave you away all for nothing!” Nicholas spat.

“So don’t expect me to just forgive you for all of that in the blink of an eye, sister dear. The only reason why I prevented Whale and that mob from tearing limb from limb was because you are still my sister. I love you to death, Regina. But as of now…you’re alone in this world.”

And with that, Nicholas Flamel turned away in a huff. Once it was dark out, the Charmings, Red and Nicholas stormed over to Gold’s for answers. “What can I do for you?” he calmly asked while brewing a pot of tea.

“What you can do is tell us what you did.” Emma hotly whispered.

“I’m sorry. You’re gonna have to be more specific.” Gold replied playing the innocent card.

“You know damn well what we’re talking about.” David retorted.

“You double-crossed Emma, you took your potion from her.” Snow added.

“And did who knows what to this town.” Red threw in.

“And worst of all, you risked my nephew’s life.” Nicholas growled.

“Well, that is quite a litany of grievances, now isn’t it?” Gold asked in boredom.

“Maybe I don’t need answers.” Emma said finally losing her patience, “Maybe I just need to punch you in the face.”

“Oh.” Gold laughed, “Really, dearie? Allow me to answer your questions with some of my own. Did your dear boy Henry survive?”

“Yeah.” Emma said with her arms crossed.

“Is the curse broken? And let’s see, uh, Ms. Swan, how long have you been searching for your parents? Looks like you’re reunited.” Gold observed before facing Nicholas, “And Mr. Flamel, how long have you been waiting to confront that old friend of yours? What with the curse gone, that should happen sometime in the near future, shouldn’t it?”

“Things would certainly be easier regarding that if we were back in the Enchanted Forest. But thanks to you, we have to settle things here.” Nicholas hissed.

“What old friend?” Emma asked.

“Don’t worry about it.” he waved off.

“Yes, well, despite that, seems like rather than a punch in the face, I deserve a thank-you.” Gold smirked.

“Twist my words all you want. What that purple haze that you brought?” Emma asked.

“You know…magic.” he replied making a playful gesture like he used to.

“Why?” Snow asked.

“Not telling.” he replied just before the ground shook.

“What the hell was that?” Emma asked.

“That is my gift to you.” Gold informed, “That is going to take care of Regina.” he said as explosion occurred and the roaring of a dark creature filled the air.

“You son of a bitch.” Nicholas growled as he grabbed the dark one by the collar, “You brought one of those here?!”

“You and your sister took someone I love away from me once,” Gold growled, “Now I get to take away someone you love, Flamel.”

“What are you talking about?!” he asked.

“Belle.” Gold spat.

“Belle?” Nicholas asked in bewilderment, “I haven’t seen that girl since that day on the road. Regina never told me what she did with her here or there.”

“Oh, well. She’s getting what she deserves as we speak.” Gold said before leaning up to speak between his gritting teeth, “Long live the queen.”

“Nicholas, come on.” Red said as she pulled his arm to the door.

“Nicholas, we need to take care of this.” David stressed. Nicholas relented and let Rumple go as he followed his friends out the door. But not before Gold stopped him with his words.

“Remember this, dearie. Now that there’s magic here, you aren’t the only resident of Storybrooke that’s immortal, anymore.”

In her cell, Regina felt an ominous presence fill the room. “Hello? Who’s there?” she asked as the lights flickered. It was then that the hooded figure that was the wraith floated before her cell, ready to feast on her soul.

As it began to do just that, Nicholas barged in and sent a burst of flames at the creature causing it to wail in agony and flee the station. “Regina, are you alright?” he asked helping his sister to her feet.

“What the hell was that thing?” Emma asked.

“A wraith!” Regina replied catching her breath, “A soul-sucker.”

“Is it-”

“Dead?” Nicholas cut off, “No, it’s regenerating. Can’t kill something that’s already dead. It won’t stop until it devours its prey.”

“Me.” Regina said in fear.

“Then we have a problem.” Emma noted.

“No, we don’t.” David denied, “Regina does.”

“What?” Regina and Nicholas asked.

“David?” Snow asked.

“You want to let her die?” Emma asked her father.

“Why not?” he asked, “Then it goes away. Then we’re safe.”

“That’s quite the example you’re setting for your daughter there.” Regina remarked bitterly.

“Hey.” Nicholas snapped as he held off David, “You don’t get to judge them.”

“Let me ask all of you something. Where do you think that thing came from?” Regina asked, “Gold.”

“We know.”

“I made a promise to Henry.” Emma reminded her father, “She’s not dying.”

“Boy, you’ve certainly been a pain in everyone’s ass today, sis.” Nicholas remarked as she glared at him.

“If it can’t be killed, what do you suggest?” Red asked.

“Send it somewhere it can’t hurt anyone.” Regina offered. After gathering makeshift torches and Jefferson’s portal jumping hat, everyone waited for the wraith to comeback. David, Red, Snow and Emma armed themselves with the torches while Nicholas readied his shadows and gloves.

As the wraith barged in, the five heroes gave Regina cover as she tried to get the hat to work only to no avail. “Anytime now, Regina!” Nicholas shouted as he snapped his fingers.

“It’s not working!” she replied.

“Now would be the time!” shouted David. As Emma went over to see what the issue was, she grabbed onto Regina’s arm which gave her enough magic to open a portal. Unfortunately, the wraith got past them and managed to fall into the portal along with Emma.

“No!” Snow and David shouted, “I’m not losing her again!” Snow cried as she jumped in after her. All around them, the furniture in the room was being whipped around by the portal’s vortex.

“I got ‘em!” Nicholas shouted as he stood on the railing and extended his arms to grab them. Unfortunately, one of the desks struck him and sent him head first into the portal. As soon as he was halfway in it, the portal suddenly closed and severed Nicholas from the navel up leaving his lower waist and legs on the floor as they slowly regenerated the rest of his body.

“Nicholas!” Red and Regina cried as they went over to him. It was a gruesome process, they had to watch him regenerate everything, bones, muscles, tissue, and skin.

“Agh.” he groaned as he finished repairing himself.

“Nicholas, are you okay?” Red asked.

“Ah, I forgot what that feels like.” he muttered as he clenched his jaw. He then used his transformation ability to replace his missing clothes; for some reason, he also patted himself with a confused look on his face. “I feel thinner. Do I look thinner to any of you?”

He then realized he was sitting on something and realized it was the hat. “No.” David said as he saw its condition.

“David, I’m so sorry.” Nicholas apologized.

“Use your alchemy.” he said desperately, “Please, you have to fix it.”

“I can’t.” Nicholas said as he shook his head, “If there’s one thing I learned it’s that alchemy and magic must never be used together. There will always be terrible outcomes.”

David looked absolutely shattered. Red was about to comfort him, but he stood up and snarled at the queen. “Where are they?!”

“I have no idea.” she replied.

“Are they dead?”

“The curse-it destroyed all the land.”

“Are they dead?!” David shouted.

“I don’t know.” Regina informed standing her ground.

“I should’ve killed you myself.” he growled.

“David, calm down.” Nicholas, “This won’t get us anywhere.”

“Well, then what’s stopping you?” Regina asked as they ignored her brother. She then pushed him back and used her magic to make the branches on the wallpaper become real and ensnare both Red and the prince. “You think you’re some heroic prince? Please. You’re nothing but the son of a shepherd. And you’re just a girl who turns into a mutt under the moon.”

“Enough!” Nicholas cried as his alchemy destroyed the branches and the rest of the wallpaper around them.

“Mom?! Uncle?!” Henry cried from the entrance of the room. Red was the closest so she went over to keep him safe from her.

“Henry, what are you doing here?” Regina asked.

“What are you two doing?” he asked.

“It’s okay, you’re safe now.” Nicholas reassured as he got to the boy first.

“Where’s my mom?” he asked, “Where’s-”

“They’re gone.” Regina informed as she joined her brother at Henry’s level, “They fell through a portal. They’re…Henry, I’m so sorry.” she apologized.

“No, you’re not.” Henry denied, “You really are the Evil Queen. I don’t want to see you again.” he said through his heartbreak.

“No, don’t say that.” Regina begged choking on her words, “I love you.”

“Then prove it.” he said, “Get Emma and Mary Margaret back, and until then, leave me-leave everyone alone.”

“Where will you go?” Regina asked.

“With me.” Nicholas said as he pulled Henry away from his sister. David and Red followed them out the door and walked with them through the streets.

“Hey, Nicholas,” David said after the alchemist let his nephew walk with Red ahead of them, “If you need a place to stay, you and Henry are welcome at the loft.”

“You sure?” he asked, “Thank you, David, I appreciate that.”

“It’s the least I can do.” David replied.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t fast enough. If that damn desk hadn’t hit me, I may have been able to pull them back.”

“It’s alright.” said David as he patted his old friend on the back, “We’ll find a way to get them back. I believe they’re still alive.”

“They are.” Nicholas replied, “Nothing, not even something whipped up by magic, is capable of destroying an entire realm. If Emma and Snow were sent to the Enchanted Forest, they’re alive.”

“They are?” David asked in hope.

“However.” Nicholas cut off, “This curse took four of the most dangerous people in our land, Rumplestiltskin, Maleficent, King George and my sister and brought them here. Time was not only frozen here for twenty-eight years, but there as well. And there’s no telling how long it’s been since time resumed there.

“What do you mean?”

“See time started moving here the night Emma decided to stay in Storybrooke. But does that mean that it started moving over then when that happened, or this morning when Emma broke the curse?” Nicholas asked, “That curse left four open spots for any evil lying in dormant to fill.”

“And you think that Emma and Snow are in danger because of that?” David asked.

“I don’t know. But what I can tell you is this, there were dangers there when we left, and not all of them came with us.” Nicholas replied.

Later that night, the three of them made it to the loft after Red went to her own home. Once Henry was put to bed upstairs, David readied the coach for Nicholas while said alchemist inspected himself in Snow’s full body mirror.

“Nicholas, what are you doing?” David asked.

“I feel strange, David.” he replied, “I feel thinned.”

“You don’t look thinner to me.” David observed.

“No, not ‘thinner’. Thinned.” Nicholas corrected, “Like I’ve been split in two.”

“You were split in two, remember?”

“Yes, but this feels different than it used too.” he replied.

“You never felt like this after regenerating before?”

“Never.” Nicholas shook his head, “I know it’s been twenty-eight years, but something feels off.”

“I’m sure you’ll feel fine in the morning.” David reasoned, “It’s been a long day.”

“Yeah, you may be right.” Nicholas reluctantly agreed.

**OUaT**

In an abandoned castle in the Enchanted Forest, two women, one dressed as a warrior and the other as a princess, looked at the sight before them. Emma, Snow and ANOTHER Nicholas lying unconscious in a pile of rubble.

Only…this Nicholas was naked from the navel down.


	11. We are Both

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or FMAB

The following day of the wraith’s attack, the entire town of Storybrooke was in a panic. Most of Main Street was destroyed and covered with debris; thankfully, Nicholas began repairs with his Alchemy as soon as the sun rose. At town hall, Red helped organize the panicking crowd as they searched for loved ones, supplies for their damaged homes, etc.

David, on the other hand, paid a visit to Regina in hopes that she would be able to repair the hat. Of course, it goes without saying that Regina proved to be a dead end so he returned to town hall where he was bombarded with questions.

Lucky for him, Nicholas and the dwarves broke the commotion; unfortunately, they didn’t have good news. “Terrible news! Terrible news!” Leroy cried as they ran over hauling a confused looking Sneezy.

“I found I them running through town like this from the town line.” Nicholas said to David in a panic.

“We were out testing to see if it was possible to leave town.” Leroy explained, “Tell them who you think you are, Sneezy!”

“Will you stop calling me that?” he asked dryly, “You know who I am. I’m Tom Clark. I own the Dark Star Pharmacy. What’s going on here?”

“If you cross the border, you lose your memory all over again.” Nicholas explained.

“And coming back doesn’t fix it?” Archie asked.

“If it did, would I have come running in yelling ‘terrible news’?!” Leroy bellowed, “If we leave, our cursed selves become our only selves.”

“…Well, we’re boned.” Nicholas bluntly said breaking the silence. As soon as he said this, everyone erupted in another uproar and surrounded the prince.

“People!” he cried trying to calm them, “Everybody! Everybody, meet back here in two hours. I’ll tell you my plan to fix everything.”

As he walked away, Red, Nicholas and Henry followed him. “What’s the plan?” Red asked.

“I don’t know, but I got two hours to figure it out.” David replied.

**OUaT**

In the gardens of the palace that would soon be his sister’s, Flamel enjoyed the cool breeze as he smoked his pipe. But it didn’t last as he saw Regina storm out of the castle nearly in tears.

“Regina,” he called as she went past him, “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“It’s Mother, Nicholas.” Regina replied, “You don’t know what she’s doing to me. It’s like she’s turning me into her. I have to get away.”

“Away?” he asked, “Regina, the wedding’s tomorrow. Mother won’t let you out of her sight.”

“I don’t care. I don’t want to marry the king, I told you that.” his sister said as her voice broke.

“I know, but there’s nothing Mother won’t do to prevent anything from ruining this wedding. Even if you try to talk to her all she’ll do is write it off as cold feet.” Flamel reminded.

“This is not cold feet, Nicholas. This-this is-this is insanity!” Regina cried, “I’m angry all the time. She’s making me crazy.”

“To her, it’s her giving you everything she never got for herself.” Flamel reasoned.

“I don’t want her life.” she said crying, “I want a life of my own. How did she get like this?”

“Father once told me that story. There was a man. Someone Mother knew before they met. He was the one who taught her magic and gave her that spell book of hers. He was the one who made her what she is.”

“Who was he?” Regina asked.

“He was the one who brought me home after beating him in deal we made.” he replied.

“What is his name?”

“Regina,” Flamel pleaded.

“What was his name?” she asked again.

“I cannot tell you. He’s dangerous.” Flamel warned, “Anything involving him comes at a price.”

“And yet your deal with him went well.” Regina retorted.

“That’s because I made the deal before he could. Not to mention, he underestimated me and I was able to exploit that.”

“But his book would say.” Regina deduced. Seeing that his sister made up her mind, Flamel sighed in defeat.

**OUaT**

In Storybrooke, David and Nicholas barged into Gold’s shop with the tattered hat in their possession. “Looks like I was throwing my money away when I bought that closed sign.” Gold remarked with distaste.

“Looks like it.” Nicholas retorted.

“Sorry to hear about your wife and daughter, Mr. Nolan. If you’re looking for retrieval, I’m afraid portal-jumping is just outside my purview.”

“Of course it is.” nodded David.

“So what’s all the commotion outside?” Gold asked.

“A little stir at the border.” Nicholas informed, “A problem crossing the line.”

“Do tell.” Gold commented looking intrigued.

“Actually, I’m here to buy something-a way to find someone.” David informed.

“What, like a map?”

“Something with a bit more kick, like the ring you gave me to find Snow.”

“Oh, yeah. Magic. Whom are you following?”

“Not telling.”

“So do you have something of theirs, this missing person?” Gold asked.

“Yes.”

“May I see it?”

“No.” they replied causing Gold to chuckle. He then pulled out a small vial filled with a locator potion.

“Pour this on the object and then follow it. So simple, even David Nolan and Nicholas Mills could do it.”

“What do you want for it?” David asked.

“Peace.” Gold replied, “Leave me alone.”

“And what do you care what David Nolan and Nicholas Mills do?” Nicholas scoffed.

“No. No.” Gold denied, “It’s Charming and Flamel I worry about. I’d like a little…non-interference guarantee. From both of you.”

“Fine. If you give us the same.” David bargained, “We stay out of each other’s ways.”

“Thank you for your business.” Gold thanked as he handed Nicholas the potion.

“One last thing before we go.” he interjected, “I caught a whiff of Regina’s perfume when I walked in. What did she come by for?”

“Let’s just say your sister stopped by looking for some reading material, and leave it at that, Mr. Flamel.” Gold replied causing Nicholas to groan in aggravation.

“Oh, great.” he grumbled as they turned to leave.

“So, uh,” Gold said as they headed towards the door, “What happens when you try and cross the border?”

“You lose your memory of everything of our old lives.” Nicholas informed, “Looks like we’re stuck here.”

“So what did Gold mean by Regina looking for reading material?” David asked as they walked through the streets.

“Sigh, it means my sister has gotten desperate.” Nicholas replied as he poured the potion over the hat and followed. Fortunately, Jefferson was just around the corner stuck in his flip car covered with debris.

“You okay?” Nicholas asked as he helped him out.

“Yeah, thanks.” Jefferson nodded.

“Good, now we can talk.” David informed.

“I don’t have anything to say in front of him.” Jefferson sneered at Nicholas.

“Fine.” he said curtly, “You handle him. I’ll head over to the meeting and give Red a hand.”

As soon as Nicholas made it to his destination, he found his sister drunk on her newly regained powers with a fire blazing behind her and a terrified crowd in front. “What do you want?” Red asked.

“Me.” Henry said from the crowd, “She wants me. I’ll come with you.”

“That’s my boy.” Regina smiled. Suddenly, Henry slid back over to Red causing everyone to gasp. Some of them quickly realized that it was Nicholas who did this and cleared the way for him.

“You will do no such thing, young man.” Nicholas said as he stared down his sibling, “Enough is enough. Stand down, Regina.”

“I don’t recall asking for your input, little brother.” Regina said as she tossed a fire ball at him. Nicholas didn’t even batt and eyelash as he made a small wall from the floor block the attack.

“Folks, you may want to clear the room. The Mills siblings are about to have a little spat and you don’t to find yourselves in the crossfire.” Nicholas warned, only Red and Henry stayed behind.

“I think it’s time I remind you who’s the big sibling around here.” Regina snarled as he hands filled with fire. Nicholas used his alchemy to make a lance from the marble floor; with an impressive twirl showing his skills, he said three words that sent chills down Red’s spine.

“Bring it on.”

“Stop it! Both of you!” Henry cried before the fighting began, “Uncle, I’m going with her.”

“But, Henry-”

“She’s not going to stop unless I go with her.” he reasoned. He then went to his mother’s side and let her wrap an arm around him.

“See at dinner tonight, brother dear.” Regina wickedly smirked as she poofed them away.

“Sigh…She’s just like our mother.” Nicholas sighed.

“We need to find David.” Red said. The two of them ran out of the building and found David chasing after Jefferson. “David, Regina has Henry.” Red informed.

“But he has the way!” he stressed as they tried to stop him.

“She has Henry and she’s threatening everyone.” Red warned.

“She has Henry?” David asked calming down.

“That’s what she’s been saying.” Nicholas replied, “She showed up at the town meeting-which you missed. Not to mention her magic’s back. Everyone is in a panic. They want to leave town. They’re going to lose everything. Am I getting through to you yet?”

“Okay. Okay, but I have to go after him first.” David relented, “He’s my only hope of finding a way to get Emma and Snow back.”

“Back to what?” Red asked, “This town is about to come apart. You gotta do something.”

**OUaT**

In the king’s castle, Cora and Flamel walked into Regina’s new room and saw her in her beautiful wedding dress. “Oh, Regina,” Flamel said with a sad smile, “You look amazing.”

“What’s this?” Cora asked as she looked at a tall gift.

“I don’t know. A gift.” Regina replied, though she was clearly lying.

“Maybe it’s a portrait.” Cora guessed as she took off the wrapping. Turns out the gift was a tall looking glass. “Oh, a looking glass. Not nearly as personal. I wonder sometimes if the people really love you.”

“I’m doing my best, Mother.” Regina said sadly.

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry.” Cora apologized sincerely, “Come here. Nicholas, you too.” she said as all three of them stood before the mirror. “Look at the two of you, with your whole lives ahead of you, and it’s going to be better than you can imagine.”

“What is she getting at?” Nicholas asked in his mind.

“The king’s not a strong man. The kingdom will be yours.” Cora explained to Regina, “Raise the tributes, form a personal guard, let everyone know where the new power lies, and you’ll hold the hearts of your people in your hands.”

“Is that what you would do, Mother?” Regina asked.

“That’s exactly what I would do, yes.” Cora chuckled.

“Well, the thing is I don’t want to be you.” Regina said before attempting to push Cora through the mirror; only Cora anticipated this and froze Regina in her tracks.

“What are you doing?” Cora asked, “You think it’s that easy to get rid of me? Your stuck with me forever, darling, because I’m your mother, and I know best.”

As she said this, Rumplestiltskin appeared in the mirror and made a pushing gesture behind Cora. In a burst of will and anger, Regina cried out as she pushed Cora into the mirror. Cora held on to the frame as it tried to pull her in; Flamel looked absolutely shocked at what he was seeing.

“Nicholas,” Cora begged while holding on, “Sweetheart, help me.”

“Nicholas, don’t.” Regina pleaded, “She’s ruined my life. Don’t let her do it anymore.”

“B-b-but…” Flamel stuttered.

“Nicholas, please.” Cora begged, “The two of you need me. I’m your mother.”

“Don’t listen to her!” Regina shrieked.

Flamel looked back and forth between his mother and sister; he didn’t know what to do. He had had enough of listening to the voices in his head before, now that they were gone, he didn’t want to hear anymore pointless squabble. On one hand, he wanted to help his mother. Despite her methods in parenting, he still loved her and didn’t want to go through years and years without her in his life again.

On the other hand, he knew what she had done to his sister whom he loved dearly and knew if she stayed, Regina could possibly become worse than he already feared. He knew what he had to do.

“I’m sorry.” he muttered as he looked to the one he would have to betray, “I love you, Mother.” he said as his alchemy created a column from the floor which pushed Cora through the frame. As soon as she was through, the mirror shattered. Flamel didn’t want to stay a minute longer. He used his alchemy to liquefy the floor beneath him, and fell through it to the floor below.

**OUaT**

Along the road which led to the town line, cars belonging to the town’s residents piled up as they tried to leave. “Oh, no.” Red muttered as she, David and Nicholas rode alongside them.

“They’re nearly to the town line.” David realized.

“I’m on it.” Nicholas calmly reassured. He then opened the car door, leaned out as they continued to drive, grazed his fingertips against the road and used his alchemy to erupt a wall right on the border surrounding the town. “Problem solved.” he said evenly.

“He’s so hot~!” Red squealed in her head. David then steered the car in front of the lead car, everyone in their cars came out and shouted in protest.

“Get out of the way!” Archie shouted, “We have a right to go!”

“Listen to me!” David shouted, “Listen! If you cross that line, you’re gonna be lost. Everyone who loves you will lose you. But there’s something worse. You’ll lose yourself. Look, I get wanting to leave here. I do. And I get that it’s easier to let go of bad memories, but even bad memories are part of us. David, Storybrooke David was-is…weak…confused…and he hurt the woman I love. I wouldn’t give up being Charming just to be him. But you know what? I wouldn’t make the other trade either, because that David reminds me not only of whom I lost…but of who I want to be, my strengths and my weakness. David and the Prince. I am both…just like you. You are both. The town is both. We are both.

“Stay here, and every choice is open to you. Live in the woods if you want. Hell, live in a shoe if you want. Or eat frozen burritos and write software. Let’s open Granny’s and the school and get back to work. I will protect you. She won’t be able to hurt any of us, not as long as I’m alive. Not as long as we all come together…as we did before…as we shall do again.”

It took a moment for David’s words to sink in, but they seemed to do the trick. Everyone looked at him with gratitude and awe as they returned to their cars to drive back to town. “Nicely done.” Nicholas praised.

“So what now?” Red asked.

“Now, I go and fetch my grandson.” David replied. As Nicholas followed David with his sword in hand up to his house, he tried to reason with him.

“Okay, just let me do all the talking. The last thing Henry needs to see is his family pit against each other twice in one day.” he said though David ignored him, “I know my sister and she-don’t kick the-”

But David just kicked the door in and charged in blindly. “I want to see him.” he demanded Regina.

“Don’t kick the door in.” Nicholas finished with a sigh.

“Henry, come down.” Regina willingly called, “You won’t be using your sword.”

“Whatever you conjure, I can fight.” David countered.

“She means, you won’t need your sword.” Nicholas corrected as his sister gently lowered it. As Henry came down the stairs, Regina went up to talk to him.

“Henry, you’re gonna go with David and Uncle Nicholas.” she informed gently.

“Really?” Henry asked.

“Really.” Regina nodded, “I shouldn’t have brought you here. I was…I don’t know how to love very well. I wasn’t capable of it for a very long time. But I know, I remember…that if you hold on to someone too hard, that doesn’t make them love you. I’m sorry I lied to you, that I made you feel like I didn’t know who you are. But I want you to be here because you want to be here, not because I forced you…and not because of magic. I want to redeem myself. Go get your things.”

“Then prove it.” David said as Henry went up-stairs.

“How?” she asked.

“Answer one question. Does it exist?”

“What?”

“The Enchanted Forest, our land-does it still exist?” Nicholas flatly asked.

“Yes.” Regina replied, “But I have no idea how to get back there.”

“Therein lies the issue, then.” Nicholas sighed.

“Just make sure you take care of my son.” Regina pleaded.

“Easy enough.” Nicholas smirked, “I’ve been helping you do that for the past ten years.”

Later that day, Henry and David went over to Granny’s for dinner while Regina stored away her mother’s spell book. As she did, she could hear the sound of a knife hitting a chopping board from her kitchen. She walked in and saw her brother wearing his apron as he was cooking.

“I know you invited me for dinner and all, but let’s be honest, I’ve always been the better cook in the family.” he said while keeping his eyes on the knife.

“What?” Regina asked.

“Wash up, I’ve made my special linguine and clam sauce dish. Oh, and I got a great deal on kale at the store today, so pick out the salad dressing you want from the fridge.” he said with a warm and quick smile.

“I don’t understand. What are you doing?”

“Making dinner.” he replied showing the knife as though it were obvious, “I’m hungry, I haven’t eaten all day and food tastes better when you eat it with others. Besides, sister dear. You can get pretty mopey when you’re upset and I’m not just gonna let you bottle up your feelings until you break something in my house again.”

“Oh, your house?” Regina asked playfully.

“Yes, my house.” Nicholas chuckled.

“Funny, I seem to recall that I was the one who paid all the bills and the mortgage on this place.” Regina quipped.

“Not my fault you didn’t curse me with a job.” Nicholas muttered as they both laughed.

Now despite the fact that his sister could easily get on his nerves and gave him reasons why he wanted to strangle her almost daily, Nicholas still loved his sister and didn’t want her to face what lied ahead alone.

That’s just what family does.

**OUaT**

As Mulan and Aurora dragged Emma, Snow and Nicholas (now fully clothed after an awkward incident when he woke up) Snow finally decided to speak to them. “What is this place?”

“Our home.” Mulan replied curtly as they entered the little settlement.

“It’s like they’re refugees.” Emma commented.

“We’re survivors.” Mulan snapped. Snow then kneed Aurora as Nicholas cut their bonds with his claws.

“Emma, run!” Snow cried. But as they made their escape, Mulan something at Snow which sent her to the ground.

“Mary Margaret!” Emma cried as she fell to her unconscious mother’s side, “What did you do?!”

“Take them to the pit.” Mulan ordered.

“Like hell!” Nicholas shouted as he attacked their captors. One of the men then threw his ax at Nicholas and struck him in the head.

“Nicholas!” Emma shrieked. He stumbled a couple of steps before he yanked the ax out and healed his wound, much to everyone’s shock/horror.

“I’d rather die than be bound by someone as their prisoner.” he snarled, “And since I’m immortal, that ain’t happening anytime soon. I am the Immortal Alchemist, Nicholas Flame-”

His speech was cut short by a sleep dart piercing his neck which sent him to the ground in a heap. Shortly after that, they were all dragged into an underground prison cell.

“Hey,” Emma said as she shook her fellow captives, “Can you guys hear me?”

“Do you need help?” a woman asked from the cave’s shadows.

“Who are you?” Emma asked.

“A friend.” she said as she revealed her face, “My name’s Cora. And that man you’re trying to wake up is my son.”


	12. Lady of the Lake

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or FMAB

In the pit of the refugees’ settlement, Emma continued to try and wake up her friend and mother. “Are you sure they’re gonna be okay?” Emma asked Cora.

“Don’t worry. They’ll be fine.” Cora reassured.

“What is this place? Where are we?” Emma asked.

“It’s a little island our captors like to think of as their haven.”

“Haven? From what?”

“The world’s dangerous. What’s left of it, anyway.”

“Well, they can’t keep us down here. We didn’t do anything wrong.” Emma argued.

“Neither did I.”

“Then why are you here?”

“I’m here because of something…my daughter did.” Cora hesitantly explained, “The curse that ravaged this land, she cast it.”

“So you really are Regina and Nicholas’s mother?” Emma asked.

“Yes. But you’ve nothing to fear from me. The apple fell very far from the tree.” she reassured with a lie, “You’re from over there, aren’t you? How’d you get back?”

“Emma.” Snow said as she and Nicholas regained consciousness.

“Who are you talking to-” Nicholas asked but stopped once he saw the smiling face of his mother.

“Hello, Nicholas.” Cora greeted.

“…Oh, shit.” he cursed under his breath.

“No.” Snow whispered.

“Oh, Snow. Both of you are awake. I’m so relieved.” Cora said while Snow looked her daughter in the eye.

“As bad as you think Regina is, this woman is worse.” she warned.

“Oh, Snow,” Cora pleaded, “Sweet Snow, please. Believe me, whatever she told you isn’t true.”

“Bull,” Nicholas spat as he defended his friends, “You were the one who put Regina on the path that made her become the Evil Queen. You were the one who killed Daniel. Everything evil she has ever done all points back at you. The people she’s killed. The lives she’s ruined. The curse. All of it was thanks to you. I warned you what the consequences would be.”

“Nicholas,” Cora sweetly said, “Everything I’ve ever done has been to help you and your sister.”

“Let’s hear her out.” Emma whispered.

“Emma.” Snow snapped.

“Okay, right now we are at the bottom of a hole with no other options, and Henry is back in Storybrooke with Regina.”

“Henry?” Cora asked.

“Not Father.” Nicholas informed.

“My son.” Emma replied, “I kind of share him with Regina and Nicholas. It’s complicated.”

“Don’t talk to her.” Snow stressed.

“Enough!” a man shouted from above as he dropped a rope, “Our leader requests an audience.”

**OUaT**

In Storybrooke, Henry walked through the streets with his uncle and grandfather as he discussed his plan. “So what’s on the agenda for Operation Scorpion?” Henry asked.

“What’s Operation Scorpion?” David asked.

“The code name for our mission to find Emma and Snow.” he replied, “Do you prefer Viper? That was my second choice.”

“Henry, we need to talk.” Nicholas said.

“Yeah, Scorpion’s better.” Henry nodded misunderstanding them.

“No, it’s not that. It’s…” David carried as Henry saw his school bus.

“I’m not coming with you?” asked Henry, “But I-I thought we were gonna find Jefferson.”

“I already did.” David replied.

“What? Is he gonna help us?”

“No.” Nicholas sighed, “No, Henry, he’s not.”

“But why didn’t you guys tell me you talked to him?”

“Because we didn’t want to disappoint you.” David replied, “We know you want to find your mom, but Jefferson can’t help us. I need to find a way to restore the hat.”

“So why can’t I help you look?” Henry asked.

“It’ll require magic, Henry, and magic-”

“Always comes with a price.” the boy finished, “I read the book, you know.”

“I’m sorry, but I just can’t let you anywhere near this stuff.” David apologized.

“Look, if you really want to help us, you’ll go to school, where we know you’ll be safe. Okay?” Nicholas asked.

“Okay.” Henry nodded.

“And no more ditching!” Nicholas called as Henry walked away. Little did he and Charming know, as soon as their backs were turned, Henry ran off.

**OUaT**

“Why can’t you just listen to me?” Snow asked Emma with a sigh.

“Why couldn’t you have just trusted me?” Emma countered, “I was just trying to find a way to get us home. I could’ve handled her.”

“Puh!” Nicholas scoffed with humor, “Yeah, right. You could’ve handled my mother? That’s rich.” he laughed.

“We’ve lived here, Emma.” Snow reminded, “We know this world and its dangers.”

“Wait here.” said the guard as he fetched his leader. 

“Is that why you two came through the portal?” Emma huffed, “Because you thought I was helpless here?”

“No.” Snow replied, “I came here to be with you.”

“Well, I actually came here because I got hit with a desk when I tried to pull you guys back in.” Nicholas bluntly corrected, “But you guys are my friends, I’ve got your backs.”

“Lancelot?” Snow asked as she saw the dark skinned knight emerge from his hut.

“Snow.” he said as they both laughed and hugged each other, “If I’d known that you were the prisoners Mulan brought back, I never would’ve locked you away.”

“Lancelot?” Emma flatly asked, “Really?”

“Says the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming.” Nicholas muttered.

“He’s an old friend. We can trust him.” Snow reassured.

Off to the side, Mulan and Aurora were having a chat of their own. “Why is he embracing them?” Aurora asked, “They were responsible for Phillip’s death.”

You’re new here, Aurora. Phillip trusted Lancelot. So must we.” Mulan explained.

“I want justice.” Aurora demanded.

“Tread carefully.” Mulan warned, “It’s dangerous to confuse vengeance with justice. Do you understand me?” she asked only to see the princess ignore her, “Do you understand me?”

“Yes.” she replied while clutching onto the dagger she had hidden in her cloak.

“What the hell is that?” Emma bluntly asked as she looked at what her hosts were serving.

“That is chimera.” Lancelot replied, “An acquired taste, but all our hunting party could bring back. One part lion, one part serpent, one part goat.”

“Like Turducken?” Emma asked.

“I’ll just stick with the fish.” Nicholas informed, “Not to disrespect your generosity. It’s just that as an alchemist, I’m not overly fond of the multiple genetic cross-breading of animals.” he said before biting the head off a trout.

“No disrespect taken.” Lancelot replied.

“I don’t understand. We were told this land didn’t even exist anymore.” Snow explained, “How did you all escape the curse?”

“It is a mystery.” replied Lancelot, “The curse struck, and when the smoke cleared, most of us had been torn from this land. But some of us here, in this particular region, were left behind. We don’t know how and we don’t know why. Finding this safe haven wasn’t easy. It took some spilt blood. But worry not. You’re safe here.”

“We can’t stay.” said Snow, “My husband’s back there, Emma’s son, Nicholas’s nephew, my grandson. We have to get back to them. Can you help us find a portal?”

“Leaving is unwise.” Lancelot argued, “The Enchanted Forest is not as you remember it. The ogres have returned.”

“Oh, terrific. Ogres.” Nicholas said sarcastically.

“Ogres?” Emma asked, “Like as in fee-fi-fo-fum?”

“Those would be giants.” Snow gently corrected.

“Yeah, ogres are just, well…a hell of a lot worse.” Nicholas added.

“Indeed. That’s why we live here, on this island where it’s safe.” Lancelot added, “Please, Snow, stay here. There are no more portals left.”

“I might know of one.” Snow informed.

“Oh, yeah. We could try that.” Nicholas agreed as he realized what Snow was thinking.

“Where?” Lancelot asked.

“Cora’s near. I don’t feel comfortable voicing my plans. She’s powerful.”

“Not anymore.”

“Come again?” Nicholas asked while taking out his pipe.

“The curse stripped her of her powers. But given her reputation, we’ve kept her locked up as a precaution.”

“Nevertheless, I’m not taking chances.” Snow replied, “Just trust me. I may have a way. Let us go.”

“I’ll allow it, but on one condition; take my bravest warrior with you. Allow Mulan to defend you.”

“We can defend ourselves.” Emma argued.

“Deal.” Nicholas and Snow agreed.

“Thank you, Lancelot. For always looking out for me.” Snow said gratefully.

Mulan then showed them a chest filled with weapons so they’d be ready for the journey ahead. “Choose wisely.” she advised, “We must be vigilant if we hope to survive the journey.”

“Where’s my gun?” Emma asked as she put a knife in her boot while Snow grabbed a broadsword, a bow and a quiver filled with arrows. Nicholas chose two hunting knives and an infantry sword.

“Is it magic?” Mulan asked as she inspected the revolver.

“Depends on who’s pulling the trigger.” Emma remarked with an outstretched hand.

“Follow my lead, step where I step, do exactly as I say, and we might survive.” Mulan ordered.

“Pft, speak for yourself. I have a 100% chance at survival.” Nicholas smirked.

“How did you survive that attack?” Mulan asked, “Are you skilled in the dark arts?”

“Skilled, yes. In the dark arts, no.” Nicholas replied putting his knives in his belt and his sword around his waist. “I’m an immortal alchemist. What you saw was alchemy at its most powerful. Though the cost to achieve it was severe.”

“Was it worth it?” Emma asked.

“Absolutely not.” Nicholas replied without hesitation, “But it has proven helpful over the years. It’ll be a big help if we have a run in with any ogres.”

“Doesn’t sound too hard.” Emma shrugged, “I did kill a dragon last week.”

“Have you ever seen an ogre?” Mulan asked harshly.

“Pretty sure I’ve dated a few.” she dryly joked.

“Legend has it that when they kill you, the last thing you see is yourself dying in the reflection in their eyes. They leave no survivors.”

“No survivors?” Nicholas asked with a sly grin, “Then where does the legend come from, I wonder?”

“Let’s walk. It’ll be dark soon.” Mulan huffed.

“And that, ladies and gentlemen is how you kick unproven legends in the ass with simple logic.” he said aloud causing Emma and Snow to laugh.

“Don’t let her rattle you.” Snow said to Emma as they made their way out of the settlement. As they did, Aurora tailed them from a distance. “Just stick to the plan.”

“What is the plan?” Emma asked, “You haven’t told me anything. What’s going on?”

“The wardrobe.” Snow whispered.

“Wardrobe. The wardrobe?” Emma gasped, “Like, the wardrobe that sent little baby me to Maine? You think it could get us back to Storybrooke?”

“I don’t know. First we have to see if it survived the curse, then we’ll worry about making it work.”

“Where is it?”

“My place.” Snow replied with a happy smile, “You wanna see where you’re from, Emma? That’s right. We’re going home.”

Later that day, the four travelers eventually came to an open clearing. “We’ll make camp here for the night.” Mulan informed, “We just need to find water, collect some firewood.”

“Uh, if we’re hiding from ogres, shouldn’t we maybe, I don’t know, not start a fire?” Emma interjected.

“Ogres are blind. They hunt by sound alone.” Snow replied.

“Right. Because that’s something everyone would know about ogres.” Emma remarked.

“Look, I know you’re out of your element-”

“I’m fine.” Emma cut off.

“I know, but maybe you should just stay here while we get wood and water, guard the campsite.” Snow offered.

“You mean the big, empty clearing?” Emma asked.

“It’s the safest place. We’ll be right back.” Nicholas reassured as he, Snow and Mulan left Emma. Later that night, Snow was getting the firewood set up for Nicholas to ignite when suddenly, Aurora snuck up behind her with a knife at her throat.

“Don’t move.” She growled, Nicholas did nothing because he knew his friend could handle herself. “Phillip’s gone because of you.”

Not a second later, Snow flipped the princess over her shoulder and pinned her to the ground. “And so, Snow White the Bandit Princess makes a comeback.” Nicholas sighed as he began to smoke and watch the one-sided struggle.

“You listen to me, princess!” Snow spat, “You think I don’t know what it’s like to be separated from the people that I love? What happened to Phillip was not our fault. So I suggest you find a way to channel your anger.”

“Don’t talk to her like that.” Mulan said as she pulled Snow away and had herself thrown aside by Nicholas in turn.

“Get your hands off her.” he growled.

“She tried to kill me.” Snow defended.

“I will deal with her.” Mulan snapped just before the sound of a gunshot echoed through the forest.

“Oh, great.” Nicholas growled as he smacked his face and dragged his hand down it in irritation.

“Emma, what are you doing?” Snow asked.

“Protecting you.” she replied as she pointed her gun at Mulan, “Drop the weapon!”

“Do you have any idea what you’ve just done?” Snow asked fearfully as the trees rustled and roared.

“Ogres?” Emma asked.

“Ogres.” Nicholas nodded.

“Run!” Snow shouted. As they all ran into the woods, each of them split up; Mulan with Aurora, and Snow with Nicholas and Emma. Unfortunately, Emma tripped and fell giving the ogre the chance to try and eat her. But Snow gave a sharp whistle which directed the ogre’s attention to her and Nicholas.

“Back away from my daughter!” she shouted as she readied her bow and Nicholas his sword. In a blur, Nicholas managed to get behind the ogre and sliced both of its ankles in a single clean cut sending it to the ground as Snow shot it in the eye.

“What the hell, Nicholas?!” Snow exclaimed, “I totally had that thing!”

“Me?!” he asked, “I was the one who took it down and got the first blow! You ruined my kill!”

“When was the last time you two used a sword and shot an arrow?” Emma asked.

“Twenty-eight years ago.” they replied, “Guess it’s like riding a bike.”

“Yeah, but how did you know you could take it down that easily?”

“We didn’t.” they replied casually, “Next time, listen to me.” Snow pleaded.

“Guns won’t do you much good in these parts.” Nicholas informed as he pulled out his pipe, “ _Ride ‘em in, Rawhide!_ ” he sang with humor as they met up with the others and continued on their way.

“We’re here.” Snow declared as they caught sight of the ruins which was once her home.

“Is that it?” Emma asked.

“Yeah. We’re home.” Snow said in nostalgia.

**OUaT**

Back in Storybrooke, Henry decided to seek out Jefferson himself; only when he found him, things didn’t go as he had hoped. So he decided to take matters into his own hands and look for answers in his mother’s vault; unfortunately for Henry, what he thought was a box filled with answers contained a two headed viper wanting to make a meal out of him.

Thankfully, Nicholas and David were also there and managed to shut the box with the snake in it. “Maybe we should’ve gone with Operation Viper.” David commented, “You alright?”

“Yeah.” Henry nodded as his uncle helped him up, “How’d you guys know I was down here?”

“Your mom said you asked her to lunch, and when you stood her up, she checked her office, saw her keys missing, figured out the rest.” Nicholas explained, “She would’ve come herself, but she didn’t think you’d go with her. Henry, what were you thinking?”

“I just want them back.” Henry replied, “It wasn’t supposed to be this way. I should be over there with them, riding horses, learning how to swordfight.”

“Oh, kid,” Nicholas sighed in his head, “Life’s not always going to be like a fairytale. Living here or there doesn’t change that.”

“It’s okay.” David soothed, “Because we are gonna do this together.”

“That’s right.” Nicholas nodded, “But first, you got to go to school.” he said as they all walked out, “Oh, by the way, you lost your T.V. privileges for the weekend.”

“What?!” Henry whined.

“I told you no ditching and you ditched.” Nicholas reminded calmly yet stern, “Unless you want to make it longer, I suggest you don’t whine about it.”

“Yes, Uncle Nicholas.” he grumbled.

“Good boy.”

**OUaT**

Soon the party made it to the castle and made it to Emma’s old nursery; luckily, the wardrobe was still there. “Oh, my God.” Emma sighed, “I recognize this from Henry’s book.”

“We’ll stand watch at the gate.” Mulan said giving the mother and daughter some space.

“I never thought I’d see this place again.” Snow said in sad nostalgia, “This was to be your nursery.”

“I lived here?” Emma asked.

“You never even got to spend a night. This is the life I wanted you to have.” Snow admitted, “I was going to teach you how to walk in here, how to talk, how to dress for your first ball. You never got to do any of it…we never got to be a family.”

At each word she said, Nicholas felt a painful surge of guilt in his stomach as he stared out the window.

“We have a family-in Storybrooke.” Emma flatly reminded, “And right now they need us to get back there. So how do we get this to work?” she asked pointing at the wardrobe, “There an on switch?”

“It’s more complicated than that.” Nicholas retorted, “We’ll have to get it back to the island. Hopefully, someone there has access to enough magic to make it work again.”

“How are we gonna carry this thing?” Emma skeptically asked.

“With the help of an old friend.” Lancelot relied as he surprisingly entered the nursery.

“Lancelot. What are you doing here?” Snow asked.

“We heard about the ogre attack, and I had to make sure you were alright.”

“Where are Mulan and Aurora?” Nicholas asked.

“I sent them to find food.” Lancelot replied, “Tonight we’ll make camp, and in the morning we’ll head back. So…this is it. The portal you were after.”

“Same one Emma went through.” Snow nodded, “It’s how she escaped the curse. Geppetto carved it from an enchanted tree, but there’s no magic left.”

“A portal this powerful…there must be another way to recharge it.”

“Why are you so interested in the wardrobe?” Nicholas asked.

“Well, I just want you to get home to your husband and son. Henry. They must miss you.” Lancelot replied as Snow and Nicholas quickly whipped out their swords and pointed them at the knight.

“Stay away from him, Emma.” Snow ordered, “He is not who he says he is.”

“What are you talking about? Who the hell is he?” Emma asked.

“There’s only one person you told Henry’s name.” Nicholas reminded, “Nice try. But when you want to impersonate someone, you don’t to make even the simplest of mistakes…Mother.”

Lancelot was then shrouded in a puff of smoke before Cora revealed herself. “Ah, that’s my boy.” she praised, “Always the deductive one. So clever and shrewd.”

“Where’s Lancelot?” Snow asked.

“He’s dead. I killed him a long time ago.” Cora replied as though it was nothing.

“And you’ve been posing as him ever since.”

“Well, they’d never listen to me.” Cora reasoned, “And besides, every kingdom needs a hero, don’t you think?” she asked before pinning Snow and Nicholas to the wall with her magic while Emma was tossed aside.

“Thank you, Snow. I’ve been looking for a way over for so long. I never thought the person to help me find it would be you and my son.”

“Why?” Nicholas choked, “Why are you doing this?”

“I wanted to see you and your sister.” Cora replied, “It’s been too long. And you know, I would love to meet my grandson Henry.”

“No, you won’t!” Emma grunted as she set the wardrobe ablaze.

“No!” Cora shouted as she tried to toss the fire at Emma. Thankfully, Nicholas’s alchemy was faster and was able to make a wall in time. “We’re not done.” she warned before teleporting away.

“You guys okay?” Emma asked.

“You saved us.” Snow breathed.

“Yeah, well…where is she?”

“Gone.” Nicholas replied, “Mother was always one for the dramatics. Now you two know where my sister and I get it from.”

“And now our ride home’s up in flames.” Emma commented as she watched the tree burn.

“Mulan’s not gonna be happy when we tell her my mother killed Lancelot.” Nicholas pointed out, “Well, more unhappy than usual.”

“I already know.” Mulan said as she and Aurora entered the room, “We saw what happened just before Cora disappeared.”

“Nice timing.” he said dryly.

“He was one of the most noble knights I ever knew.” Snow said wistfully.

“How could I be so blind? How could I not see that it was Cora?” Mulan asked in anger.

“Well, to be fair, the whole shape-shifting thing threw us, too.” Emma offered.

“What are we going to tell the people on the island?”

“The truth. That Lancelot was cut down by a terrible villain. He died an honorable death.” Snow said on behalf of her friend, “No offense, Nicholas.”

“None taken.” he shrugged, “Though, Cora’s still out there. And if I know my mother as well as I think I do, she’ll make another appearance real soon.”

“We need to find her. We need to defend what’s left of the kingdom.” Mulan stressed.

“And who’s going to lead us? You?” Aurora asked skeptically.

“No. Them.” she said looking at Nicholas and Snow.

“No chance in Hell.” he bluntly shot down while taking a smoke.

“I’m honored,” Snow said a bit more gently than Nicholas, “But the three of us still have to find a way back to Storybrooke.”

“We’ll help you.” Mulan offered, “We’ll find a way, won’t we?”

“Yes.” Aurora nodded, “Perhaps it’ll help me channel my anger.”

As they were about to leave, Emma began to speak with her mother. “Uh, Nicholas, could you give us a minute?” she asked.

“Yeah, sure.” he waved off, “One of us should have a nice talk with their mother today, right?” he joked.

**OUaT**

In Emma’s Bug back in Storybrooke, Henry watched the happy reunion between Jefferson and his daughter. His train of thought was quickly broken when he saw his uncle and grandfather standing outside the window.

“Your uncle and I have been thinking,” David said as he rested his head on the window, “If you’re gonna start helping us, we gotta make sure we do this right. So we picked these up earlier.” he said as he presented Henry with three wooden swords.

“Seriously?” Henry asked with excitement.

“Yeah, you’re the grandson of a prince. I think it’s about time you learned how to use a sword. Henry, we can’t them back without you.” David admitted.

“So?” Nicholas asked happy that things between him and his nephew were getting good again, “What do you say? You with us?”

“Can you teach me how to fight a dragon?” Henry asked with a grin.

“We’ll work our way up to it.” David negotiated as Henry came out of the car, “My liege.” he bowed.

“Who knows, Charming. Maybe we’ll be able to make a swordsman out of you, too.” Nicholas joked as he grabbed his sword.

“Excuse me?” David asked with a smirk, “No offense to you, _Flamel_. But I think my skills can beat that of an alchemist’s.”

As he said this, he blinked for just a second and as his eyes opened, Nicholas had his wooden sword pointing up and David realized his toy was missing. “What the? Where’s my sword?” he asked only to see the alchemist point up.

As he and Henry looked up, they saw the toy sword spinning in the air as it fell back down and smoothly landed in Nicholas’s free hand. He then gave an impressive display of duel wielding with several twirls before offering his friend his sword.

“You were saying?” Nicholas smugly but with a playful attitude, “En garde.” he said.

As the three boys bonded over their little game, a man wearing a suit spied on them suspiciously. Though he mainly focused on watching David.


	13. Alchemy Wolf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was the original pairing, but I changed it later on due to both my own preferences and other readers'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or FMAB

Deep in the mines of Storybrooke, the seven dwarves, Nicholas and David swung their axes hoping to mine diamonds for the fairies to convert into Fairy Dust. Henry watched as they all sweated and chipped away at the walls; although, he had a hard time taking his eyes off of his uncle’s tattoo.

Red found herself doing exactly the same, obviously for different reasons, once she came down with a basket of food; she was even nice enough to give Henry a muffin. “Did they find any Fairy Dust yet?” she asked Henry.

“No, not yet.” Henry glumly admitted, “But they will, and when they do, we’ll figure out a way to get Mary Margaret and my mom back.”

“I’ll be back later with lunch.” she said as she left. As he watched her walk away, Nicholas felt butterflies flutter in his stomach and his heart pound inside his chest.

With a deep gulp, he dropped his ax, grabbed his shirt and said to his friends, “Wish me luck, boys. I’m gonna need it.” before going after the beautiful were-wolf. As Red exited the mines, Nicholas was hot on her tail (no pun intended) after dressing himself.

“Red,” he called, “Red, wait up.”

“Hey. What is it?” she asked as the alchemist approached her.

“Uh…” he trailed as he began to lose his nerve, “Uh…”

“Boy, that mine dust must’ve filled your head up, huh?” she teased.

“Uh, Ruby-or do just go by Red now?” Nicholas asked as he began to ramble, “I mean, I think both suit you, it’s just between here and there-”

“Nicholas,” Red interrupted as she smiled at his rambling, “You can call me whatever you want. Ruby or Red works just fine.”

“He’s so cute when he’s like this.” she commented in her head.

“Okay then, uh, Ruby…wouldyouliketogooutonadatewithme?” he asked quickly as his face flushed.

“Say that again. Just a little slower, please?” she laughed.

“Would you like to go out on a date with me?” he asked again no less red, “I promise it won’t be Granny’s.”

“Yeah.” Red nodded, “I’d love to.”

“Really? Great!” Nicholas cheered happily, “I’ll pick you up at 7:30. Sound good?”

“Sounds great.” Ruby replied, “See you tonight.”

Nicholas could only stare at the brunette as she walked away (with a little extra sway in her hips) and smile widely. He even went as far as jumping up and clicking his heels together because he was so happy. As he rejoined David and the dwarves, they all waited for him to tell them what happened. Though he knew this and decided to leave them hanging while he got back to work.

“Don’t leave us hanging, Flamel!” Leroy exclaimed, “How’d it go?!”

“…She said yes. I got a date tonight!” Nicholas cheered.

As the day went on, Nicholas spent most of it helping the dwarves in the mines while David and Ruby helped Gold track down Belle after her father had her kidnapped. About an hour before their big night, the two love birds made themselves presentable (and sexy for the other). Wearing Graham’s leather jacket over a red polo with black jeans, Nicholas walked down Main Street with a bouquet of roses in his hand.

As he made his way up Ruby’s porch, said girl spotted him through her window and quickly inspected her hair and fixed her black V-neck dress; hey, she had been dreaming of this night for years. If she was going to have it go the way she wanted, she was going to use her girls to their full extent. With a knock on the door, she took a deep breath and opened the door with a sexy pose.

“Wow.” Nicholas breathed. To be honest, she was about to say the same thing but decided to keep her cool.

“I know.” she teased.

“Uh, these are for you.” he stuttered as he revealed the roses from behind his back.

“Oh,” she cooed, “That’s so sweet. Thanks, Nicholas.” she said taking in their scent and setting them on the table.

“Game of Thorns’ finest.” he said blushing.

“So what does the Immortal Alchemist have planned for us this evening?” Red asked as she looped her arm with his.

“Well, I promised you something other than Granny’s.” Nicholas reminded, “How do you feel about Chinese food?”

“I say, Gung Hay Fat Choy.” Red replied cheerfully causing Nicholas to look at her in confusion.

“What?”

“Gung Hay Fat Choy. It means let’s go eat in Chinese.” Red replied.

“No, it doesn’t.” Nicholas debated.

“Yes, it does.”

“Ruby, I speak perfect Chinese. Gung Hay Fat Choy means ‘Happy New Year’ in mandarin.” Nicholas corrected.

“It does?” she asked, “Wait, how do you know Chinese?”

“Remember that kingdom I told you about where I was a slave? Well, our realms version of China was close to it so my master often dealt with them for resources for his alchemy experiments. One thing led to another and I eventually picked it up. It’s basically a formal version of Chinese here.”

“Huh. I didn’t know we had a version of China in our realm.” Ruby said in surprise.

“You’d be surprised if you knew all the alternate versions of the nations in this land that are over in ours.” Nicholas informed, “Don’t even get me started on our version of Canada and Mexico.”

“What’s there?”

“Let’s just say, I could have gone without meeting Don Quixote and a heard of talking moose.” Nicholas said flatly with a dry look, “Oh, look. We’re here.” he said as they approached the only Chinese restaurant in town.

“You know I have actually never eaten here.” Ruby pointed out.

“Really?”

“Yeah, Granny wasn’t really that fond of letting me eat at the ‘competition’.”

Inside the restaurant, Ruby looked at the setting happily. She was enjoying her Mongolian shrimp and chicken while Nicholas munched on his General Tso chicken. “So let me get this straight. One of the waiters does a what now?” Red asked as she laughed.

“I’ll show you. Hey, Lee.” Nicholas said to the manager, “Go get James, Ruby hasn’t seen his Eddie Murphy impression.”

“I will be right back.” Lee said with a grin. A minute later, he came back with the only black waiter in the restaurant.

“Hey, Nicholas.” James greeted, he surprisingly had a high pitched voice, “Sup, man. How you doin?”

“Just enjoying a night with a lovely lady.” he replied causing Ruby to blush, “This is actually her first time eating here, so she has yet to see your Eddie Murphy impression.”

“Oh, you mean,” James said before saying, “Your momma got teeth on the back of her neck; the bitch be eating like this.” he said as he cocked his head back causing everyone to laugh.

“Hercules, Hercules, Hercules.” he laughed as he clapped.

“What is Haircles?” Lee asked.

“What?” James asked looking at his friend/boss, “It’s not Haircles, it’s Hercules.”

“Haircles.” Lee tried again.

“Hercules.” James corrected flatly.

“Haircles.”

“Hercules.”

“Haircles.”

“Hercules!”

“Haircles!”

“Herc-u-les!”

“Hair-cl-es!”

“Does this always happen?” Red asked grinning.

“Why do you think I asked them to come over here?” Nicholas replied as he held her hand as they watched the argument.

“Do you understand the words that are coming out of my mouth?!” James asked loudly and slowly.

After the little argument, Ruby and Nicholas continued to enjoy their date. They eventually found their way walking on the beach hand in hand. “So…tell me something about yourself that I don’t already know.” Red said swinging her shoes in her free hand.

“Um…Nicholas Flamel isn’t actually my real name.” he admitted.

“Really?”

“Really.” he nodded.

“What is it, then?” she asked.

“Well…I don’t know. I can’t remember it. When I finally got back home, nobody would tell me what it was.”

“Why not?”

“I have no idea. First thing I did when one of the maids asked me who I was, I said, ‘My name is Nicholas Flamel. I’m Cora and Henry’s son.’ I guess they heard me and that’s what they’ve called me ever since.”

“If it makes you feel better, I think the name Nicholas Flamel suits you.” Red commented, “And Red isn’t my real name, either.”

“I kinda gathered that.” Nicholas playfully muttered in her hair.

“What gave it away?” she asked, “Yeah, it’s actually Eliza. Eliza Lucas.”

“Huh. Never would have guessed Eliza.”

“Now you know why I go by Red and Ruby.”

“Something tells me my real name is probably something lame.” Nicholas remarked.

“Oh, come on. If you were able to come up with something as cool as Nicholas Flamel, it can’t be that bad.” Red shrugged.

“Well, actually, I didn’t come up with it.” Nicholas admitted.

“Who did?”

“…Somebody I thought I knew.” he mumbled, “But besides that, I think Red and Ruby suit you pretty well, too.”

“This isn’t where you try some cheesy lines and compare my name to something romantic, is it?” Red asked playfully.

“Well, that depends.”

“On what?”

“On whether or not you can keep your legs from feeling like jelly after you hear what I have to say.” Nicholas replied before whispering in her ear. It wasn’t anything dirty, but it was certainly smooth and romantic.

“Oh,” Red breathed shakenly, “Wow…Nicholas, would you mind if you carried me on your back? I feel dizzy.”

“If milady insists.” he laughed before he scooped her up and draped her over his shoulder.

“No!” she screamed as he spun her around, “Put me down! Put me down!”

“Not a chance!” Nicholas laughed before he finally fell to the ground with Ruby landing on his chest. As the were-wolf knocked the wind out of the alchemist, Nicholas laughed and held her close to him. Before he could do anything else, Ruby leaned in and passionately kissed him, moaning as she did. As they relished in each other's embrace, their passion sealed the deal in the foundation of the relationship they had been longing for thirty years.


	14. The Doctor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or FMAB

“I don’t know if I can do this.” Aurora warned as they journeyed back to the settlement, “I’m not a very good liar.”

“Oh, it’s not really a lie, Aurora.” Snow reassured, “Lancelot did die an honorable death and Cora did escape. All true. Just leave us to the particulars. There’s no reason to cause unnecessary panic amongst your people.”

“I’m not so sure it’s unnecessary-”

“Shh!” Nicholas hushed stopping them.

“What is it?” Emma asked as he sniffed the air.

“I smell death.” he whispered drawing his sword. As they ran to the settlement, they found a massacre waiting for them. Bodies and debris littered the ground within every inch of sight.

“Oh, my God.” Emma gasped.

“This can’t be.” Mulan denied, “Our land-we were protected here, hidden. How did the ogres find us?”

“Ogres didn’t do this.” Snow said. The one thing she noticed about all of the corpses were that they all had gaping holes in their chests.

“Then what did?” Emma asked.

“My mother.” Nicholas answered as he leaned down to close the eyes of a dead child.

“This was her magic. Twisted and evil. We have to stop her.” Snow declared.

“Too late. She killed them. She killed them all.” Mulan choked.

“No, we have to stop her before she hurts anyone else.” Snow argued.

Nicholas could only stare at the bodies. As he did, a different sight flooded his mind. Instead of seeing the people actually before him, he countless bodies with blonde hair in robes littered across the hot sand of a desert. None of their hearts had been ripped out, but each of their faces had looks of pain and horror.

“Nicholas.” Emma alerted as she shook her friend, “You okay?”

“Huh? Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine, Emma.” he replied, “Just thinking.”

“Look. There’s someone under there.” Aurora exclaimed as she heard groans from under a pile of bodies.

“Please. Please help me.” the man begged. He was roughly Nicholas’s age with raven hair, blue eyes, a scraggly beard and only one hand. “That woman, she-” he began to say but stopped as soon as he saw Nicholas. “Oh, bugger.” he sighed, “She never told me you were here, too.”

“You!” Nicholas growled as he used his alchemy to trap the man similar to what he did to Regina days earlier.

“Nicholas, what are you doing?!” Emma exclaimed.

“Trust me, Emma. This guy isn’t the victim you think he is.” Nicholas replied as he stared him down, “Ladies, allow me to introduce you to Captain Killian Jones. Also known as,” he said before pulling out a shiny hook from Killian’s coat, “Captain Hook.”

“…Seriously?” Emma remarked.

**OUaT**

In his sister’s lavish, new castle, Flamel was enjoying the cool spring breeze and a good book outside near the trees he and his sister grew. While she had her own apple tree, he had a plum tree; ironically, he had planted the seeds which would become said tree the day before he was taken from his home. His thoughts were interrupted once he noticed his sister walk past him.

“You’re home early.” he observed, “The imp not have much to teach you today?”

“No,” Regina sighed, “He no longer wants to train me.”

“Why?”

“I told him that I wanted him to teach me how to bring back the dead with magic.” she confessed.

“Sigh…not this again.” Flamel sighed as he shut his book, “Regina, I already told you, nothing in this, or any realm, is capable of bringing Daniel back. The dead can’t come back to life.”

“Just because alchemy can’t-”

“Nothing can.” he stressed, “Dead is dead, Regina. And yet…by that look in your eyes, you still don’t seem convinced.”

“…Well…there was this man I met today.” Regina hesitantly admitted, “He’s a traveler between realms.”

“Jefferson?” Flamel asked, “You met Jefferson?”

“You know him?”

“I know of him. He enjoys making deals almost as much as the dark one. What did he offer you?”

“He said he’d introduce me to someone capable of bringing Daniel back. All I have to do is give him a royal passport and I can have Daniel back.”

“Regina, this is a set up. No one can bring back the dead. It doesn’t matter what land you come from or what deal you make. No matter the theories or methods, a dead man is still just that at the end of the day; a dead man.”

“But…what if you were there?” Regina asked.

“Excuse me?” Flamel asked as his temper began to rise.

“If this wizard’s magic doesn’t work, maybe your alchemy can be the solution.”

“Regina…you know perfectly well that I have already told you that using alchemy to bring back the dead is forbidden.” Flamel reminded as he glared at his desperate sibling, “It is the highest taboo and incapable of being performed successfully.”

“But, Nicholas-”

“Regina, you have my sympathies and condolences for what happened to Daniel…but you do not have my cooperation. I will have no part in this. And don’t ever bring up Human Transmutation around me again.” he warned as he returned to the castle.

“Bringing someone back from the dead.” Flamel muttered as he looked up at the sky and walked, “What nonsense. Why anyone would want to rob a soul of such freedom is beyond me.”

**OUaT**

In his office, Nicholas stared out at his plum tree as he enjoyed a quiet afternoon smoke. In his pocket, he could feel his phone vibrate and saw that the I.D. was his sister’s cell. “Hey, sis.” he greeted.

“Nicholas, get over here now.” Regina said in a panic.

“Why? What’s wrong?” he asked rising in his seat.

“It’s Dr. Whale. He’s been attacked.” she informed.

“By who?”

“By Daniel.” Regina replied.

“…That fool.” Nicholas whispered before grabbing his coat and running out the door. As he entered the hospital, he found his sister staring at the unconscious doctor through the glass frame; only, he was missing his left arm.

“Any idea why he decided to go through with the procedure a second time?” Nicholas asked not even looking at his sibling.

“One. To get on my good side so I could send him back to his land.” Regina replied flatly.

“That’s a tall order.” Nicholas quipped, “Told you no good can come from trying to bring the dead back to life.”

“Yes, but he succeeded, Nicholas.” Regina whispered finally looking at him, “He brought Daniel back.”

“Did he? Is Daniel back?” Nicholas asked skeptically, “I may not have known him as well as you did, Regina. But I don’t recall Daniel being the type of man who would tear another man’s arm out right from his socket.”

“What’s going on?” David asked as he join the siblings, “I got a call saying Dr. Whale had been attacked.”

“You’ll have to ask his doctors.” Regina replied honestly.

“No. I am asking you.” David snapped.

“Hey.” Nicholas interjected as he pushed David’s finger away from Regina, “First of all, get your finger out of my sister’s face. Second of all, try listening to your only witness before accusing her and writing her off as your prime suspect.”

“I came here to speak with Dr. Whale and discovered he was hurt.” Regina informed the acting sheriff. It’s the truth!” she stressed as she saw his skeptic look.

“What else?” David asked, “What did you come here to speak with him about?”

“…Someone from my past.” Regina replied trying to control the age old pain, “I believe he’s come back. Daniel. His name is Daniel.”

“The man you were supposed to marry.” David recalled, “Snow told me what happened, and…how it was her fault that he died. How could he be back?”

“Whale.” they said indicating to the doctor.

“He believed he could bring him back from the grave, and it would appear that he was successful this time around.” Nicholas informed.

“He practices something more powerful than magic, or so I was told.” Regina added, “All he needed was a heart, and he took one of mine.”

“You have hearts here?” David said flabbergasted.

“In my vault. From our land.”

“Whose heart did he take?” David asked hotly.

“I have no idea.” replied the queen, “I took so many. It was impossible to keep track. I need to go. I have to help him.”

“No. Where is he?” David asked, “Look what he did. He’s dangerous.”

“Not to me.” Regina argued, “He won’t hurt anyone else, David, I promise.”

“You know I can’t take that chance.” David stressed, “You have two choices, Regina: tell me where he is, or jail.”

“I think it’s like when you awoke from your coma. He’s following his final thoughts to where he last met me; the stables.” Regina explained.

“No.” David whispered, “Henry. Henry’s at the stables.”

“Oh, cripes!” Nicholas shouted as they ran out to their cars. Once they finally made it to the stables, they found Daniel lifting Henry from the ground by the throat in a blind rage.

“Daniel! Let him go!” Regina cried. At the sight of his fiancé and her brother, Daniel dropped Henry giving the boy the chance to run away.

“…Oh, you poor soul.” Nicholas whispered.

“You’re really here.” Regina said showing the happiness thought to have died out almost forty years ago. Sadly, Daniel didn’t share the same feelings; he tried to lunge at Regina’s throat but David was quick enough to shut the door on him.

“It won’t hold for long.” he warned, “Can you cast a spell to subdue him?” he asked Regina.

“No. I won’t use magic on him.” she refused as David readied his pistol, “What do you think you’re doing?!”

“He’s a monster, Regina!” David shouted, “If you and Nicholas won’t put him down, I will!”

“David, please!” Regina begged as she and Nicholas tried to stop him.

“Just let her talk to him.” Nicholas pleaded, “She’s deserves that much at least. Don’t rob her of this like Snow did!”

“It’s too big of a risk. There’s no telling what he’ll do.” David argued.

“You have to at least give me a chance!” Regina cried.

“Out of the way, you two! Now!” David cried shoving her to the ground.

“No!” she shouted getting right back up, “I won’t let you hurt him! He’ll listen to me! Please!” she cried fighting back the tears, “Let me talk to my fiancé.”

David reluctantly nodded. He and Nicholas waited around the corner as Regina dealt with her true love. Unfortunately, despite being able to get through to him for just a moment, Regina released Daniel from his pain and turned him into dust. Nicholas couldn’t bear to hear his sister cry any longer, so he came back to her and held her in his arms as she sobbed and fell to the ground, stroking her hair to comfort her.

Hours later after Nicholas took his sister to their home, Regina eventually cried herself to sleep. He continued to be at her side just in case she still needed him for when she awoke. As the day went on and Regina composed herself, Nicholas went into town to take care of his own business.

With a knock on the door, he waited for Archie to open up his office for him. “Nicholas,” Archie greeted slightly surprised, “What can I do for you?”

“Could I c-come in?” he asked hesitantly.

“Yes, of course. My door’s always open.” Archie reassured as the alchemist walked in, “What can I help you with?”

“Well…I don’t know if you’ve heard this but…Ruby and I have started a relationship.”

“Oh, congratulations.” he praised.

“Thank you. But before I can truly treat this relationship the way I want to…I need to deal with my past.” Nicholas admitted.

“How so?”

“Well…like Regina, I, too have ghosts from my past that haunt me. I find myself dealing with them every time I fall asleep. I’m at the point where I try to stay awake for days just to avoid the nightmares.”

“Oh.” Archie sighed with sympathy; he may not know much about the alchemist, but he did know that he was indeed a good man.

“I want to be with Ruby; more than anything. But I want to face and control my demons, too.”

“If you don’t mind my asking, why have you decided to come to me now and not sooner?”

“Because I couldn’t talk about my past during the curse, and I’ve been trying to help David and rebuild my relationship with Henry. But seeing my sister have to face Daniel like that today…I don’t know if I could go through that myself.”

“I see. Have you discussed this with Regina? Or Ruby, for that matter?” Archie asked.

“No. No one even knows that I’m here talking with you. I don’t really enjoy talking about my past, Archie. Regina knows what happened because I explained most of it when I returned home. And I told bits of what happened to Red when I was helping her and Snow escape Regina’s forces back in the Enchanted Forest.”

“Why don’t you explain to me what happened?” Archie suggested, “I understand you were a slave in the kingdom of Xerxes, yes?”

“Yes. For thirteen years I was a slave to the king’s private alchemist. However, it was the last three that really changed my life.” Nicholas explained, “It all started when I was fourteen. I had fallen asleep when I was supposed to be doing my chores. Little did I know, the very creature that would forever change my life was in that very room watching me.”

“What creature?”

“The thing that would eventually give me my name, my knowledge of alchemy, and most importantly…my immortality.”


	15. Child of the Moon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or FMAB

Granny’s was filled with laughter and cheer in Storybrooke. Why? Because thanks to the hard work and dedication of the dwarves, diamonds were finally discovered in the mines; so many in fact, the fairies had enough to make more than enough fairy dust for the hat.

“To the dwarves!” David cheered as everyone hollered and drank their ales. As Ruby watched the celebration fondly, she cleared the empty booths of their plates whilst not suspecting a thing. It was at that moment that Nicholas took advantage of that twirled her before pulling her into his embrace and planting a kiss on her cheek from behind.

“Hey, beautiful.” he playfully greeted.

“Hey.” she greeted back, though it was lacking her usual enthusiasm.

“So, you mind telling me why a lovely lady like yourself isn’t enjoying the festivities?” the alchemist asked.

“Oh, well…somebody’s still got to keep things clean around here.” Ruby replied, “Can’t let things get too crazy.”

“Ruby.” Nicholas said in a warning tone.

“Alright, fine.” she huffed, “Come with me.” she said as she dragged him to the kitchen. As they walked in, Granny was reinforcing the door to her freezer with a blow torch.

“Are you guys that worried about people breaking in and stealing food?” Nicholas asked half-jokingly half-confused.

“No, we’re making a cage.” Ruby replied as she brought out a few remaining trays of lasagna, “Know anybody who might want 38 frozen lasagnas?”

“Wait, what?” he asked.

“I know. Nobody would believe it if you told them my lasagna was frozen.” Granny joked.

“Actually, I meant, why are you building a cage?”

“Tonight’s the first full moon since the curse broke. It’s the first night of Wolfstime.” Ruby replied.

“But you figured out how to control yourself as a wolf ages ago.” Nicholas reminded.

“Yeah, but thanks to your sister’s curse, I haven’t turned in 28 years.” replied his girlfriend, “I might be rusty. I can’t let what happened last time, what happened to Peter, happen to anyone else.”

“I see.” Nicholas replied, “What about that hood of yours? It kept you from turning in the past.”

“If I had it. I’ve looked everywhere. I even went to Gold. It’s not in town. I don’t even think it came over with the curse.”

“Ruby, I know you. I trust you-all of our friends trust you.” Nicholas reassured, “Wolfstime or not, you won’t hurt anyone tonight. Hell, I’ll sit right in front of this refrigerator all night if I have to; I’d even take on the appearance of a wolf myself if it’ll help.”

“Oh, no you won’t.” Granny snapped, “Last thing I need is wolf Ruby in heat the minute she sees you. I’m not old enough for great-grand kids or pups.”

Needless to say, the couple felt awkward and flushed with embarrassment. “Right…” Ruby trailed, “And I can’t afford to take any chances. See you in the morning, babe.” she said before kissing his cheek and entering the freezer.

**OUaT**

“Search everywhere!” Flamel shouted to his sister’s knights in the forest, “My sister wants Snow White’s head. If none of you are capable of doing something as simple as that, I’ll bring her yours.”

Truth be told, that was a lie. Flamel had no intention of killing any of his sister’s subordinates, or Snow for that matter. He was actually leading them away from her and Red when he caught wind of the latest search party investigating the area he knew they were hiding out at.

But there was something different about him this time. Yes, he had interfered with Regina’s hunts for Snow before. But ever since they met Red and she began to run with Snow, Flamel felt funny inside. The mere thought of the brunette made him feel butterflies in his stomach. Her eyes, her face, her smile, her hair, her smell (his senses were higher than the average man), her body.

Unfortunately, he knew that because of the recent loss of her boyfriend and his sister’s reputation, he had little to no chance at being with her; that and the fact that most people weren’t fond of were-wolves, which normally formed angry mobs, didn’t help either.

Besides, if she knew what Flamel truly was…she’d see him as a monster too.

**OUaT**

The next morning at the loft, Nicholas was enjoying a quiet morning with a book while Henry slept; David had received an emergency call and had to leave him behind. After he left and gave the alchemist his permission, Nicholas called over his sister to help keep an eye on the boy so to get her out of the house.

Eventually, she knocked on the door and let herself in. Nicholas smiled at her and raised a finger to his lips before pointing at his nephew. Regina silently walked over to Henry and gently brushed a few stray hairs from his forehead. It was then that Henry began to toss and turn in his sleep; he even began to cry out in pain.

“Henry?” Regina asked in concern as Nicholas went over to them, “Henry, wake up.”

“It’s okay. It’s okay. You’re okay.” Nicholas soothed as the boy awoke panting.

“Wh-wh-what are you doing here? Where’s David?” he asked Regina.

“He got an emergency call this morning, and your uncle asked me to help look after you.” she replied, “They told me you’ve been having nightmares.”

Henry still looked shaken from his dream so Nicholas tried to soothe him again. “Buddy, it’s okay.” he reassured as he gently took his hand, “You can-”

But Henry cried out in pain at the contact. “Regina, take a look at this.” Nicholas said quickly as he and his sister inspected Henry’s hand.

“Is that a burn?” she asked, “I’m calling Gold.”

“Oh, yes,” Gold nodded once he arrived and inspected Henry’s hand, “You were quite right to call me.”

“So you can help?” Henry asked, “It was just a dream.”

“Well, what you’re describing’s certainly not a dream.” Gold corrected.

“Then what is it?” Regina asked.

“A side effect.” Gold replied snootily, “You know, it’s remarkable you’d cast a curse you know so little about.”

“I think it’s obvious that her victims aren’t supposed to wake up, Rumple.” Nicholas dryly responded, “Not like you ever cared about the repercussions to the people you’ve used magic on over the years.”

“In any case, Mr. Flamel, when people fall under a sleeping curse, the soul travels to a netherworld where it resides until awoken.” Gold informed as he prepared a potion for Henry, “Now this world is between life and death, and it’s very real. However, even when the curse is broken, sometimes in sleep, the victims find their way back to that world; victims like Henry.”

“This other world is tormenting my son every time he sleeps. I want you to give him something that will keep him from going there.” Regina pleaded.

“Well, I’m afraid that’s not possible.” Gold replied as he filled a necklace with the potion, “I can, however, provide you with something that will allow him to control his actions whilst in that world. And once one controls something, one no longer need fear it.”

“A necklace?” Henry asked.

“You wear this while you’re sleeping. Once you control the journey, the fear will stop. And then you can come and go as you please.” the dark one explained as he handed the boy the necklace only to be stopped by his guardians.

“Everything comes at a price with you. What do you want for this?” Nicholas asked.

“For a house call?” Gold scoffed, “Neither of you could afford it. But this is for Henry. This one’s on me.”

A moment later, Nicholas’s phone buzzed with a call from David. “Hey, David.” he answered, “What?!” he exclaimed.

“What’s the matter?” Regina asked.

“What do you mean you put her in the station’s prison cell?” Nicholas asked hotly, “I don’t care what she thinks, my Red is not a murderer. I’m coming over. And, David, when I get there my girlfriend better not be behind bars.” he warned as he stormed out of the loft.

“…I hate it when he does that.” Regina bluntly said at her brother’s antics.

In the sheriff’s station, Nicholas stormed in just before Ruby was about to shut the cell door on herself. “Don’t you dare shut that cell, Ruby.” he warned.

“Nicholas?” she asked before glaring at the prince, “Really, David? I specifically told you not to call him.”

“What? Did you honestly think that I wasn’t going to check on my girlfriend after leaving her in a refrigerator all night?” Nicholas asked, “Wow. That sounded really creepy and messed up. Why are you doing this to yourself?” he asked as he pulled her into a much needed hug.

“Ruby thinks she killed Billy last night after she escaped the cage.” David informed.

“Billy? You mean the Tow Truck guy?”

“Yeah. We found his torso and legs separated in front of the cannery.”

“Where’s the body? I know a bit about performing autopsies.”

“I had Whale send someone pick it up for the morgue.”

“What about the crime scene photos?”

“Photos?” David asked.

“You mean you’re acting as sheriff and you don’t even know to take pictures of a crime scene?” Nicholas bluntly asked in disappointment as he stroked Ruby’s hair.

“I’m new at this, okay?” David defensively retorted.

“I know, but we need to find whoever did this, David.” Nicholas reminded.

“You already have.” a man said as he entered the office. He was elderly, wore an expensive suit and had a cold, hard look on his face. In this world, he was known as Albert Spencer. In the Enchanted Forest, he was King George, the father of Charming’s late twin brother and his mortal enemy.

“That thing. That she-wolf.” he spat.

“Call her that again, Spencer.” Nicholas growled as he held Ruby closer and his shadows aimed at the unflinching man, “I dare you.”

“Get out.” David ordered, “Whatever issues you have with me don’t involve her. There’s no proof Ruby had anything to do with what happened.”

“It seems to me that you’re allowing your emotions to cloud your judgment.” Spencer countered.

“Leave him alone!” Ruby snapped.

“Protecting your friend at the peril of everyone else. I knew you’d slip up, shepherd. It was only a matter of time.”

“What do you want?” David asked.

“Justice.” Spencer replied, “Hand that over to me and let the town decide her fate.”

“Like hell.” Nicholas snapped, “We know exactly what kind of justice you have in mind.”

“This town is bigger than you think. I start telling people that you’re putting their lives in danger to protect your own interests, you’ll have a mutiny on your hands.”

“Yeah, we’ll see. You want her, you have to go through me.” David warned.

“And me.” Nicholas added as he joined his friend.

“I look forward to that.” Spencer replied as he met their glares and left.

“You guys do realize that he’ll be back with an angry mob for me, right?” Ruby asked the men.

“Oh, yeah.” they nodded.

“Any ideas for where else we can hide her?” David asked the alchemist.

“Well, I’m not really one for hiding. But if Belle will let us, we can try the library for a while.”

Sure enough, Belle was kind enough to let Ruby hide with her. “Thanks again for doing this, Belle. The sheriff’s station isn’t safe anymore.” Nicholas thanked, “Uh, no hard feelings for my sister locking you up, right?”

“Well, none towards you.” Belle replied, “And of course. It’s not every day you find out your friend’s-”

“A monster.” Ruby offered.

“Ruby!” Nicholas scolded.

“Hunted. I was going to say hunted.” Belle corrected.

“The crowd’s six blocks from here.” Granny alerted with her crossbow ready.

“You-you have wolf hearing, too?” Belle asked the innkeeper.

“It’s not all it’s cracked up to be, especially when you run a hotel.” she joked with dry humor.

“The only way we’re gonna get the mob to stand down is if we prove Ruby had nothing to do with Billy’s death.” David explained, “Granny, I’m gonna need your help. Nicholas, you stay here and guard the doors. If the mob comes this way, call us.”

“Will do.” Nicholas nodded. After Ruby re-chained herself, Nicholas locked the doors from outside, crossed his arms, and looked like a total badass as he waited for George and his mob.

**OUaT**

As she softly slept in the Enchanted Forest, Snow White suddenly awoke with a gasp as one of her step-mother’s knights shook her. Before he could say anything, she reached into her satchel, pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the throat.

Snow gasped in horror at what she did as the knight, she had never killed anyone before. As he stumbled with shock on his face, his expression changed to annoyed as he yanked out the knife and looked at Snow dryly as his wound healed.

“Really, Snow? I told you I was going to look like this the other day.” he said before taking on the appearance of Flamel in his usual clothes.

“Sorry, I panicked.” she apologized.

“Where’s Red?” he asked.

“I don’t know. We were supposed to meet by the stream yesterday after we split up to get away from your search party.”

“Sigh,” Flamel groaned as he smacked his face, “In case you’ve forgotten, I have a higher sense of smell and sound than your wolf friend so I knew exactly where you two were that night.”

“Oh…oops.” Snow said in embarrassment.

“Yeah, ‘oops,’ Snow.” Flamel groaned, “So you have no idea where Red is?”

“No.” she admitted.

“Sigh…alright, here’s what we’re going to do. We are going to track Red down and get the two of you up north like we planned. Okay?” he asked.

“Okay. Where do you think she might be?”

“No clue.” Flamel replied, “I have heard that there’s an abandoned underground ruin of an old castle nearby. We can start there first.”

Once they reached their destination, the duo ventured inside and was suddenly grabbed hold by two men dressed in fur; although, Flamel was able to easily take them both down and pin them to the ground.

“No! Don’t!” Red cried as she rushed to the attackers’ defense, “They’re not here to hurt us!”

“…Which of us are you talking to, Red?” Flamel bluntly asked in confusion.

“What other reason do humans have for entering our den?” one of the men spat in hatred.

“They’re friends who stood by me after they learned the truth, after I killed.” Red explained in worry, “Without them, I never would’ve escaped my village alive!”

“Let them go.” a woman resembling Red ordered. Not wanting to cause any unnecessary violence, Flamel let the goons up.

“Snow, what are you two doing here?” Red asked her friend.

“When you didn’t show up at the stream this morning, I thought the queen’s men had killed you.” Snow replied as everyone aside from Flamel and Red glared at her, “So…who are your friends?”

“We’re her pack.” one of them spat.

“Are they…?” Snow asked.

“Yes.” Red nodded, “They’re like me. But you don’t have to fear them.”

“Of course not.” Flamel dryly replied.

“How did you find us?” the woman hotly asked.

“We tracked wolf prints here, like you and Nicholas taught me. I wasn’t going to leave without you.” Snow said to Red.

“Why don’t we go find that cabin we talked about, okay?” Flamel asked as he rose his guard; however, Red seemed reluctant to leave, “You’re not coming with us, are you?”

“I don’t have to be ashamed of who I am here. I found my home. I found my mother.” Red chuckled happily.

“But I thought-”

“Granny lied.” she snapped, “I’m sorry, guys. I know you two risked your lives to come back here for me.”

“No. We understand.” Snow gently agreed, “I would do anything to be with my mother again.”

“If mine wasn’t even more murderous than my sister and didn’t scare me, I would too.” Flamel bluntly nodded.

“I know we planned on leaving the kingdom together, Snow.”

“I’ll be alright.” she reassured, “You’ve taught me enough already. I’ll manage. Bye, Red. Thank you.”

“No, thank you.” Red corrected as they hugged. Just as Red was about to hug Flamel, her mother Anita pulled her away protectively as she glared at the alchemist.

“You reek of evil.” she hissed as the other were-wolves growled at him.

“Mother!” Red gasped at her outburst.

“No, Red, she’s right. More or less.” Flamel soothed, “It’s no surprise that you can smell my unique quality. Your mother was able to do so, as well.”

“What are you? A demon?” Quin asked.

“No. I’m just unique.” he smirked just before Anita approached him and snapped his neck only to see his injury heal. “Like I said, I’m unique. Oh, and I’m also an immortal.”

“We shall see.” Anita grinned wickedly.

“What?” Red asked as her mother and followers transformed, “Mother, no!” she cried as they pounced on Flamel. As the first few tried to sink their fangs into him, Flamel easily tossed them aside against the walls while Snow and Red watched from the sidelines. With a quick use of his alchemy, he was able to scare most of them off as spikes began to surround them; Red’s mother, however, stayed and finally made her move.

As she leaped at Flamel, he tossed her away like all the others, only this time, she landed on one of the spikes he made which caused her to instantly return to her human form. Red came over to her mother’s side in her final moments.

“You chose the humans.” Anita croaked. 

“No,” Red denied, “I chose my friends.”

As Anita gave her last breath, Red let loose the flood of tears while Snow comforted her; Flamel looked away with guilt plastered on his face. It wasn’t the first time he killed, but he certainly didn’t want to have the blood of the woman he cared for’s mother on his hands.

**OUaT**

While Nicholas waited for the mob, he could hear the sound a wolf howling throughout the town. “Dammit.” he cursed as he ran towards the location of the howling. It took him only a few moments to find his girlfriend as a wolf in an ally hiding behind a garbage bin.

“Red,” he called gently as he slowly approached her, “Baby, come on. It’s okay. Sweetheart, we need to leave before George and his mob find you.”

But Ruby just growled at him as she tried to back away even further. “I know what you’re thinking. Right now, you think that you giving your life is going to solve everything. But, Red…that’s further than the truth. If you were to do that, then I’d lose you. My worst fear is losing the people I care about. And if I were to lose you…I’d be nothing. You mean so much to me, Red.” he confessed to the wolf now looking intrigued, “I know we’ve only been going out for a little while but it’s true. I’ve wanted to be with you for years and it took me this long to tell you this because…because I was afraid. But ever since I looked at you smiling in your doorway on our first date, I’m not afraid anymore.”

“How sweet.” Spencer spat as he and his mob snuck up on the young couple. With his gun raised, he fired a bullet at Ruby only to have it miss thanks to Granny’s arrow nicking it.

“The next one goes between your eyes!” she threatened.

“Listen to me!” David shouted as he moved through the crowd and stood at Nicholas’s side with Red’s hood in his hand, “Ruby didn’t kill Billy. He did.” he said looking at George, “He stole her cloak and killed Billy in cold blood to make it look like a wolf, all to get you to think I wasn’t leading this town as I should. Somebody already died because of what this man did. Let’s not spill anymore blood. She won’t hurt anyone. She’s just scared.”

“She’s a monster!” someone shouted.

“Call her that again! I dare you!” Nicholas shouted in anger as his shadows took form and his shield covered his arms and hands, “If you people were afraid of my sister before, you’ll find that was nothing compared to what I’ll do to all of you if you come any closer to her!”

He then took the hood from David and approached his girlfriend. As she saw who it was, Red slowly came out and allowed Nicholas to put the hood over her turning her back to normal. “You saved me.” she breathed.

“No. All I did was remind you of who you really are.” Nicholas smiled as Red threw her arms around him.

“Nicholas!” David shouted as he came over to them, “Spencer’s gone.”

“That coward.” Ruby spat, “You up for finding him?”

“I intend to catch him!” Nicholas shouted as they ran over to the cruiser. Thanks to Ruby’s nose, they quickly caught up with him standing before a fire on the beach.

“You think you can hide from a wolf?” Red asked hotly.

“I wasn’t trying to hide.” Spencer replied calmly.

“You killed an innocent man.” David spat.

“He was a mouse.” Spencer retorted.

“Still more of a man than you.” Nicholas hissed, “If you want to make a deal, that’s not going to happen anytime soon.”

“I’m not interested in making a deal, slave.” the king denied causing Nicholas to grow angrier, “I just want to see the look on your faces when you realize something.”

“What’s that?”

“That the Shepard is never going to see his wife or his daughter ever again.”

“What are you talking about?” asked David.

“You really should be more cautious with something so valuable.” Spencer lectured as he tossed the hat into the fire.

“No!” David cried as he tried to pull it out of the flames.

“It doesn’t matter how much Fairy Dust you gather or how much you rally the town behind you. Your family’s gone.” mocked the king before David punched him to the ground and pointed his gun at him.

“David, don’t.” Red pleaded as the prince began to weep.

“I told you,” George chuckled, “You should’ve killed me when you had the chance.”

David could only drop his weapon and fall to his knees as Spencer picked himself up and laughed at his step-son’s misery.

“Yeah, and you should’ve left us alone.” Nicholas said breaking the king’s laughter. Next thing anyone knew, he shoved his hand through Spencer’s chest with a cold emotionless look on his face, completely unfazed by what he had done. Ruby and David looked at the sight in horror as the elder man spat up the blood that wasn’t pouring from his chest and back. He then yanked his arm out and kicked George into the fire burning him as his life slipped away.

Nobody said anything. David and Ruby just stared at Nicholas while he watched the shocked expression on the corpse slowly burn away without a single emotion.

**OUaT**

Under the illumination of the full moon, Red, Snow and Flamel stood before Anita’s grave while Red paid her respects to her mother. “May you always run free beneath the moon’s pale light. Goodbye, Mother.”

“I’m so sorry, Red.” Flamel apologized.

“It’s okay, Nicholas. My mother made her choice. All you did was defend yourself. I don’t blame you at all.” she reassured.

“Come on.” he said to the women.

“Where are we going?” Snow asked.

“I promised the two of you I’d take you someplace safe up North.” Flamel reminded, “Never let be said that the Immortal Alchemist is not a man of his word.”

“Right.” they nodded as they caught up with him.

**OUaT**

Back at the loft, David looked down at Henry as he slept while Nicholas and Ruby looked at him with sympathy. “He may never see his mother or grandmother again.” he said sadly, “How am I going to break that news to him?” he asked his friends.

“You won’t have to.” Nicholas replied as he began to smoke, “One thing I’ve learned about those two, they’re both too damn stubborn to be kept away from the people they care about.”

“Travel between worlds is as hard as it comes.” David reminded, “Fairy Dust on its own isn’t enough. It took us an entire curse to get us here in the first place. Without the hat-”

“You’ll find another way.” Ruby reassured.

“You don’t know that.” he countered.

“But we know you, and we know you’ll never give up until you do.”

“Besides,” Nicholas added, “You’re not gonna be doing this alone.”

“Thank you.”

“Do you mind giving Granny a call?” Ruby asked.

“Sure. Why? What for?” he asked.

“I may have left Belle chained up in the library.” she sheepishly admitted, “Somebody should probably-”

“Unchain her?” David asked with a smirk.

“That girl can’t catch a break when it comes to being locked up.” Nicholas muttered.

“Yeah. I’ll take care of it. Where are you two going?” David asked.

“I’ve still got a few hours of wolfstime left. I want to do something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. Run with my boyfriend.” Ruby sighed as she and Nicholas ran outside and turned into wolves.

**OUaT**

In the Enchanted Forest after returning from the Bean Stalk expedition, Emma spotted her mother sitting on a hill in the middle of the night looking lonely. “What are you doing?” she asked.

“Uh, just thinking.” Snow replied.

“Come on. Mulan and Nicholas have some ideas where Cora might be hiding.”

A few minutes later, Aurora awoke startled searched for her companions. “Snow! Nicholas!”

“Hey.” Snow soothed as she and the alchemist came over to her, “We’re here. It’s okay.”

“What’s the matter? What’s wrong?” Nicholas asked, “Was it another nightmare?”

“No, this time, it was different. There was a little boy.” Aurora explained, “He…he put out the fire. He talked to me.”

“A little boy?” Snow asked.

“What’d he say?” Emma asked.

“He said…he said his name was Henry.” she replied shocking the trio.


	16. The Queen of Hearts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or FMAB

“The boy you saw in your dream, is that him?” Emma asked Aurora as she held a pocket picture of him.

“Yes. That’s Henry.” she nodded.

“That’s impossible.” Emma denied, “It was a dream. How could you dream of my son?”

“I have no idea.”

“Maybe it wasn’t a dream.” Snow offered, “That room, I’ve been there.”

“When I told you about it, you didn’t say anything.” Aurora said hotly.

“You were terrified. I didn’t want to make things worse by telling you it might be real.” defended Snow.

“A room in a dream is real?” Mulan asked.

“Well, the concept of dreams being ways of traveling to different worlds could apply to this.” Nicholas pondered, “Or it could just be a side effect of being under a sleeping curse. Yeah, on second thought, let’s go with that.”

“Of course. I went through it; Aurora went through it-”

“Henry went through it because I didn’t believe in him.” Emma cut off.

“Emma.” Snow coaxed.

“What else have you lied about?” Aurora asked.

“I was-I wasn’t lying.” she defended, “I was protecting you.”

“What did he say?” Nicholas asked, “Henry, in the dream?”

“He just said his name. And then I woke up, and it was over.”

“Hmm…this may just work in our favor.” he mused.

“How?” Emma asked, “All we have is a freaking compass and the wardrobe ashes are still with your crazy-ass mom.”

“Any attempt to take them from her would be suicide.” added Mulan.

“Perhaps,” Nicholas nodded, “But if Aurora was able to hear what Henry had to say, we can use that room as a way to communicate with everyone back in Storybrooke. Preferably, my sister and Rumplestiltskin, if anyone over there knows what we’ll need against my mother, they’re our best line of defense should she succeed in getting over there before we do.”

“So that means…” Aurora nervously trailed.

“Oh, yeah, princess.” Emma nodded, “You’re going back to sleep.”

**OUaT**

In the loft, Henry awoke with a loud gasp causing, David, Regina and Nicholas to jolt. “T-They’re alive. They’re alive!” he cried.

“Who? Who’s alive?” David asked.

“My mom and Snow.” Henry replied.

“I told you, kid. I told ya!” David cheered.

“Was it that woman you saw?” Regina asked, “Did she tell you this?”

“Her name’s Aurora. She said they have a way home, but there’s someone in their way; someone they need us to help them stop, someone only Mr. Gold knows how to defeat.”

“Who?”

“…Your mother.” Henry replied causing his uncle and mothers’ hearts to stop.

“Son of a bitch.” Nicholas thought gravely.

Wasting no time, the two siblings went into town and found Gold on a date with Belle at Granny’s. “Gold, we need to talk.” Regina interrupted.

“Do we?” he asked dryly, “Don’t tell me your brother’s decided to collect that favor I owe him.”

“You’d wish I was.” Nicholas retorted.

“Folks, I think I may need to close early.” Granny informed the customers as she observed the three biggest powerhouses in town, “Uh, everybody out.”

“No. It’s okay.” Regina eased, “We’re civil.”

“Yeah, for now.” Rumple said sarcastically, “Belle, you remember the woman who locked you up for 28 years and her little brother.”

“Uh, I should probably just get-”

“No. No. Please stay where you are.” Gold relaxed, “Whatever they have to say won’t be a secret from you. Whatever they want, they won’t get.”

“We actually came here about the one thing that might unite us.” Regina corrected.

“And what on earth can that be?” he asked.

“Cora.” Nicholas flatly informed, “She’s coming from our land. We need your help to stop her.”

“…But she was dead. You told me you both saw the body.”

“Well, apparently, you taught her pretty damn well.” Nicholas hotly snapped.

“She’s not and she’s on her way, and I don’t think we need to remind you how unpleasant that would be for the three of us.” Regina reminded nervously.

“For you two.” Gold corrected, “I can handle Cora.”

“That’s not how she tells the story.”

“I won in the end.”

“Maybe. But there’s a big difference this time.” Regina reminded, “This time you have someone you care about. This time you have a weakness.”

“I’m-I’m sorry. Who is this woman?” Belle asked.

“Someone you’ll never meet.” Gold replied, “So you say she’s coming. Where is she now?” he asked the siblings.

“With them.” Nicholas informed.

**OUaT**

“How close are we?” Emma asked, “Henry could already be waiting in that Netherworld.”

“No, we planned to meet back there in two hours.” Aurora corrected.

“Relax, you’re not going to leave him waiting.” Nicholas eased.

“Yeah, but what if he’s-”

“No, he was fine.” Aurora reassured.

“There. That looks like relatively safe high ground.” Snow pointed out, “We’ll set up camp there. Aurora, you’ll settle in and find Henry, get the information we need from Rumplestiltskin. We do this fast, in and out. It’s still dangerous out here.”

“Hey, Nicholas?” Emma asked, “Did your mother really fight with Gold?”

“I don’t know about any fight,” he shrugged, “But I do know they have a history together. Rumple trained my mother when she was a young miller. You remember the girl who lied about spinning straw into gold so she could marry a prince?”

“No.” Emma gasped as she made the comparison.

“Yep, that was my mother.” he nodded, “All I know is that in the end, they left on rough terms and competed against each other for power for years to come.”

“But between the two of them, who would win?”

“Well…in the past, Gold had nothing to hold him back and neither did Cora. Now that they both have people they care about, I’d consider them both even more dangerous.”

“You really think your mom would risk everything to protect you and Regina?”

“Emma, despite the horrible deeds she’s committed over the years, Cora is like any mother; if someone were to hurt either of her children, there would be Hell to pay.” Nicholas replied, “My mother may be eccentric, but she still has a sense of motherly love; twisted though it may be.”

“Do you love her?” Emma asked causing him to stop.

“…Figure out your own issues regarding your mother and then I’ll tell you how I feel about Cora.” he stiffly answered before pressing on.

**OUaT**

As Henry laid in his bed at Gold’s shop, Regina and Nicholas stood at his side as she covered him with his blanket. “So Cora…she’s pretty powerful?” he asked his mom and uncle.

“Yes, but not as powerful as I am.” Gold replied.

“That’s debatable.” Regina and Nicholas scoffed.

“Actually, no, it’s not.” snapped the imp.

“You sure you’re okay to do this, kid?” David asked.

“I was born to do this.” he said bravely, “I’m done reading about heroes. I wanna be one.”

“Well, sometimes being one is knowing when not to run into the fire.” David explained.

“I’ll be okay.”

“Look, whatever he faces in there will be far less dangerous than what he’ll face if we fail.” Gold reminded the reluctant prince.

“I can do this.” Henry reassured.

“Get on with it. Fast.” Nicholas growled at the dark one.

“Alright, Henry.” Gold began as he slowly waved his hand over the boy, “Just relax and soon, you’re gonna drift off.”

“What do I tell them?”

“Just listen to my bedtime story, and all will be clear. Once upon a time, Snow White and Prince Charming needed to stun a very powerful magician long enough to lock him up in a dark dungeon.”

“That was you. They used Cinderella to trap you with a magic quill.”

“Yes, indeed, a quill. And yet, it wasn’t the quill itself, but the ink that captured the dark one, harvested from the rarest species of squid from the bottom of a bottomless ocean-impossible to find unless you’re a mermaid…or me. I happen to have a private supply. In my jail cell that is where they will find it.”

**OUaT**

As they waited for Aurora to wake up with Henry’s message, the group sat in silence before Nicholas jolted to his feet looking anxious. “What is it?” Mulan asked.

“…I smell death.” he replied as he covered his hands with his shield. From behind the trees, a mob of zombies trudged over to them and began to attack.

“Gah! What are these things?!” Emma shouted as she fended them off with her sword.

Mulan then cut down one of the men and looked at his face, “I know this one! He was one of the villagers at the safe haven.”

“Nicholas!” Snow cried as she shot arrow after arrow at the zombies.

“I know, I know!” he shouted as he took down the walking corpses, “This has my mother’s magic-die you maggot farm! Written all over it.”

Wh-what’s happening?!” Aurora cried as she woke up.

“Oh, you know, the usual.” Nicholas said with nervous humor as he snapped a zombie’s neck, “We were just enjoying a peaceful afternoon, and then my mother’s twisted sense of humor decided to pay us a visit!”

“Any ideas how to kill these things?” Emma asked as she and Snow pressed their backs against Nicholas’s.

“One. But it may just wind up killing you two in the process if we aren’t quick enough.” he replied.

“We’ll take that chance. Do what you have to do.” Snow replied.

“Alright, when I give the word, duck and shield your faces.” Nicholas instructed as the walking dead came closer and he put on his gloves, “Now!” he cried as he snapped his fingers and engulfed the enemy in flames. It was a matter of seconds before the zombies were reduced to ashes.

“Nicholas?” Emma asked.

“Yeah, Emma?”

“Remind me never to get on your bad side.”

“Noted. Hey…where the hell are Mulan and Aurora?”

**OUaT**

With a sudden gasp, Henry rose up from his bed, though he seemed to be in pain. “Henry, are you alright?” Nicholas asked.

“Did you see her? Did you tell her?” Gold asked.

“No. I-I didn’t get the chance. Something-something happened.” Henry winced, “She-she got sucked out of there.” He then moaned in pain as he cradled his arm.

“Henry.” Regina said as she gently pulled back his sleeve showing everyone a severe burn.

**OUaT**

After catching up with Mulan, who revealed that two of the surviving zombies took Aurora, the group journeyed through the forest in hopes to track the princess. Eventually, a raven landed on Snow’s shoulder and gave her a message.

“What the hell was that?” Emma asked.

“Cora. We have until sundown to bring her the compass. If we don’t, she’ll kill Aurora.” Snow relayed.

“Give it to me.” Mulan demanded.

“Hold on, Mulan. Just give us a minute to consider.” Emma snapped.

“There’s nothing to consider.” Mulan barked, “A compass is not worth Aurora’s life.”

“We need a plan to get back Aurora and keep the compass.” coached Snow.

“My vow to Phillip was to protect Aurora.”

“Which you failed at.” Nicholas retorted, “Why should we have to suffer the consequences of your incompetence?”

“That promise is all that is left of him, so it shall be done.” Mulan said as she tried to take it by force.

“Hey! I climbed a beanstalk for this. You go get your own.” Emma snapped.

“Give it to me!”

“Mulan. Mulan, give us a few hours, please.” Snow begged, “If we haven’t defeated Cora by then, you can have the compass.”

“You can’t hope to defeat her. We no longer have access to the dark one’s assistance.” Mulan retorted.

“Yes, we do.” Snow debated.

“How? Aurora’s gone.”

“Aurora isn’t the only one who’s been under a sleeping curse.” she reminded, “I can go back to that netherworld.”

“Hmm, didn’t think about that.” Nicholas muttered.

“The door to that place is closed. You said it yourself.”

“There may be a way, a way for me to go back into a deep slumber, one that can let me access it again.”

“Another sleeping curse?” Emma asked.

“No. No not another curse. I don’t need one. I’ve been under already. I need to go into a sleep where my natural defenses slip away, where my mind stops protecting me.”

“How?”

“I can make a sedative perfect for what we need.” Nicholas provided, “Luckily, I have the herbs for it. Just give me a few minutes, Snow, and you’ll be out like a light.”

“How long will it take?” Emma asked.

“For me to make it? Ten minutes. For the effects to kick in? Five seconds.”

**OUaT**

As his nephew continued to groan in pain, Nicholas gently placed his hands over the burn. In a flash of alchemic lightning, the wound was gone and so was the pain.

“There.” he said before looking at his sister and Gold, “So any ideas why my nephew received a third degree burn from that netherworld?”

“When you venture deeper into the netherworld instead of away, there are risks.” simply replied the pawn broker, “Someone woke Aurora before her soul was ready to return. The violence of that act tore her away and injured Henry. Much like a rebound from a poorly performed transmutation regarding your Alchemy. We’re lucky it wasn’t worse. He’s going to need some time to recover before he can be sent back.”

Hearing this caused the other adults to protest. “Out of the question.”

“Not a chance in hell.”

“Hell no. We’d be monsters to even consider risking his life again.” Nicholas denied.

“Careful with your tone, Flamel.” Rumple warned, “I understand your concern for the boy, but I know Cora. Without our help, Snow and Emma will soon be dead. Besides, you, your sister and I are already monsters. Last thing we need is another one on her way to Storybrooke.”

“Aurora is gone.” Regina snapped, “Why do we need to send Henry back to that fiery inferno with no one there to receive our message?”

“…Because someone will be there.” David realized.

“Who?” Nicholas asked.

“Snow.”

“That’s an awfully big assumption.” Regina scoffed.

“No. No, it’s not.” he argued, “She was there once before. She can go back. She can find another way. She will. I know it. And I’ll be waiting.”

“You’re going to this netherworld?” Regina asked skeptically.

“I faced you. How bad could it be?” he asked.

“Ouch.” Nicholas dryly remarked.

“It’s not as simple as that.” Gold debated, “You can’t get there. You haven’t been under a sleeping curse.”

“Well, then put me under one.”

“If we do that, there’s a chance you might never wake up.”

“Sure, I will. When I see her, she’ll kiss me, and I’ll be fine.” David argued, “Now put me under. I’ve spent far too much time looking for my wife. It is time to bring her home.”

“Very well. You’re about to join a distinguished club, Mr. Nolan. Before such innovations as the apple, back when the sleeping curse first came to be, a more direct method was required; through blood.” Gold explained as he pulled out a vial of the liquid curse, “By pricking one’s finger on the needle of a spinning wheel, one falls under the spell. Your Majesty, you did his wife. I’m sure you’d like the honors.”

Regina then took the needle and dipped it in the vial before reinserting it into the wheel. “It’s all yours.”

“Good luck.” Henry said as he hugged his grandfather.

“It’s going to be alright.” David reassured.

“How do you know?”

“Well…how did you know Emma would save you after you ate the turnover?” he asked.

“I believed in her.”

“The way Snow and I believed she’d come back to break the curse. That’s the kind of faith that runs in our family.”

“This helps control the flames in the room.” Henry said as he gave David the necklace, “It’ll keep you safe.”

“I will guard it with my life.” David said with a warm smile, “When I awake, I’ll be in that fiery room?” he asked Gold.

“Not exactly.” he replied, “That room is where those who’ve already awoken from the curse return. You, however, are being put under for the first time.”

“Then how will I know where to go? How the hell am I supposed to find a room with no door?”

“And that, dearie, is the conundrum we’re all depending on you solving.” Gold remarked, “Now I say this with the utmost sincerity, good luck.”

With a scoff, David pricked his finger and allowed the curse to take effect. Not a second later, he collapsed on the bed as deathly asleep as his wife once was.

**OUaT**

“Alright, Snow, better have someone tuck you in ‘cause the sedative is finished.” Nicholas informed as he carried a bottle of the drink over to her.

“How long will the effects last?” she asked.

“Well, it’s typically used to keep people asleep for hours on end. Luckily, while it keeps you asleep all it will take is a nudge to wake you up. Fair warning, tastes like unicorn piss.”

“I’m afraid to ask.” Emma groaned.

“Imagine a sweet flavored urine instead of a salty one.” Nicholas replied in disgust as he handed it to Snow, “Bottoms up.”

As she drank it and resisted the urge to spit it out, Snow fell asleep. About fifteen minutes later, she woke up and frantically crawled over to Nicholas.

“What is it? What happened?” Emma asked.

“I need more of that sedative. Nicholas, you have to give me more now!” Snow begged.

“I can’t, that was the last of it. Snow, what happened in there? What did Henry tell you?” he asked.

“Henry wasn’t there. Charming was. He went under a sleeping curse to see me, he thought kissing me would wake him up but it didn’t and now he’s trapped.” Snow frantically said on the verge of tears, “We have to get back, now.”

“We will. We will.” Emma soothed, “You told me to have faith, and now I’m telling you to do the same.”

“Please tell us David was able to give us Gold’s message.” Nicholas begged.

“It’s Rumplestiltskin. He said the key to stopping your mother is in his jail cell.”

“Key in a jail cell. How coy.” Nicholas dryly joked, “Alright then, let’s go get it.”

As they gathered their belongings, Emma realized something horrible. “No.”

“What?” Snow asked.

“The compass is gone and so is Mulan.” she panicked.

“…That damn crossdressing bitch!” Nicholas shouted. Using his shadows, Nicholas spotted Mulan just a little way ahead. He then used his alchemy to create a cage around the female warrior. “Way to stick with the plan and be a team player, Mulan.” he said dryly with sarcasm as they caught up with her.

“All we want is the compass.” Emma said gently as Nicholas took down the cage.

“Very well.” Mulan relented before trying to strike them with her sword only to have Nicholas grab it with his bare hands.

“Really?” he dryly asked, “You’re up against three experienced fighters and one of them is immortal. You really think the odds are in your favor? Give us the compass.” he demanded as he pressed his sword against her throat.

“And seal Aurora’s fate?” Mulan asked.

“We learned how to overpower Cora.” growled Snow, “Once we get what we need, we will defeat her, and Aurora will be free.”

“Another journey, just as I predicted there would be.” she spat, “Our best chance to save Aurora is to make that trade now.”

“Not gonna happen.” Snow shot back, “Without that compass, we can’t get home.”

“Then I hope you’re prepared to use that sword.”

“Your funeral.” Nicholas shrugged without a care. As he was about to thrust the blade into her neck, Aurora shouted in protest as she emerged from the trees.

“Okay, don’t take this the wrong way, but how the hell did you get here?” Emma bluntly asked.

“Let Mulan go.” she ordered, “I said, let her go.”

“Pah,” Nicholas scoffed as he sheathed the weapon, “Were you followed?”

“I-I don’t think so. Cora may know I’m gone, but she didn’t see me escape.”

“How did you escape?”

“It was Hook.” she replied, “He let me go.”

“Why?”

“Because of you.” she said to Emma, “He said he wanted to prove to you that you should’ve trusted him, that if you had trusted him you could’ve defeated Cora together. That the two of you could’ve gotten the remains of the wardrobe. Without him, you’ll have to go up against her all by yourself. He only wants to help. I…I think he may care for you. Did you find a way to stop Cora?”

“Yes.”

“Where are we going?”

“Rumpelstiltskin’s cell.”

“Great. Then lead the way.”

**OUaT**

As he scribbled down notes at his desk as he did every day, Flamel heard the clicking of his sister’s heels as she walked past him with a man dressed in black leather, multiple pieces of jewelry with a hook.

“Brother, we have a guest.” Regina said overly sweet, “Allow me to introduce you to a new business partner of mine; Captain Hook.”

“And the reason you brought a few centuries old pirate to our home is because why exactly?” he asked in a bored tone.

“Because we have a common enemy and we’ve agreed to make an exchange.” she replied.

“Ah.”

“You see, my dear captain, things are about to change in this world. Radically.” Regina explained, “I have plans to enact a curse that will take everyone to a far-off land.”

“How will that help me?” Hook asked.

“This new realm? It’s a land without magic, where the dark one will be stripped of his powers. There you won’t need any magical weapon to kill him. You can do it with a mere flick of your wrist.”

“Tell me what I have to do.” he said.

“There’s one person I don’t want following my brother and I to this new land. You’re to see to it that doesn’t happen.”

“An assassination. Who is it you want me to dispose of?” Hook asked as Regina stood at Flamel’s side and gently smoothed a few stray hairs.

“Our mother.” she replied.

**OUaT**

At Gold’s shop, Regina looked down at David’s cursed form, he hadn’t so much as twitched since he pricked his finger the previous day. Currently, she was the only one in the shop with Gold while Henry was at school and Nicholas was with Red as they kept an eye on the town.

“Any change?” Gold asked.

“No.” Regina informed, “He’s not improving. He needs True Love’s Kiss. He won’t wake up until Mary Margaret comes back.”

“Until?” asked the skeptic dark one, “Well, that’s rather optimistic, isn’t it?”

“What are you talking about?”

“They’re up against your mother. The only chance Snow and Emma have of defeating her is with the squid ink.”

“Which is why you sent the message through David.”

“Which would be beneficial if we knew that message were delivered.” he retorted, “But alas, given the prince’s condition, we don’t know. As such, it’s important we take precautions. We have to consider the possibility then when that portal opens, it won’t be his family that comes through. It’ll be Cora.”

“And neither one of us wants that.” Regina agreed fearfully.

“We have to find where they’re coming through and destroy that portal.”

“But whoever came through would die.”

“Exactly.” Gold nodded, “But I’m confident between the two of us and your brother we can summon up enough power to complete the task.”

“Please. You know as well as I do that things never end well when Alchemy and magic are used together. Besides, what if we’re wrong? What if that portal opens up and it’s not my mother? What if Mary Margaret and Emma do defeat Cora and go through it?” she asked, “Unlike us, Nicholas considers them his friends and would be heartbroken if he was responsible for their deaths.”

“Well, given the cold persona your brother displayed when he killed King George, I imagine that he’ll get over it fairly quick. And that could also end up in, as they say in this world, a win-win situation.”

“How exactly is that?”

“If we stop Cora, you and Flamel are protected from your mother’s wrath. If on the other hand, we stop Snow and Emma, well…you become the only mother in your son’s life and you’ll have your family back the way it was before Ms. Swan ever arrived.” Gold replied with a grin, “Look, magic is unpredictable in this world. If something unfortunate were to happen while you were attempting to help, neither Henry or Nicholas could hardly blame you for that, could they?”

“No.” refused the queen, “I can’t lie to them. I am trying to be a better mother and sister.”

“You won’t be able to be a better anything if Cora comes through.” argued Rumple, “And if she does, she will be a threat to everyone, including your son and brother. So if you truly want to be a good mother to Henry, and a good sister to Nicholas, to protect them, if you want to be better, prove it. You already lost them both once, you think you can go through that again?”

**OUaT**

“Wow, you really gave the imp a cozy little chateau, didn’t you, Snow?” Nicholas asked as they journeyed through the underground tunnel.

“I haven’t been here since before Regina’s curse hit.” she breathed in nostalgia, “Back when he told us Emma was going to be the Savior.”

“He knew?” Emma asked in shock.

“It was prophesied.”

“The squid ink, it’s not here.” Aurora informed from the cell with Mulan.

“Gold said we would find it.” Snow reminded.

“Well, was there anyone else in here with him?” Mulan asked.

“No, he was kept alone.” Snow replied, “Visitors were forbidden. He was too dangerous to allow any human contact.”

“How’d he keep from going crazy?” Emma asked.

“Pft, if you ever saw how he acted before, you’d think he already was.” Nicholas scoffed as he looked around.

“And here’s the proof.” Aurora said as she held up an old scroll.

“What is it?” Emma asked, “Is that a message?”

“Yes. And I think it’s for you.” she said, as they all looked at it, they saw nothing but the name “Emma” written on every available space.

“Crazy and creepy. Really makes you wonder how he was able to act so collected the whole time in Storybrooke.” Nicholas said bluntly.

“What does this even mean?” Emma asked.

“He was obsessed with you, Emma.” Snow sighed, “You were the key to breaking the curse.”

“We’ve looked everywhere. There’s no ink in this cell.” Aurora pointed out.

“Well, it had to be. He told David.”

“You were in a netherworld. Maybe something got lost in translation.” Emma offered.

“No. She heard right.” Mulan denied as she pulled out a vial.

“You found it?” Nicholas asked.

“In a manner of speaking. There was ink in the cell.” she said as she revealed the vial to be empty.

“Son of a bitch.” Emma sighed as Aurora threw it at the lever keeping the cell open causing it to close, “Aurora, what are you doing?!”

“Helping me.” Cora replied as she emerged from the shadows with Hook. With a wave of her hand, the compass went from Emma’s hand to her own.

“No.” she gasped.

“Oh, don’t waste your energy, dear.” Cora soothed darkly, “Rumplestiltskin himself couldn’t escape from this cell. Thank you, Aurora. We couldn’t have done it without you.”

“Why would you do this?” Emma asked.

“How could you?!” Snow cried.

“Don’t blame her.” Nicholas spat as he glared at his mother, “She was only doing as she was told. Isn’t that right, Mother?”

“Clever as always, son.” chuckled the sorceress as she pulled out a heart.

“You took her heart?” asked Emma.

“Actually, I did.” corrected the pirate as Cora began to squeeze.

“Forgive us. We’d love to stay, but Storybrooke awaits.” Cora mocked.

“Hook.” Emma called, “Please don’t do this. My son is in Storybrooke. He needs me.”

“Perhaps you should’ve considered that before you abandoned me on that beanstalk.” he countered.

“You would’ve done the same.”

“Actually, no.” he whispered before holding up a necklace in her face, “Do you know what this is, Emma?”

“The bean that the giant kept.” she said as she tried to take it.

“Yes, indeed. A pirate always keeps a souvenir of his conquest, but this is no mere trinket. This is a symbol, something that was once magical, full of hope, possibility. Now look at it. Dried up, dead, useless. Much like you.” he whispered, “The time for making deals is done, just as I’m done with you.”

“You’re just going to abandon your own son here, Cora?” Snow asked only to see the woman scoff.

“Oh, dear, sweet Snow.” chuckled Cora, “Nicholas has had the ability to take the three of you back to Storybrooke the whole time. Didn’t he mention that?”

“You could?!” shouted the two women.

“…Oh, damn.” he whispered as he hung his head as Hook and Cora left, “Yes, I can take us back home by using alchemy. But if I were to try that, it would most likely kill the two of you.” admitted the alchemist.

“Don’t you think we were willing to take the chance?!” Emma shouted as she grabbed his collar only to be shoved off.

“Yeah, and it’s blind stupidity like that that would kill you!” he snarled, “Emma, alchemy isn’t like magic. If there is a higher chance at failure than succession, you don’t risk it. No amount of faith, or hope, or love will get you through it if things begin to look bad. If I had tried to take us back to Storybrooke my way, then you and Snow would’ve ended up as a ball of fused flesh choking on what remained of your lives! While I’m not the biggest supporter of magic, I knew that it would be the safest way for you two to get back home.”

“But Cora now has the ashes and the compass!” Snow snapped.

“Well, then we’re just going to have to figure a way out of here before they can use them and beat us to the punch, now won’t we?!” yelled Nicholas.

“And just how do you propose we do that, Nicholas?!”

“Like this!” he cried before using his alchemy to destroy the bars, “Well, come on, then!” he shouted as he ran through the cave dust.

**OUaT**

As Nicholas patiently waited out by the diner for his girlfriend, he saw her run out and zoom past him. “Red!” he called as he followed her, “What is it? What’s wrong?”

“Leroy called me. He said it was an emergency.” she replied as they headed towards the mines, “Leory! What is it? What’s the emergency?” she asked as they met up with the dwarf staring at the ceiling.

“They’re gone.” he said. Sure enough, the diamonds originally planned to use for fairy dust were nowhere in sight, “They’re all gone.”

“…Why do I get the feeling Regina was involved in this?” Nicholas asked dryly. Eventually after gathering the other dwarves, Red stormed into the shop and asked Henry where his mother and Gold were. Unfortunately, he didn’t know.

**OUaT**

Once Hook returned from Wonderland with Cora’s body, both Regina and Flamel stood before her casket, each with a rose in their hands. “Did she put up a fight?” asked Regina.

“Nothing I couldn’t handle.” Hook replied.

“Thank you. Now leave us.” she gently ordered, “My brother and I would like a moment to say goodbye to her.”

Hook nodded and left the siblings to their grief. “I’m sorry, Mother.” Regina apologized, “Without you, I never would’ve become the person I am now. But I had no choice. I had to do this. After you killed Daniel, you told me something I’ve never forgotten. Love is weakness. Well, Mother, you are my weakness…because I love you. That’s why I couldn’t risk taking you to the new land with us. Your grip on my heart is just too strong. And for what I need to do…the only weakness I’ll allow myself to have is Nicholas.” she sniffled as she set her rose on Cora’s chest, “Goodbye, Mother.”

“Regina,” Flamel spoke up, “If it’s alright with you, I’d like to say my goodbyes to Mother alone.”

“Of course.” she nodded as she pulled her little brother into a hug.

“I warned you this would happen.” he said to the corpse, “I told you this would be the outcome after what you did to Daniel. The ironic part about all this is that you did it out of what you believed to be love.” Flamel took a moment to steady his voice and sniffle back the snot coming from his nose as he teared up. “For the longest time, all I ever thought of was coming back home to you, Father and Regina. And now I’ll have to go even longer without you in my life. I never wanted any of this to happen, and yet I blame myself for not being able to prevent it. I failed our family…just like I failed to stop him.”

At this point, Flamel was sobbing harder than he had cried in years. “I miss you, Mother. Even after all the things you’ve done…I still love you and wish you were still alive. Maybe someday, the four of us will finally be together again.” as he controlled himself, he placed the rose next his sister’s and placed a kiss on Cora’s forehead and whispered, “Goodbye.”

Little did Flamel know that as soon as he closed the mausoleum’s doors, Cora rose from her casket and looked at the roses with a longing look on her face.

**OUaT**

At what was once Lake Nostos, Cora and Hook stood before a swirling whirlpool that would lead them to Storybrooke. Just as they were about to jump in, Snow shot an arrow at Cora and knocked the compass right out of her hand.

“You’re not going anywhere!” Emma shouted as she, Snow and Nicholas stood on the other side, “This portal’s taking us home!”

“Go get the compass.” Nicholas told Emma as he put on his gloves.

“Find it first. I’ll take care of them.” Cora said to Hook.

The fight didn’t last very long. Cora and her son sent blasts of fire at each other while Emma crossed blades with Hook before taking the compass and knocking him out. As they tried to make a break for the portal, Cora appeared in front of them and knocked them back.

“Why do you want to go to Storybrooke?” Nicholas asked as Cora approached Snow.

“Because you and your sister need me.” she replied, “And now I’m going to give Regina the one thing she’s always wanted; Snow White’s heart.”

But just as she was about to take it, Nicholas shoved her out of the way and caused Cora to pull out his own bringing him to the ground as he looked to his friends with lifeless eyes.

**OUaT**

At the old wishing well, Nicholas, Red and Henry caught up to Regina and Gold as they stood before the well with green magical lightning covering it.

“Mom?” Henry asked, “You’re not helping Emma and Mary Margaret, are you?”

“I’m helping you and your uncle, Henry.” Regina replied gently, “Nicholas, you know as well as we do that we can’t let Cora get through the portal. You and I know exactly what she would do to us.”

“I know, but we can’t run the risk of Emma and Snow being the ones to make it through.” he reasoned.

“You’re gonna kill them.” stressed Ruby.

“Sorry, dearie.” Gold apologized as he tried to knock her back only to be stopped by a wall made by Nicholas.

“Try anything like that again, Gold, and we’ll test just how immortal you think you are.” he warned.

“Emma and Mary Margaret are going to defeat her. They’re the ones who’re going to come through.” Henry argued.

“Henry, you mother’s right. It’s gonna be Cora.” the dark one debated.

“No. It won’t. Good always defeats evil. You should know that more than anyone.”

“What I know is that my mother will destroy everything I love, and everything Nicholas loves.” Regina retorted looking to her sibling who knew she was right, “And for the both of us, that means you. I can’t let that happen.”

**OUaT**

“No!” Emma cried. To make matters worse, Nicholas began to disintegrate into black ashes until only his weapons and clothes were left. In her horror, Emma looked at Cora and saw not a heart, but a little, crimson red stone with severed veins attached to it in the palm of her hand. “What the hell is that?!” she asked hotly.

“This, my dears, is the source of my son’s immortality. The very thing that allows him to use his alchemy without so much as a twitch; what gives him his unique abilities. The achievement all alchemists hope to one day achieve; the Philosopher’s Stone.”

As Cora explained this, the stone began to surge with red alchemic lightning and began create even more veins until they grew and blended together to create a skeleton and muscle tissue. She then dropped the stone and watched with Emma and Snow as Nicholas regenerated to his original appearance; thankfully, he managed to crawl back into his clothes before anything embarrassing could regrow before the women.

“Now, where were we?” Cora asked as she once again tried to take Snow’s heart only to be stopped by Emma. “Oh, you foolish girl.” she scoffed with her hand in the blonde’s chest, “Don’t you know? Love is weakness.”

She then tried to yank out the organ but found that something prevented her from doing so. “No.” Emma denied, “It’s strength.” In an instant, a surge of white magic erupted from her and sent Cora back several feet. “What was that?” she asked in shock.

“That is a great subject for discussion when we get home.” Snow replied as they ran towards the portal, “Nicholas, come on!”

“Right!” he called back with a slur as he staggered over to them. Apparently, regenerating every part of one’s body from a stone takes a lot out of one. With their hands joined and the compass in their possession, the trio jumped into the portal.

**OUaT**

“You can’t!” Henry cried as he and Red tried to run past Regina and Nicholas only to be stopped by them, “Stop it! You can’t! You’re gonna kill them! Please! No! They’re going to make it through! We have to turn it off!”

“You’re gonna kill them!” Red cried as her boyfriend held her back. Henry managed to break free only to be pulled back by his mother.

“What are you doing?!” she asked.

“Emma and Mary Margaret are going to come through. I know it.” Henry stressed, “You said you wanted to change, to be better. This is how. You want me to have faith in you? Have faith in me.”

With tears in her eyes, Regina approached the well and began to remove the barrier. Once it was gone, Regina nearly collapsed to the ground and was helped up by her brother. When no one came up from the well, Henry feared the worst. “No!” he cried.

“I’m sorry, Henry. I’m sorry.” choked Regina knowing that her son would never forgive her. Both Henry and Red tried to control themselves over the loss of their loved ones while Nicholas did his best to stay stoned faced.

But just then, Emma climbed up out of the well with Snow just behind her!

“Mom?” Henry asked.

“Henry!” Emma cried as they ran up to hug each other, “Oh! I missed you!”

“I missed you, too.” he said in her embrace.

“I missed you so much.” she said as Snow joined the hug.

“Snow!” Red cried as she ran up to hug her best friend.

“You guys made it.” Nicholas said happily.

“Nicholas, of course we did-wait a minute.” Emma said as she and Snow looked at him in confusion, “Why are you wearing different clothes than before we jumped into the portal?”

“What are you talking about, Emma?” he asked before they could all hear the sound of groaning from the well.

“Agh, where’s that damn Lassie when you need her?” the other Nicholas asked as he climbed out of the well and landed face first as he fell out. 

Everyone, including Gold, looked down at him in complete shock and then back at the other Nicholas repeatedly.

“WHAT THE HELL?!” shouted all the adults. Well, all of them except for Ruby whose only thoughts (most of them dirty) were, “Thank you, God!!!”

“Okay, why the hell are there two of Nicholas?” Emma asked.

“Well,” they both said simultaneously, “This has never happened before. How strange.”

“Um, Ruby.” Snow whispered, “You’re drooling.”

“I know. You would be too if you had two of David.” she replied dreamily.

“So,” the E.F. Nicholas began as he inspected his doppelganger, “Any ideas as to why there are two of us?”

“Well…it’s possible that this happened when the portal closed on us as we fell through.” replied the S.B. Nicholas.

“But if that were the reason, then only one of us would have regenerated. Unless-”

“Unless the Stone was split in two as the portal collapsed on us. Of course.” he realized as he smacked his forehead, “I knew there was a reason why I’ve felt thin ever since that night.”

“So how are you two going to become one again?” Snow asked.

“Oh, it’s quite simple. One of us will have to be eaten by the other’s shadows.”

“How are you guys going to decide that?” Emma asked.

“Well, I think he should be the one to be eaten.” E.F. Nicholas said pointing to himself.

“Oh, yeah? Why me?” S.B. Nicholas asked.

“Because I stood up against Mother and won.” he stated proudly.

“Oh, yeah? Well, I finally asked Ruby on a date and now we’re boyfriend and girlfriend.” he informed smugly.

“You are?” he asked.

“You are?” Emma and Snow asked the smiling were-wolf.

“Hmm…rock, paper, scissors?”

“Deal.”

“You’re seriously going to decide which of you is going to get eaten by yourself with rock, paper, scissors?” Emma asked.

“Whatever way we decided, Emma, the end result is going to be pretty gruesome so you guys may want to go now. I bet David’s pretty anxious to wake up now, wouldn’t you agree, Snow?”

That was all she needed to hear before sprinting back to town. Eventually, it was E.F. Nicholas who was eaten. Later that day while everyone, aside from Regina, was celebrating at Granny’s, Nicholas found his sister in their den looking heartbroken.

“Hey, sis.” he softly greeted.

“Hey. Why aren’t you out celebrating?” she asked.

“Two reasons. One, there’s no way I’m going to leave you alone with as sad as you are right now. And two, there’s something I need to talk to you about.”

“What is it?”

“Just before we made it through the portal, Mother tried to rip out Snow’s heart. I got in the way, but in doing so, she ripped out my stone and now Emma and Snow know about it.”

“What do we do?”

“If they start looking into it, we make sure that they never find out how I acquired the Stone. If they do…there’s no telling what they’ll do. They must never know how I became immortal.”

“What about Red?” Regina asked.

“…I’ll tell her, and only her, when I feel like the time is right. But until then, no one can know my secret.”

Little did either sibling know, Nicholas’s secret would eventually be revealed in the days to come. And he would find that he didn’t have a friend in the entire town to stand by his side as it was. Only enemies.


	17. The Cricket Game

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or FMAB

Many years ago in the Enchanted Forest, a young girl of eight years old giggled happily as she played in the field with her four-year-old brother with their parents watching them fondly. “Catch me if you can!” the girl teased as she ran off towards the woods with her brother toddling behind.

“No fair!” he pouted, “Gina, wait for me!”

As they ran through the tree covered area, the boy eventually lost sight of his sister. He looked left and right but didn’t see a single trace of her. He unknowingly began to back up and tripped over a root and began to tumble down a tall hill. In a matter of moments, the boy finally landed before a group of vile looking men. The fattest one of all, most likely the leader, took one look at him and nodded at his men, signaling them to grab the poor child and throw him in one of the cages they had filled with people.

**OUaT**

“You really think this will end well?” Regina asked Nicholas as they walked towards Granny’s with food in their hands. Everyone decided to throw a welcome home party for the trio and Nicholas decided to invite his big sister.

“Oh, sister dear.” he sighed with a smirk, “You worry too much.”

As they entered the diner, everyone had just raised their glasses and cheered at a speech given by David. Although, it ended as soon as they saw Regina. “Sorry we’re late.” she apologized.

“What is she doing here?” Leroy asked as he drew a knife.

“Nicholas and I invited her.” Emma replied.

“If you have an issue with it, Leroy, feel free to save it for later.” Nicholas lectured with a dry look.

“I’m glad you guys came.” smiled Henry as Regina served him a piece of her lasagna.

“Me, too.” said Nicholas as he hugged his family, “This is a party for me too, last thing I want is for my family to be somewhere else right now. Hey, Leroy. Regina made lasagna. Care for a piece?”

“What’s the secret ingredient? Poison?” asked the dwarf.

“Red pepper flakes.” Regina corrected flatly, “Gives it a little kick.”

As the party went on, Regina found herself to be the only one in the diner without someone to talk to. Having enough of that, she decided to quietly exit the building. However, Nicholas noticed this and followed his sister out the door with Emma following him.

“Regina.” Nicholas called as he caught up with her, “Hey, what’s the matter? Why’d you leave?”

“Just didn’t have the partying spirit, I guess.” she lied.

“Archie made a cake.” Emma offered, “Why don’t you stay for a piece?”

“I’m fine. Thank you.” she politely denied.

“Okay.” Emma said seeing that Regina had made up her mind.

“Thank you.” she said again.

“You just said that, sis.” Nicholas reminded.

“F-For inviting me.” she clarified.

“Henry and I wanted you to come.” he shrugged.

“I’m glad you guys got to spend some time together.” Emma added.

“Me, too. I’d like to see him more.” Regina informed gently, “Maybe you’d consider letting him stay over some time. W-we have his room just…just waiting for him.”

“Oh.” said Emma, “I’m-I’m not sure that’s best.”

“Emma, what are you saying?” Nicholas asked; his sister, however, didn’t share the same tone of response.

“Because you know so much about parenting in the five minutes you’ve been with him.” Regina countered flatly, “Talk to David and Nicholas. At least they took care of him while you were away, like Nicholas and I did, during the ten years you were away the first time.”

“Regina.” Nicholas said in concern.

“Okay. Thanks for coming.” Emma said before heading back inside.

“No. Wait. I’m sorry.” Regina apologized, “Emma, I’m-I’m sorry. Snapping at you, I shouldn’t have done that. Will you accept my apology?”

“Okay. You’re right. Archie said you were trying to change, and, well, you are.” Emma replied.

“Dr. Hopper said she was trying?” Nicholas asked while his sister tried to control herself.

“Yeah, and he said how you were going to him, too. Something about wanting to better yourself for Ruby while Regina’s not trying to use magic. You understand, I was hesitant to invite you. Especially after what David said you did to Spencer, Nicholas.”

“I did that to keep that bastard from harming the town like that again.” he defended feeling hurt.

“I should be going.” Regina informed wanting to avoid the awkward situation.

“I think I’ll join you.” Nicholas added.

“Nicholas, wait. That’s not what I meant.” Emma pleaded.

“Oh, I think it was.” he retorted as he followed his sister, still looking hurt by what the blonde said. As they left, Ruby came out hoping to find her boyfriend.

“Hey, where’s Nicholas?” she asked the sheriff.

“He left with Regina.”

“Why?”

“I think I just hurt his feelings.” Emma replied feeling guilty.

As the two siblings walked to their house, Hook with Cora at his side watched them through his spy glass. “So…are they broken yet?” he asked.

“Not yet.” Cora replied as she watched her children.

The next morning, Nicholas was out for a run with Ruby by the docks when he spotted his sister having a heated conversation with Archie. He didn’t want anything to do with the chatty bug, but Ruby, who still didn’t trust the woman, went over to them.

“Hey. Is everything okay here?” she asked.

“Private conversation.” Regina flatly replied, “Nicholas, go take your girlfriend for a walk.”

“Ruby, come on. Let’s leave the Dr. Phil of termites to his well-deserved lecture.” huffed the alchemist as he continued to jog.

“What was that about?” she asked.

“Let’s just say that Dr. Hopper isn’t on the best of terms with my sister and I, right now.”

As night fell that day, in the depths of Storybrooke, a man wearing white robes sitting on a stone throne with long, bleached brown hair reaching his shoulders looked down at the person kneeling before him.

“Flamel has finally begun to show his weakness.” he said with a deep voice, “You know what to do, my son.”

“Of course, Father.” the person said with a voice that sounded like it was laced with broken glass.

The next morning, Henry and Emma exited Granny’s after having breakfast when suddenly, Pongo came running towards them from Archie’s office across the street.

“Hey, Pongo.” Henry happily greeted only to hear the dog bark.

“Emma.” Ruby said in a panic as she came out of the diner, “Something’s wrong.”

“What do you mean?” she asked as Pongo continued to bark, “Never mind. The wolf thing. You know what? 11 is old enough to walk to the bus stop. I’ll pick you up later.” she said to Henry as he walked away.

As Pongo ran back to the office with the two women following him, a man reading a newspaper folded it away to reveal that it was Nicholas with a sinister grin. As he got up from his seat, he walked to the town square where several people were walking in multiple directions.

He then spotted a little girl holding onto a stuffed bear run towards him before bumping into his leg. She looked up at him with a cute smile showing she was missing a tooth. As Nicholas smiled at her, he pulled a gun from his coat and aimed it at the girl’s head.

At that moment, she realized that she was about to be killed, but just before she could so much as scream, Nicholas pulled the trigger and killed her instantly.

The sound of gunfire echoed through the town as everyone looked towards the source and gasped as they watched the child’s body hit the ground and stained it with her blood.

Still smiling, Nicholas turned into a rat and fled into the sewers. Eventually, the rat arrived before the throne where the mysterious man sat and transformed into the man’s son. “It is done, Father. Before the day is finished, all of Storybrooke will turn against Flamel.”

“You have done well, my child.” the man said with a smirk.

Later that day, both Regina and Nicholas were brought to the interrogation room in the sheriff’s station. As they patiently waited, Emma and David stormed in, glaring at the siblings.

“Glad to see the sheriff’s station’s now a family business.” Regina joked, “Why are we here?”

“You both know why you’re here. Because of Archie and Susan.” Emma replied. On the other side of the glass, Ruby and Snow looked at them with tears in their eyes.

“Oh, it’s now against the law to get into an argument with someone?” Regina asked.

“Who is Susan?” Nicholas asked.

“Susan Cline.” David said hotly as he slammed a picture of the girl in front of him, “I took your advice and took pictures. You were seen blowing her brains out in the town square this morning while Emma and Ruby found Archie lying dead in his office.”

“Archie’s dead?” Regina asked in both concern and shock.

“I don’t know who told you this, but I didn’t kill this girl.” Nicholas argued.

“Stop it, you two.” David ordered, “Regina, Ruby saw you going into Archie’s office last night and at least thirteen people saw you point a gun at that little girl’s head this morning, Nicholas.”

“Then they’re all lying.” Regina retorted, “We were home during both instances.”

“After everything we’ve done, you honestly think that we would do such things?” Nicholas asked Emma, “Why would either of us kill anyone after we’ve worked so hard for the people we care about? Why would we act so sloppy just to let ourselves be caught like this?”

“We’ve caught one of you before.” David reminded, “Come on, Emma. Who do you think’s lying, Ruby and the witnesses or them?”

“If you think you’ve finally gotten this sheriff thing down, where’s the murder weapon with my finger prints?” Nicholas hotly asked.

“Our witnesses say you took it with you before turning into a rat and running into the sewers.” David replied, “Nicholas, don’t do this to yourself. Don’t be like your sister. Just tell us the truth.”

“I am.” he hissed, “I have killed before, yes. I won’t deny that. But I have never done so without needing to defend those I wished to protect. And I most certainly would never lower myself as to murder a child.”

Seeing as they weren’t getting anywhere with them, Emma and David went on the other side of the glass to see Ruby looking conflicted and heartbroken while Snow looked at them with hatred.

“So what do we do with them now?” Snow asked.

“Lock them up.” David replied.

“We can’t lock them up because they didn’t do it.” Emma corrected.

“Emma’s right.” nodded Ruby, “Nicholas isn’t capable of killing anyone in cold blood, especially a child.”

“You really believe them?” David asked.

“If I’m going to put my faith in one of them, I will give the other just as much.” Red replied.

“I watched them when we told them Archie and that little girl died. Neither of them knew.” Emma argued.

“Emma, I know that you want to believe that Regina can change for Henry, but-”

“I know what I saw. Look at them. The old Regina would’ve reduced this building to ashes and from what I saw in the Enchanted Forest, Nicholas would’ve helped her if he was angry enough. That’s a woman who wants to change and her brother who’s stood by us and done nothing but help not only me, but all of you ever since he met us. I know that look. I know them. I believe them.” Emma argued.

“With all due respect, you don’t know Regina like we do.” David debated.

“Maybe that’s the problem.” Ruby countered.

“In your kingdom, they were the Evil Queen and her brother, but here, they’re Regina and Nicholas. And I’m still the sheriff, and I say they’re innocent until proven guilty.” said Emma.

“So what do you suggest we do?” asked Snow.

“Let them go.”

“Emma, they-” David began only to be cut off by his daughter.

“We let them go, and then we find the truth.”

“How?” asked Snow.

“Both of them were seeing Archie. Let’s start at his office.” Ruby suggested.

After the group eventually returned to the office, they each searched through it in hopes of finding, or not finding, any evidence. “Huh. Regina and Nicholas’s files, they’re empty.” David informed as he searched through the cabinet.

“So they did it.” Snow accused, “Regina killed the kindest soul in this town, a man who only cared about helping. And Nicholas killed an innocent child for no reason at all.”

“This doesn’t prove anything, Snow.” Red argued, “Just because their files are empty doesn’t mean either of them killed anyone.”

“I promise we’ll fine whoever really did this.” Emma swore to her parents.

“Isn’t it time you admit we already have?” David asked, “Regina had a fight with Archie. Ruby, you said it yourself that you saw her outside last night and the previous morning, Nicholas was showing hostility towards him, too. Maybe Nicholas killed Susan because he wanted to let loose his anger on someone and couldn’t do it to Archie because Regina already did.”

“You’re just pointing fingers at him, David.” argued the were-wolf, “I can’t believe the two of you. All Nicholas had ever done was help us. He didn’t have to risk everything when Regina was after Snow and he could have easily sided with Cora when the three of you were in the Enchanted Forest. Why would he just go out and kill someone for no reason?”

“We have witnesses for Nicholas, a motive for Regina and both of their files are empty, Red. That’s-that’s a lot of evidence.” David stressed.

“Maybe that’s the point.” Emma realized.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I don’t know how it is in Fairy Tale Land, but in the real world, it’s usually hard to find evidence. But this has been way too easy, unless someone wants us to find evidence.” Emma explained.

“So you think they were framed?” Snow asked.

“Well, it wouldn’t be the first time that happened in this town.” Ruby reminded looking at her friend.

“Who would want to frame them?” David asked.

“Regarding Regina, that’s a long list, present company included.” Snow remarked.

“What about Nicholas?” Emma asked, “Did he have any enemies before the curse hit?” Everyone was silent as they thought of their answers. “Well, did he?”

“I don’t think anyone really knows, Emma.” Snow replied, “Nicholas never really interacted with people back home.”

“Anywhere else?” she asked.

“It’s hard to say.” Ruby shrugged, “Maybe someone he met when he wasn’t in the Enchanted Forest.”

“Where else was that? That kingdom he used to live in?” Emma asked.

“That’s impossible.” Ruby denied, “Everyone from that kingdom is dead.”

“How the hell did that happen?”

“No one knows.” David replied, “All we know is that Nicholas was once a slave in the desert kingdom of Xerxes and everyone, aside from him, was killed in a single night.”

“How could an entire kingdom be wiped out in just one night?”

“It’s like David said, nobody knows. The only person who survived was Nicholas and he’s never told anyone.” Snow explained.

“Not even me.” Red added, “He hates talking about his past. I mean, you can’t really blame him; he was a slave for ten years. The only person we know of who hates Nicholas is the same person who would go so far as to kill someone just to frame him and Regina.”

“Gold.” nodded the blonde. Needless to say, they stormed over to the pawn shop for answers and found Gold and Belle getting ready to leave for a picnic.

“Nothing warms the heart more than a family reunited.” he remarked, “You have your mother’s chin, Ms. Swan.”

“We know that you killed them.” Emma accused.

“And your father’s tact.”

“Someone’s dead?” asked Belle.

“Dr. Hopper and a little girl named Susan Cline.” Emma replied.

“Why on earth would you think I had anything to do with either of those?” Gold asked.

“Because all the evidence points to Regina and Nicholas.”

“And they’re not possibly capable of doing something so vile?” Belle asked.

“I know Nicholas isn’t.” Ruby defended, “It’s a frame job.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time you used someone to try and hurt her.” Snow reminded.

“Nice to see your memory’s still intact, dearie.” smirked the dark one, “But this time, I’m afraid I’m gonna have to disappoint you. It wasn’t me.”

“Why should we believe you?” David scoffed.

“Because I can prove it. Ask the witnesses.” he said.

“No one was there to see Archie’s death.” Emma snapped.

“Well, that’s not strictly true, now is it?”

Not much later, David returned to the shop with Pongo, the witness. “Unless you speak dog, how is Pongo going to tell us anything?” Emma asked.

“Through magic, of course.” Gold simply replied, “It won’t allow us to communicate, but it will allow us to…extract his memories.”

“Extract?” David asked.

“You don’t have to worry. He won’t feel a thing.”

“Why should we trust you?” Emma asked, “Couldn’t you just as easily use magic to fool us?”

“Because I’m not gonna be the one using magic. You are.”

“Me? How?”

“You have it within you. Told me so yourself.” Gold replied as he pulled out a dreamcatcher.

“Emma, you don’t have to do this.” Snow reminded.

“If it tells us something about who really killed Archie and Susan, so be it. I’m not going to give up on my friend until I know for sure what happened.” Emma replied.

“Now do you know what this is?” Gold asked as he held up the dreamcatcher.

“A dreamcatcher.”

“Well,” he chuckled as he held it over the dog’s head, “It’s capable of catching so much more.”

“What is that?” Belle asked as the dreamcatcher glowed.

“Memories. Now, Ms. Swan, you show us how.” he said as he gave it to Emma.

“How? It’s just a jumble.”

“Will it. Will it, and we shall all see.” Gold explained.

As Emma focused her magic, everyone was able to see Regina choke the life out of Archie. Snow looked away as the sight of her friend being killed was too much for her. After that memory ended, it changed to where Pongo was looking out a window and saw Nicholas shoot little Susan with a sickening grin before turning into a rat.

“It can’t be.” Ruby denied as tears formed in her eyes, “It just can’t be. That can’t be Nicholas.”

“Hate to burst your bubble, dearie.” Gold said, “But there’s no mistaking it. That’s alchemy. And last I checked, Mr. Mills is the only resident alchemist in Storybrooke.”

“You were right all along.” Emma exhaled to her parents.

“I’m sorry.” David said to them before Emma stormed out, “Emma. Wait. Where are you going?”

“To get Regina and Nicholas.” she huffed.

“Well, can we talk about this?” asked Snow.

“What’s there to talk about? They killed Archie and that little girl. Now they’ve gotta pay.”

“Emma, how do you plan on doing that?” Snow asked, “Regina has her powers back here and Nicholas is just as dangerous.”

“Yeah, well, you just saw what happened. I have my own.” she replied as she continued to storm over to the house.

“Yeah. You have something, but you don’t even know what the hell to do with it, and now you’re gonna go take on the most powerful people in town, one of which isn’t even capable of being wounded?” David asked.

“Excuse me. Weren’t you both the ones who’ve been pushing on the ‘it’s Regina and Nicholas’ kick the whole time?” she asked hotly. Red didn’t say a word; she was too in shock from what she saw. “You should be happy you were right.”

“We may be right, but I also know that going after them without a plan is a mistake.” Snow retorted.

“So what do we do?”

“Even if the dwarves construct a cell to hold them, we need a way to contain their alchemy and magic until then.” explained David.

“How?” Emma asked, “Nicholas is practically impervious to magic and no one here has any idea about how to counter against his alchemy.”

“What about the new batch of Fairy Dust Leroy talked about?” Ruby asked.

“Will that stop them?” Emma asked.

“It’s stopped Regina before. Hopefully, it will do the same to Nicholas. The problem is, they’ll see us coming.” David said.

“Leave that to me.” Emma reassured, “Trust me, we’re locking them up.”

As they made it to the mayor’s house, Ruby decided to go back to her own home; the thought of seeing the man she loved after what was revealed in the dreamcatcher was too much for her. Emma knocked on the door and waited for the siblings to open it.

“Ms. Swan.” Regina greeted as she and her parents glared at her and Nicholas, “I assume you’re here to apologize to my brother and I.”

“I saw you do it.” Emma informed getting to the point.

“What?” Nicholas asked.

“I saw it. You choked the life out of Archie and splattered Susan’s brains out on the pavement.”

“What are you talking about?” Regina asked, “How is that even possible?”

“Magic.” David answered.

“I saw what happened, and it was you. Both of you.” Emma repeated.

“Gold.” Nicholas growled, “He helped you. Emma, you’re going to trust him, of all people, over me? Your friend? He’s probably the one behind all of this.”

“We didn’t trust him.” Snow corrected, “That’s why Emma used magic instead.”

“…You can use magic?” Regina asked as Emma smirked, “The Savior. Of course.”

“I assume Gold warned you, then.” Nicholas speculated.

“About what?”

“That magic always comes with a price.” Regina replied.

“Yeah? Well, that’s a price all three of us are gonna pay.” Emma replied.

“How’s that?”

“Henry and Ruby. They believed in you; especially you, Nicholas. Her heart is already broken. Henry’s is gonna be the next to break.” Emma replied causing the alchemist’s pupils to dilate.

“No.” Nicholas growled, “I will not let you poison Henry against us. And I especially won’t let any of you do that to Red.”

“It’s an interesting word choice, since you and your sister already did.” she said smugly.

“We want to see him.” Regina demanded as they were hot on Emma’s tail as she walked away.

“He deserves to hear our sides of the story!” Nicholas yelled, “He’s my nephew and her son!”

“He’s not! He’s mine!” Emma shouted in anger, “And after this, neither of you are getting anywhere near him. Do it!”

As she shouted this, Mother Superior came from behind a tree and fired a blast of magic at the siblings. Regina deflected it, but Nicholas was struck in the face causing him to cry out in pain and agony as he rolled on the ground clutching his face.

“Aah!” he cried, “It burns! It burns us! It freezes us!” he shouted as a hole on the left side of his face was visible. Emma and her parents gasped at the sight, mostly because where Nicholas’s left eye once was, a hole showing a swirling tempest of screaming red faces could be seen and heard.

“Take it off us!” he cried to his sister who did so with a wave of her hand.

“Nicholas…what are you?” Emma asked only hear her former friend roar at her as he healed.

“How dare you attack my brother?” Regina snarled, “You will not keep Henry away from us.” she said as she pushed Emma back with her magic, “So much for Fairy Dust.”

“Maybe some of your newfound magic can save you now.” Nicholas bitterly suggested.

“I don’t need it. I already won.” Emma replied as her parents helped her up, “There is no way Henry or Ruby will swallow either of your lies about Archie and Susan now. You can pretend all you want, but we know how you two are and who you will always be. The Evil Queen and her brother.”

Neither sibling said anything. Regina just threw up her hands and disappeared in a puff of smoke while Nicholas deconstructed himself and transported him to wherever his sister went. Later that day, Regina watched how Emma told Henry what she believed to be the truth behind Archie and Susan’s deaths while Nicholas did the same as a bird on a phone line. He even watched as Snow held Ruby as she sobbed over her heartbreak.

As night fell, Hook was sharpening his namesake as Cora approached him at the dock. “You’re back.” he observed, “So did you get what you wanted?”

“Yes. My children have lost everything now.”

“Ah. Well, aren’t you mom of the year?” he teased.

“I did what was needed.” Cora replied.

“And that included killing an innocent child?”

“I had nothing to do with that unfortunate event.” Cora defended, “I don’t know who did it, but someone impersonated my son and framed him for her murder.”

“Well, I guess we’ll just call that one hell of a coincidence.” shrugged the pirate, “And how’s about what I need? You promised you’d help me get my revenge on Rumplestiltskin.”

“And I’ve already started. Or didn’t you notice the little gift I left you in the hold of your ship?” Cora asked with a sweet, yet, evil grin.

“A gift? What is it?”

“Not what. Who.” Cora corrected as they boarded the invisible ship. In the crew’s quarters, Hook opened one of the cargo holds to see who Cora was referring to.

“Who’s that?” he asked.

“Someone privy to Storybrooke’s deepest secrets, including Rumpelstiltskin’s, someone who can help us determine his weaknesses here. Can’t you, Dr. Hopper?” Cora asked the captive shrink.

“If that’s him, then who did you kill?” Hook asked.

“How do I know?” Cora bluntly asked, “It’s my first day in town.”

“You disguised the body to look like him.” Hook realized, “If death wasn’t punishment enough. Marvelous work.”

“Thank you.” smiled Cora, “Now you’ll have all the knowledge you’ll need. It may take some work, but this cricket will chirp.”

“Aye. That he will.”


	18. The Slave

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT and FMAB

Several days had passed since the Charmings confronted Nicholas and his sister; he hadn’t shown his face ever since he watched Snow White turn Ruby against him. He especially didn’t know was that Cora was in town with a quest to find Rumplestiltskin’s dagger.

The young alchemist was heartbroken. Everyone he thought were his friends turned against him thanks to the words spoken by Snow White and Prince Charming; worst of all, the woman he loved and the boy who had been the son he never had were against him as well. True, he knew that Regina wasn’t the one who killed Archie and that someone impersonated him, too. Only thing was, no one knew who it was.

But Nicholas did. He knew without a doubt who was behind framing him for that child’s murder; but it still didn’t put an end to the pain he felt every day since his best friend accused him of such a thing. And the worst part, even though he knew who it was, he couldn’t do anything about it. Not yet and not for a long time to come.

Emma and Ruby searched for him for days, but they could never find him. As for the two people who instantly declared him guilty without a second thought, the two people he saved and helped countless times out of the goodness of his heart, they did nothing. Ever since they betrayed him, Nicholas has simply sat in one of his underground laboratories, wallowing in his misery.

One night as he sat alone, he heard the sound of Ruby calling out to him from the other side of the entrance. Desperate to feel the warmth of his one true love, Nicholas opened the door and pulled Ruby into his arms.

“Ruby, please believe me.” he begged as tears formed in his eyes, “I had nothing to do with that child’s murder. I was framed. So was Regina.”

“I know. I always knew.” she replied as she broke away from the hug.

“You did? How?” he asked.

“Simple.” Red shrugged before becoming enveloped in blue smoke, “Because I framed Regina.” she said as her real appearance was shown; Cora’s.

“Mother.” Nicholas whispered fearfully, “You…I thought we stopped you. How did you come here?”

“Determination.” Cora replied, “I had to come here for you and your sister. I needed to tell the both of you that I know why you sent me through the looking glass. And I know why you tried to have me killed. And it’s…” as Cora said this, Nicholas slowly covered his arms with his shield just below his wrists. “It’s alright.”

“I think it’s not alright.” he argued in spite.

“I love you, son. I love you and your sister so much. I just…I’ve always shown it in all the wrong ways. I never should have made Regina marry the king…and I never should have let you out of my sight that day. I’m so sorry.” Cora admitted as tears formed in both her own eyes and Nicholas’s as well. “When the two of you cried over my coffin, it…it all changed.”

“…Did you even look for me?” Nicholas asked as the tears finally rolled down his face, “With all your power…how were you unable to find your only son?”

“Sweetheart, I did everything I could to find you. It took me years to find the one thing that could show me where you were. All I needed was to use my blood, but I thought the magic was wrong. I saw two people in the same place sharing your blood. You…you have no idea the pain that went through me every time I failed.”

“Oh, I have no idea?!” Nicholas asked hotly, “I was a slave! I was labeled and sold to hungry looking people like I was a piece of meat in a butcher’s shop. I was lower than dirt for ten years of my life! I was lashed with a hot whip every time I so much as looked at my master’s guests without their permission. I was raised to only ever answer to the number I was given. I don’t even know my real name and you have the gall to tell me about pain?” he cried, “You’re the one who has no idea of the pain I went through, Mother. And now you tell me that you’re the one who framed Regina for the cricket?”

“Temporarily,” she nodded with guilt, “So she could see what these people really think of her.”

“…Did you frame me, too?” he asked through his teeth.

“Nicholas-”

“Did you kill that child?!” he screamed.

“No. I had nothing to do with that.”

“That bastard!” he hissed confusing his mother before simmering down, even just barely. “It doesn’t matter. You’re coming with me. We’re going to town.”

“It’s the middle of the night.” Cora reasoned.

“Like I give a damn.” Nicholas spat, “I’ll wake them up if I have to and you…you are going to tell them that it was you who framed Regina. Emma and Henry and the two idiots, they all need to know that you lied. You owe us that much.”

“And then the three of us can start over?” she asked with hope.

“I doubt that Regina would be willing to agree to that once she learns the truth, Mother. And right now…neither do I. Even if I can’t clear my name, Regina deserves to be given that. She has worked so hard to be worthy of Henry; I don’t care who it is, but if anyone tries to prevent that, I will put an end to it.”

“Of course.” nodded Cora as Nicholas turned to open the door, “For you and your sister, Abba, anything.”

“…What did you say?” he softly asked as he looked at his tearful mother.

“Abba.” she repeated, “That’s your real name. Regina used to call you Abby when you were just a baby.”

Nicholas said nothing as he trembled as the tears returned. He finally knew his real name. After decades of using the name given to him by who he thought was his friend, he at last knew who he was. He was Abba.

“…This changes…nothing.” he hissed pointing his finger at her, “You’re still coming with me to town. And we’re going to get Regina first.”

“Oh, there’s no need for that. She’s waiting for us in the carriage outside.” Cora informed as she walked out of the lab causing Nicholas to shake his head and sigh.

“Of course she is.”

**OUaT**

In the desert kingdom of Xerxes, a young slave with brown hair and eyes softly napped in one of the storage rooms owned by his master which he was supposed to be cleaning. He was covered in dirt and wore a filthy white toga with slave sandals. As he sat on a crate with a broom in his hands in silence, a small voice filled the room.

“Young man~” it called only to see that the slave was still sleeping, “Hey! You there!” it exclaimed waking him up.

“Oh, no!” he panicked.

“It’s alright.” the voice reassured. The boy looked around the room and saw that no one was there; just a small, round flask that had two corked spouts that had a black mass inside. “Look. Over here.” it called showing that it was whatever was inside the flask.

“Um, yeah?”

“Hey, now. Can’t you at least bring yourself to act a little surprised or something?”

“What do I get for acting surprised?”

“Hmm, you show no fear. I like that. What’s your name?”

“I’m number twenty-three.”

“Not your number. I want you to tell me your real name.”

“I’m a slave. I don’t have one. Besides, my master made me forget the name I had before he bought me.”

“A slave?” it asked, “You mean a person without any rights or freedoms? Someone trafficked and dated as a possession?”

“Dated? What’s that?”

“It’s when a piece of property is transferred to another person.” it said only confusing the slave even more, “Seems you’re not all that bright, are you?” it chuckled.

“Hey! Get out of here!” the slave shouted hotly.

“How could I possibly have been born from someone as stupid as you?” it sighed.

“Hmm?”

“You are the one who gave me blood, right?” it asked as the slave looked at the bandage on his left forearm.

“I guess so. He said he was going to use it for an experiment.”

“I exist today because you gave me your blood. Thank you.” it said humbly, “Let’s see…number 23 isn’t going to cut it. I think I’ll give you a name of your own.”

“Give me a name? Who are you?”

“You’ll want a noble sounding one, right? Let’s see…Theo! Theo Frastus Bombastus.”

“That’s too long.” he complained.

“Huh? Oh, yeah, you’re not that smart. Maybe we shouldn’t put too many syllables in it.”

“Hey, you! I’m plenty smart!”

“Well, how about Nicholas? Nicholas Flamel. How does that sound?” it suggested.

“So Nicholas Flamel, huh? I think I can remember that.”

“It’s spelled-oh. You don’t know how to read and write, do you?”

“I don’t need to read and write to do my work.” Flamel snapped.

“Your slave work.” it retorted calmly, “Don’t you even want freedom? Are you going to live the rest of your life as a slave, without the rights of a real man? In that case you’re no different from me; trapped inside this stuffy flask. Let me teach you, Nicholas Flamel.” it offered.

“Hey,” Flamel asked as his voice trembled, “Who are you? What are you? What do I call you?”

As he asked this, the mass in the flask sprouted arms, revealed that it had a mouth and one large eye with a scarlet iris. It smiled and said, “I’ll tell you what, Nicholas Flamel. You can call me, The Dwarf in the Flask, Homunculus.”

**OUaT**

As the family of three drove through town in awkward silence, Cora fidgeted nervously while Nicholas sat on her right and Regina on her left as she drove the car. “Nervous?” Regina asked.

“Not owning up to what I’ve done.” Cora clarified, “It’s just these carriages are strange. And something’s irritating me.” she chuckled before pulling out an old, red handprint mold Henry made when he was in kindergarten. “Oh. Oh. ‘For Mommy and Unky.’ Oh, that used to be you two.”

“When were you in our house?” Nicholas dryly asked.

“I haven’t had the pleasure.” Cora lied while looking at the mold.

“That was in our house.” Regina retorted, “You think we don’t know where that was? It’s one of my treasured possessions.”

“Ditto.” Nicholas muttered.

“Well, let’s be honest. Taking me to be pilloried by the town might gain you some points, but as long as Emma and her parents are here, he’s not really yours.” lectured Cora, “Not like he was when he made things for his Mommy and Unky. You’ve been too bad for too long, honey, and now they see you as…as snakes.”

“I know she doesn’t know about my tattoo, but that’s kinda ironic for me.” Nicholas thought with dry humor as he stared out the window.

“You don’t want their love at all. What do you want?” Cora asked as Regina pulled over.

“My son back.” she replied.

“My nephew and true love back.” Nicholas said.

“And I want my children back. I meant everything I said earlier. I am so sorry. I can do better. I won’t push you away again. Let me into your hearts. Together, we can get him back again.”

Cora’s words touched her children. So much that they rested their heads on her shoulders and allowed themselves to feel the love and warmth of their mother. “How?” Regina asked.

“Oh, I have a few thoughts.”

**OUaT**

Weeks had passed since the Homunculus began to teach Flamel. At first it was just reading and writing, but Flamel wanted to learn more. Soon mathematics and multiple forms of science were added to his secret lessons; he even eventually began to teach some of his fellow slaves some of the basics when they weren’t working. Soon his master caught wind of this and became interested in the sudden increase in knowledge displayed by his property; so much that he acknowledged his new name and took him on as his alchemy student.

After a year and a half of intense training, Flamel was finally being put to the final test; he would truly be tested to see if he was a true alchemist.

“All things are made from One. And in the end, all things return to one.” Flamel’s master explained.

“In other words: One is All.” Flamel replied. He had grown in many ways since meeting the Dwarf in the Flask. Since he was favored by his master, he had been given special treatment. He had better meals, clean, more expensive clothes, built his body to a slim yet muscular physique and was even made his master’s assistant. To clarify, his master was the king’s personal alchemist and member of his court.

“Indeed, and All is One, as well.”

“All is ultimately of the One. So if All is not included in the One then all is nothing.” Flamel said wisely.

“You have passed.” his master declared as he held the Homunculus in his flask, “You are now an alchemist, Flamel. Well done, child.”

“I’m still only fit to be an assistant. My skills are nowhere near yours, Master.”

Little did either alchemist know, the Dwarf in the Flask softly giggled evilly. Later that day, the two friends stared out at the sunset from the balcony of their home.

“I’m grateful to you.” Flamel said out of the blue smiling.

“Oh? For what?” the dwarf asked.

“I live as well as I do now because of the knowledge you gave me. And I’ve also earned the master’s respect. Thanks to you maybe someday I’ll even be able to leave this country and go home.”

“Home? You weren’t born a slave here?” the Homunculus asked.

“Have you ever seen someone in any parts of these lands with hair and eyes like mine?” Flamel asked cheekily.

“Okay, okay.” he said playfully with an eye roll, “So if you weren’t born here where do you come from then?”

“I was born in a place called the Enchanted Forest; though, some people call it Misthaven.” Flamel explained, “If I can just get out of this desert, I can take a ship from Arendelle and get back. Who knows? I could probably meet a beautiful girl along the way and maybe marry her and have a family.”

“A family?” the Homunculus asked, “How inconvenient for you humans. Unless you form communities and breed, your species can’t continue to exist.”

“Don’t call it breeding.” Flamel snickered, “And whether or not it’s a concept you understand, that’s where humans find happiness. We live for the bonds that we form with friends and family members. That’s who we humans are.”

“Sure. Whatever you say.” Homunculus said unimpressed.

“Okay, then. What is it that makes you happy?” Flamel asked.

“Well…I’d hate to be guilty of asking too much, but I think I could be happy if I could just leave this flask.”

**OUaT**

The following day, Nicholas went with Cora to Hook’s ship while Regina went to the Charming’s loft in hopes to (civilly) bring Henry back. “So why exactly have you brought me here?” Nicholas asked.

“To introduce you to someone.” Cora sweetly replied as she pulled a tarp off a crate next to her. Inside the cage, a large unconscious man sat peacefully.

“And this is…”

“The giant your friend Emma dealt with back in our land.”

“You’ve shrunk him.” Nicholas observed, “Why?”

“So he can play his part for what I have planned. I’m sure you’re aware of what the giants’ responsibility was back when there was more than him, yes?”

“Yes, the giants were the ones who grew the portal beans which they destroyed when Prince James attacked them shortly before he was killed and replaced by Charming.”

“Very good.”

“So you’re saying that you want him to get on Snow and David’s good side so he can live here and eventually regrow the beans?”

“Yes. And once he does, the means of traveling through realms will once again be possible. All we need to do is wait for Snow and Charming to find him and set him free.” Cora explained.

“Question. How are they going to find him if he’s on an invisible ship?”

“Hook.” she answered, “He’ll lead them here and once our friend sets eyes on Charming, he’ll believe he’s his brother and go on a rampage.”

“Kinda hard to go on a rampage when you’re only about five-foot ten, don’t you think?” he asked skeptically.

“Oh, don’t worry.” Cora chuckled, “Regina will take care of that later. And then, we can continue our search.”

“About that,” he said hesitantly, “I’m not exactly sure I want to be in on this, Mother.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah.”

“May I ask why?”

“Well, no offense, Mother, but you’re not exactly a guest here in Storybrooke. And while I am still pissed off at everyone…there’s someone I want to at least try to stay clean for.”

“This Ruby girl you mentioned.” Cora recalled, “You care for her, then?”

“More than anything. She believed in me. Even when her oldest and closest friends accused me without a second thought, she defended me.”

“It didn’t seem like she was on your side when the others confronted you and your sister.” she chuckled.

“She saw my imposter use alchemy and as far as everyone in this town knows, I am the only one who can use alchemy.” Nicholas retorted, “In any case, I’m going into town to talk with her.” he informed as he left the dock.

Now since he was still considered guilty of killing that little girl, Nicholas made the smart choice and disguised himself as he headed towards the diner. As he walked in, he spotted Ruby talking with Snow in a booth. Even though he was still angry with the princess, he wanted to hear what they had to say and sat behind her in another booth as he pretended to read a newspaper.

“So Regina really was innocent?” Ruby asked in shock while Snow nodded, “Then if she was framed by Cora, then Nicholas must’ve been framed too.”

“Maybe. But we have no way of knowing if that’s true or not.” Snow argued, but Ruby wasn’t listening.

“I have to find him.” she exhaled.

“Ruby, wait. I-I don’t think you should look for Nicholas.”

“You better choose your words carefully, Blanchard.” Nicholas thought in anger,” Or else you just might find yourself a new enemy.”

“Snow, what are you talking about? How could you even say that?” she asked.

“Ruby…Nicholas is dangerous. He-he can’t be trusted.” Snow explained, “He’s hiding something from us. When we were about to go through the portal, Cora tried to rip my heart out. Nicholas got in the way and made Cora tear his out. Only it wasn’t a heart…it was a stone, Ruby.”

“A stone?” she asked only to see her friend nod, “But-wh-what does that even mean? How can he have a stone instead of a heart?”

“I don’t know. Cora called it the Philosopher’s Stone. Apparently, it’s what gives him his immortality and powers.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Ruby snapped.

“It has to do with that he’s been keeping secrets from us. Red, we have shared everything with each and every one of our friends, including Nicholas. And yet, here he is keeping all of this hidden from us. Who knows what else he may be hiding?”

“Snow, just because you’ve been willing to talk about your past with people who’ll sometimes tell you about theirs doesn’t mean that anyone who doesn’t give their life stories are evil. Nicholas has done nothing but help us for years. I can’t believe that you of all people are jumping the gun on this when he was the one who freed Kathryn and cleared your name.”

“Even so, unless he tells us what that stone in his chest is, we can’t trust him.”

“…I don’t believe what I’m hearing. Snow, you’re treating the man I love like a criminal when you don’t even know all the facts.” Ruby said in shock, “The only reason you’re saying this is because of who his mother and sister are.”

“Maybe. But I can tell you this, if Cora and Regina were able to fall so far, what’s to stop Nicholas?” Snow asked.

“His friends not accusing him of murder would be a start.” she shot back.

“Ruby, you saw what Emma showed us in the dream catcher-”

“We saw Cora make it look like Regina killed Archie and according to him, that was a lie. Are you seriously so narrow minded that you aren’t even going to acknowledge or consider that someone else could have made themselves look like Nicholas and kill that girl?”

“No, I’m not. And I’m also not letting my personal feelings get in the way of my judgement.” Snow replied snootily, “Just think about what I’ve said, Ruby. And remember, if he did lie, then he lied to you, too.”

“Oh, yeah,” Nicholas thought bluntly as Snow walked past him, “That bitch is going down.”

Even though he was still in disguise, Nicholas was about to go over to talk to his girlfriend but stopped when he saw the conflicted look on her face. It was then that he knew that Snow managed to plant her seed of doubt in Ruby’s head. Thankfully, she didn’t notice him which gave him the chance to leave. As he walked down the street, the town was in chaos as the giant (now fully sized) went on a rampage. With the sound of chaos and terror ringing through the air, Nicholas gave a smirk similar to one his sister would give in similar situations.

“So Snow White wants to learn about my immortality, huh?” Nicholas asked in his head, “Oh, Snow. If you really knew what I went through, you’d wish you had never developed a since of curiosity.”

**OUaT**

“Immortality?” Homunculus asked. He was currently in his flask, as always, on a pedestal before the king of Xerxes with two of his alchemists before him looking at the dwarf; Flamel was nowhere in sight. “Why would someone with such power and prosperity need such a thing?” it asked innocently.

“Watch your tongue!” Flamel’s master shouted, “You are in the royal presence. If you continue with this insolence, I will smash your flask!”

“You wouldn’t dare to destroy such an important source of knowledge.” Homunculus shot back calling the man’s bluff.

“That’s enough chatter.” the king interrupted, “Immortality. Tell me, is it possible or isn’t it?”

“Growing impatient in your old age? How lamentable, King of Xerxes.” Homunculus taunted. At the sight of the grumbling and glaring king, he smirked before giving his answer, “Okay, I’ll tell you how you can achieve immortality.”

A few weeks had passed since the secret meeting and the plan for the king’s immortality had been set in motion. In order to give the king such a gift, a nationwide trench in the form of a circle was carved around the kingdom and five crests of blood needed to be made in the form of a pentagon. To clarify, a crest of blood was a large point of manslaughter which took place in five of the kingdom’s villages.

Two years had passed since the circle and first crest of blood were carved. On the night the preparations were completed, Flamel carried his friend as he walked with his master and fellow assistant into the king’s bedchamber.

“Majesty,” Flamel’s master said, “At long last, your transmutation circle is complete.”

“Took long enough.” the king scoffed, “Finally, it’s done. This is it? Everything is ready?” he asked the Homunculus.

“Yes. You may now become immortal.” he replied. Once they had all moved into the throne room, the king did as he was instructed and added his own blood into the chalice that would begin the transmutation.

“Incredible.” Flamel saw in awe as he held the Homunculus and watched the king, “The king will achieve immortality.”

As he said this, black smoke rose from the chalice as the room turned red.

“Yes, this is an amazing moment, indeed.” agreed the dwarf. All around the room, streams of black hands rose from the ground; their sight frightening the nobles.

“This is immortality? No, no, you must be wrong.” the king argued as his two alchemists suddenly began to choke and drop to the floor. “I don’t understand it.” he said before choking himself, “You said if we were in the center of the circle, we wouldn’t be harmed!”

As the monarch dropped to the ground, Flamel, the only one feeling fine, looked at the bodies in shock. “What the-wh-what’s going on here?” he asked, “Hey, Homunculus!” he shouted at the grinning artificial life.

He turned to him and said, “The true center of the transmutation circle is right here where you’re standing.”

“It is?”

“Surely you remember your blood is within me. I used it to open the doorway.” Homunculus explained in excitement, “Blood brother of mine, Nicholas Flamel. Right now, you and I are at the center of everything!”

It was then, beneath his feet, that Flamel saw an enormous eye with a gray iris open in the floor. It then rose from the floor and engulfed not only Flamel and his friend, but the entire palace until it rose and grew outside. The entire night sky turned red as blood while more hands sprouted all over the country, all within the boundaries of the circle as the kingdom’s people screamed in terror. Within a matter of moments, a circular wave of energy erupted from the eye and silenced the screaming just before the dozens of hands dived into the pupil.

Inside the eye’s white void, Flamel was screaming in fear and pain as both he, and the smiling Homunculus were deconstructed. In an instant, Flamel found himself standing in another white void with a tall stone gate behind him. He turned and realized that the design represented his tree of life. Unique in its own design representing his self and his own unique style of alchemy. Feeling the presence of another, Flamel turned around and saw a white figure with a black outline as tall as him, and grinning madly.

He looked at the figure in fear as he heard the gate open. Inside, the eye that engulfed him lurked in the darkness as more hands pulled him in and fed him knowledge he never dreamed of learning; his head felt like it would split, explode and melt all at once. But a second later, he was back standing before the gate before being pulled out of the void and faded into darkness.

**OUaT**

The day after the giant’s attack, Cora’s prediction came true, he was accepted into the community and worked with the dwarves to bring back the beans. However, it wasn’t until after Regina came back did they learn that Gold and Emma were in New York looking for his son with Henry.

“I don’t see why I’m the one who has to dig for this stupid dagger.” Nicholas complained as he shoveled the earth where Cora (now dressed like her daughter) and Regina believed the dagger to be located.

“As a gentleman, you should be thrilled to help to women with physical labor.” Regina smirked.

“Regina,” he said dryly, “A man is only ever a gentleman to women when he’s trying to impress them and gain their attention and affection. Are you absolutely sure this where we’re supposed to dig?”

“Yes. Hook marked it clearly.” Regina replied, “Rumplestiltskin’s dagger is here.”

“Unless Hook lied to us.” Cora speculated.

“Well, then that map is absolutely useless to us.” Nicholas sighed as he stood in the hole, “Gold’s the only one who can translate it.”

“I thought alchemists were skilled in code?” Regina asked.

“Written code regarding research notes and texts, sister dear. Whereas treasure maps go, not exactly my area of expertise.”

“Oh, don’t you worry, dears.” Cora reassured, “Hook could’ve saved us a lot of effort with honesty, but the truth is, we don’t need anyone. I can reconstruct the map. It’ll just take a bit more time.”

“Then what the hell am I standing in this hole for?” Nicholas muttered as he jumped out.

“And when we find it, I promise you, I’ll use that dagger to force the dark one to kill anyone you like.” Cora finished saying it as though she was offering her children a gift. Little did they know, Snow witnessed the whole discussion.

A couple of hours later, Cora and Regina kept their eyes on Snow and David hoping they would lead them to the true hiding place of the dagger while Nicholas went over to Granny’s. He had received a text from Ruby saying she wanted to talk. As he walked in, he spotted his one true love sitting in a booth showing no clear emotion.

“Hey,” he softly greeted.

“Hey.” she said back.

“You wanted to see me?”

“Yes. Nicholas…Snow told me the truth.” she informed.

“Oh? Regarding what?” he asked.

“About your Philosopher’s Stone…and that you’ve been helping Cora and Regina.”

“…I see.” was all Nicholas could say. “And what exactly did she have to say about me spending time with my family?”

“She said that you’re helping them look for Rumplestiltskin’s dagger and that you plan on getting it for your mother.”

“Huh.” chuckled the alchemist, “So little princess Snow thinks she’s got everything figured out again, does she?” he asked himself out loud.

“Nicholas, is that true?” Ruby asked, “Are you helping Cora?”

“…Yes. I am helping Cora look for the dagger.”

“Why? Nicholas, after everything your mother has done, why are you helping her?”

“I think the better question is, why is it that the supposed ‘heroes’ of this town are defending someone who has literally tormented the people of our lands for centuries?” he countered, “Ruby, the only reason I’m doing this is because I want to see what my mother and sister plan to do once they get their hands on the dagger. I don’t care what happens to Gold. And I especially don’t care if David and Snow disapprove of my actions now that I know that they were never truly my friends.”

“What about me? Why didn’t you come to me sooner?”

“Because the last time I tried to do that very thing, Snow beat me to the punch and tried to turn you against me with her own cynical and consisted senses of good and evil.”

“…You were listening in on us?” she asked.

“No. I was actually sitting where you are because I wanted to know what Snow had to say about me.” Nicholas corrected, “And when I saw the conflicted look on your face, I decided to give you some time to think things over.”

“If you heard what we talked about…then are you?” she asked choking on her words.

“Am I what?” he asked as his anger grew.

“Are you not telling me everything?”

“Ruby…you know I don’t like to talk about my past.” he gently reminded as he tried to hold her hand only to see her pull it away. “We all have skeletons in our closets, Red. Me more than anyone else in this town.”

“I understand that. Really, I do. But why would you help the same woman who framed not only your sister, but you too?” Ruby asked.

“My mother did not frame me, Ruby. I know who did and I know why.”

“Then tell me.” she immediately demanded.

“What?”

“Tell me who did it and we can finally put all of this behind us.”

“I don’t think that’s possible right now, Ruby.” he argued, “The only two people in town who defended me at first were you and Emma. Everyone who I thought were my friends did nothing. And worst of all, the people who threw me under the bus without a moment’s hesitation were the two I helped the most simply because it was the right thing to do. I don’t know about you, but I can’t forgive that after only a couple of days. And about the person who framed me, the one who really killed that child…I can’t say who it was.”

“What?” Red asked baffled, “Why not?”

“I just can’t.” he said sadly.

“Nicholas, I know it wasn’t you. But we can’t let someone who killed an innocent child get away.” she argued.

“I know. But there’s nothing you can do.” he shot down, “Believe me, no one wants to catch this bastard more than I…but we just can’t right now.”

“…Are you defending this person?” she asked softly.

“No. But I am saying that…for the time being…forget about what’s happened.”

“How could you even say that?” Ruby asked as Nicholas just sat there and sighed, “I don’t believe what I’m hearing. Mary Margaret was right. You are hiding things from me.”

“No,” he said fearfully as he saw the look in her eyes, “No, no, no, baby, listen to me. I can’t tell you-I’m trying to protect you.”

“Protect me from what, Nicholas?” she snapped, “Some secret from your past you won’t even tell your own girlfriend? You know what? If you’re just going to do nothing but keep secrets and lie to me…I-I-I don’t think I can do this.”

“Ruby, what are you saying?” Nicholas asked as dread filled his stomach.

“I think you know.” she said as she finally began to cry.

“No.” he denied, “No, no, no, no, no! This can’t be it. This can’t end just because Mary Margaret got inside your head. Ruby, please-I-”

“Don’t say it.” Ruby cut off.

“I lo-”

“Don’t say it!” she cried. The whole diner was silent as the couple stared at each other with tears in their eyes. “It’s over, Nicholas. We’re done.” Ruby finally said as she grabbed her purse and got out of the diner as fast as she could while crying.

A storm of emotions filled Nicholas as he sat in his booth. It didn’t take long for one emotion to rise above all the others; anger. Anger specifically directed at Snow White and Prince Charming.

**OUaT**

It wasn’t until daybreak when Flamel regained consciousness. “Majesty!” he called out, only the king was nowhere in sight; the same could be said for the Homunculus, only his broken flask was on the ground.

Seeing his master sprawled on the floor, Flamel went over to him to see if he was alright. But when he checked his pulse, he found that his master was dead; the same could be said for the countless bodies he saw and passed as he trudged through the palace, calling out the names of his friends hoping someone would call back to him.

Once he made it outside, Flamel saw all the citizens littered everywhere in sight. “Somebody…there must be someone left.” Flamel pleaded in shock as he stared at all the corpses.

“It’s no use.” a deep voice said from behind him, “All of their souls have been taken from them.”

Flamel turned to look at the person but could only see his robes due to the sun’s glare. Recognizing them as the king’s, he immediately bowed to him.

“Majesty, are you alright?”

“Tell me,” he said as Flamel was finally able to see his face only to see literally HIS face! He was paler and had bleached brown hair. “Your body? How is it feeling?”

“It’s me.” Flamel gasped, “Impossible.”

“Using your blood, I created a receptacle for myself. Nice. Finally, I can walk on my own two legs.”

“Are you…the Homunculus in the flask?” Flamel asked as he made the connection, “What’s going on here? What is this? What have you done?!” he asked hotly.

“To thank you for your blood, I have given you a name and I’ve given you knowledge and now I have given you a body that will live forever.” he explained with a grateful smile; clearly, he had no idea the severity of his actions.

“I’m immortal?” Flamel whispered.

“Focus your attention within yourself, Flamel.” the Homunculus instructed. Flamel did so and clutched his head in absolute fear as the sound of hundreds of thousands of voices crying inside him. “You hear them, don’t you? The voices of all the people in this country who were exchanged for your immortality. Well, half of their lives were for me, actually. I wouldn’t get used to it if I were you. They’ll fade away in time. Thank you for your cooperation, Flamel.”

Instead of responding to what the Homunculus said, Flamel cried out in anguish.

**OUaT**

After leaving the diner, Nicholas stormed to the library and made his way to the spiral staircase leading to the clock where the dagger was hidden. As he walked in, he could hear his family talking to the Charmings as a gun dropped at his feet. With a hate-filled look on his face, Nicholas used his alchemy to create a platform that brought him up to the level everyone was on.

“Sorry I’m late.” he apologized looking at the group, “I just had a pretty heartbreaking ordeal.”

“Nicholas.” Snow said in shock. As he looked at them, he saw Snow holding the dagger and his sister holding the heart of Johanna, Snow’s old handmaid.

“Glad to see you make it to the party, little brother.” Regina joked as she squeezed the heart.

“Enough of this.” Cora waved off, “Surrender the dagger. We all know you’ll follow you mother’s example, no matter the cost. All she ever wanted was for you to be good.”

“Those words-where did you hear those words?” Snow asked as reality struck her.

“Where do you think?” Cora asked in a bored tone.

“You did all of this.” Snow accused, “You killed my mother.”

“Hello, plot twist.” Nicholas bluntly thought as he watched everything play out from his pedestal.

“Actually, the candle I gave you would’ve worked. You could have saved her.” Cora corrected.

“But you knew I wouldn’t.” Snow argued as he voice broke, “Why? Why did you take her from me?”

“To make my daughter the queen.” Cora replied seeing nothing wrong with it while both her children looked at her in surprise.

“Hand over the dagger.” Regina ordered.

“No. No! I will not let you win. Not again!” Snow cried.

“You already lost your mother. How many connections to her do you have left?” Cora asked.

“Let me go, Snow. It’s alright.” Johanna pleaded just before red lightning surged around her and began gasping for air. Snow and David then looked to see Nicholas glaring evilly at the woman with one hand raised surging with alchemic lightning; from the shade of the tower, it looked as though his shaded eye was glowing red.

“Nicholas?” David asked.

“What are you doing?!” Snow cried.

“Give up the dagger, Snow.” he finally ordered declaring his side.

“Why are you doing this?”

“Why?” he asked, “Perhaps it has to do with the two of you betraying me. Or perhaps accusing me of murdering an innocent child. Or perhaps, Snow White, you turned Ruby against me.” he growled in hatred as he created a path and stood at his mother’s side, choking Johanna the entire time.

“The dagger, dear.” Cora demanded. Seeing no other alternative, Snow threw down the dagger at Cora’s feet. With a wave of her hand, the blade flew into her grip. “Such a good girl.”

“You have what you came for.” Snow reminded as Regina put back the heart and Nicholas stopped suffocating her.

“Not quite.” Cora corrected as she sent Johanna flying through the window killing her as she hit the ground. Snow finally lost it and began to sob as David pulled her into his embrace.

“Well, there you go.” Regina said with a smug, evil smirk.

“See where good gets you?” Nicholas asked as he deconstructed himself and Cora and Regina poofed themselves away.


	19. The Miller's Daughter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Not long after Nicholas officially joined his mother’s side, a young man with curly chestnut hair wearing a fedora, tie, vest and slacks walked up the stairs leading to a large mansion in the woods of Storybrooke. As he walked in, he left his hat on a hat rack and walked over to a large fire place. As he stepped inside the chimney, a light shined on the left side of his face as it scanned him.

“Authorization Code required.” a computer’s voice said.

“Authorization code: Whiskey, 42, 9, 9, 0, 1, 1, Winchester, 9, 8, 0, 1.” the man recited.

“Authorization code accepted. Welcome.” the computer greeted as the floor lowered. Less than a minute later, the young man exited the fire pit and entered another room filled with tall bookshelves and portraits with a long, oval, mahogany table in the center. Sitting at the table was an elder gentleman wearing similar clothing cleaning a riffle, a middle aged man dressed in blue with a sword at his side, a beautiful woman in black sitting patiently, and a man dressed in a black trench coat with a fedora and black sun glasses playing cards.

“Sorry I’m late, y’all.” the youngest one in the room apologized; from the sound of his voice, it was clear he had a Midwestern accent.

“Better late than never, boy.” the old man said gruffly as he continued to clean his weapon, “I assume you all know why I called us here?”

“Not much going on that concerns us, eh?” the man in black said in an Elizabethan accent, “Tho’, it is nice to see the ol’ gang back together.”

“Unless you disregard the actions made by Flamel and his family, that is.” the woman countered in a soft British accent.

“Well, yeah, there’s that.” he nodded.

“What’d ya suppose we do, boss?” the young man asked the older man.

“I suggest we wait and observe Flamel’s actions.” the man in blue recommended, “The one we need to focus our attention on is Cora at the moment.”

“Regina as well.” the woman added.

“Yeah, no offense to Nicholas, but his family’s nuttier than Granny’s Christmas fruit cake.”

“I did a bit o’ sneakin’ ‘round this mornin,’ Swan’s on her way back with the dark one and his son on Hook’s ship. I’d wager we’d be able to spot them coming on the horizon within the ‘our.”

“You think Cora’s gonna wanna attack when he gets here?”

“The dagger is useless to them as long as Rumplestiltskin’s beyond Storybrooke’s borders. If Cora wants to use it, she will wait for him to return.”

“I’m a bit confused. What exactly can she do with it?”

“Whosoever wields the dagger controls the dark one to do their bidding, whatever the order. And whosoever kills the dark one with the dagger takes its power for themselves and becomes the new dark one.” the old man recited, “Either way, as soon as Rumplestiltskin enters the border, Cora will have him at her mercy.”

“And considering that Nicholas has joined her side, and given the bad blood between his family and Snow White’s, things may escalate into a battle.” the man in blue added.

“More like a bloodbath given Nicholas’s immortality will keep him alive and woundless.” the young man reminded.

“If we do get involved in this, we’ll need to focus more on Regina and Cora, not just Nicholas.”

“So what then?”

“I suggest we have our two marksmen here keep their distances from the fight, should it ever start, and hold Flamel off to give the Charmings a chance to flee. And while the two of you do that, our sneaky friend here can test his fighting skills against Nicholas to give them extra time.” the woman suggested while smirking at the man in black who looked horrified.

“Whoa, whoa!” he exclaimed, “Why do I have to be the one to get his arse kicked by Nicholas?”

“Because we all know that you can take a hit and you’re the only one he can’t see.” the older man smirked as he reassembled his rifle, “That, and if he does catch you, it’ll be quite the show for us to watch.”

“Your cruelty knows no bounds, old man, and I respect that.”

“Good. Now then, if there aren’t any more questions,” he said loading his riffle and cocking it, “Let the hunt begin.”

**OUaT**

In Regina’s office, Nicholas as his family listened in on the conversation David was having with Snow on their phones. “Hey. I just talked to Emma. It’s a bad wound. She says it’s poison. They can only cure it back here in Storybrooke. They’re taking the ship home.”

“Well, let them know that they have the knife, okay?” Snow asked, “Who knows what that wicked woman would do?”

As soon as Cora heard this, she knocked over the speaker. “Mother.” Nicholas sighed as he picked it up.

“I don’t like what that enchanted box was saying.” she huffed, “I’m not-I’m not wicked.”

“I know, but it’s not an enchanted box. It’s a phone tap.” he replied.

“I don’t care. What matters is they’ve been warned. Rumplestiltskin’s smart, and now he has time to think.” Cora stressed.

“So do I.” Nicholas smirked, “Besides, the imp’s injured.”

“More than injured, I’d say.” Regina spoke up as she watched his name slowly faded away from the blade, “He’s dying.”

“When his name disappears, all of that power of his will just boil off into the air and then there will be no new dark one.” Cora explained.

“Okay.” Regina breathed, “So we have to use him to get Henry back before he dies.”

“Something tells me he won’t be in good enough condition by the time he gets here.” Nicholas speculated as he smoked his pipe.

“There are no other options, I have to stab him with this knife and take his power as my own.” Cora decided, “I have to become the dark one. And with his power, there’s nothing I won’t be able to do.”

“But Henry’s never going to forgive that.” Regina argued, “And the whole point of this is…” she carried before putting the pieces together.

“What is the point of all this, Mother?” Nicholas asked.

“To protect our family.” Cora replied.

“Or you gaining your power.” Regina rephrased.

“Whatever power I gain is for us. To protect the two of you, to protect Henry. If we lose this battle, we’ll spend the rest of our lives on our knees in front of them. And that, my darlings, is something I’ll never do.”

“Agreed.” Nicholas nodded before catching whiff of familiar scents, “They’ve returned. Who’s up for a little action, eh?” he asked matching the smirks on his mother and sister’s faces. As they left the office and made their way to Gold’s shop, Nicholas covered his body, save for his face and neck, with his shield and made himself a sword, smiling sadistically the whole time.

Standing before the front door, Regina and Cora created fireballs and fused them together before throwing it at the barrier protecting the shop and opening the door. Inside, Emma, her father and Neal (Gold’s son) all had their swords drawn while Snow glared at the trio.

“Nicholas,” Emma said as she met his gaze, “Think about what you’re doing.”

“Save it, traitor.” he spat while Snow silently left the building. Regina then threw a fireball at Emma only to watch it be deflected by David who was quickly thrown outside. Nicholas then used his alchemy to slide Emma and Neal outside as well. “You two go after Gold. Those bastards are mine.” he growled as he headed outside.

“Nicholas,” Emma pleaded as her former best friend joined them, “Please, don’t do this.”

“Why shouldn’t I?” he asked, “Unlike all of you, my sister and mother never betrayed me.”

“It’s not too late.” David offered.

“We’re your friends, Nicholas.” Emma added causing Nicholas’s anger to rise even higher.

“Friends?” he asked as he drew his sword, “I don’t have any friends.”

And with that, the Immortal Alchemist charged at his enemies and clashed his sword against their own. Nicholas’s skills were easily well beyond even David’s let alone Emma’s and Neal’s. He swung and slashed at them in a blur, purposely avoiding seriously injuring them; not out of remorse, he wanted to toy with them before he killed them.

As he drove back David, Neal tried to cut him in two from above. At first he thought he succeeded when he saw his blade slice his head, but those thoughts quickly fled when he saw Nicholas turn to look at him with the blade between his eyes, grinning like a madman.

“What the hell are you?” Neal asked as he jumped back and Nicholas knocked David away into Emma.

“I’m complicated.” Nicholas chuckled.

**OUaT**

“This is Missouri calling Whitechapel and Africa. Come in, Whitechapel and Africa, do you copy?” the young man from earlier calmly asked over a radio. He was currently hiding from a safe distance with a rifle in his hands, armed and ready to fire as he watched the fight.

“This is Africa, I read you, Missouri.” the older man replied in a different spot from Missouri but doing exactly as he was.

“This is Whitechapel, I copy.” the man in black replied. He, however, was around the corner of one of the nearby buildings as he watched the battle. “Waiting for Africa’s signal. Africa, do you have the shot?”

“I have it. But it’s not time yet.” Africa replied.

“Any sign of the queen?” Whitechapel asked.

“None. No sign of her or the princess inside or out.” Missouri informed.

“What ‘bout Cora?” Whitechapel asked, “Any visual on her?”

“No. Africa?”

“Lost sight of her. She must’ve broken through the last barrier and is in the back.” he guessed, “Alright, boys, time to get ready.” he said as he and Missouri loaded their guns.

**OUaT**

As Regina and Cora tried to take down the second barrier, Cora felt a strange feeling in her chest, someone was trying to take her heart from Regina’s vault. Without any hesitation, Regina volunteered to go and deal with the problem. When she arrived in her vault, she saw Snow holding the box which contained Cora’s heart.

“You have no right to be here. And you have no right to that.”

“…I was going to give it to you and Nicholas.” Snow softly lied. Regina had no idea she cursed it with the candle.

“What?” Regina asked bluntly.

“She can’t love you, you know. She doesn’t have her heart. With it, maybe she can.” the princess reasoned, “That’s why you’ve never felt she loved you. She doesn’t have her heart. But I do.”

“You’re doing this for me and Nicholas?” Regina asked not believing her ears.

“Think about it. What would happen if Cora had her heart? Back inside her?”

“She told me she took it out to protect herself.”

“Did it work?” Snow countered, “The person she was before, do you think that person survived? She can’t love, so she can’t love the two of you.”

“She always wanted the best for us.” Regina argued as her voice broke, “That’s love.”

“Imagine real love. You’d have a mother and a start on making a family Henry could be a part of and a chance for Nicholas to feel the love he missed as a slave. Or you could have her be the dark one.” Snow warned as she offered the box, “The choice is yours.”

**OUaT**

Upon seeing his sister back inside, Nicholas noticed that she had a heart in her hand and an anxious look on her face. He then sent the trio flying knocking them unconscious before rushing in to join his family. 

“Regina, what are you doing?” he asked as he caught up with her, “Whose heart is that?”

“Mother’s.” she replied as she snuck up behind Cora and shoved it into her. With a loud gasp, Cora dropped the dagger and looked at her children with a wide smile, fully feeling the love she had for them for the first time.

“Mother.” Regina said happily as Cora smiled and laughed as love filled her.

“Mother.” Nicholas said just as happy. But just before Cora could get used to the emotions flowing through her, she staggered and swayed as an identical wound to what Gold previously had appeared on her chest before she fell into Regina’s arms.

“Mother?” Regina asked fearfully.

“Mother, what’s wrong?” Nicholas asked as he took her hand.

Feeling her life come to an end by the second, Cora looked to her beloved children and gave them her last words. “This…would have been enough. The two of you…you would’ve been enough.”

And with that, Cora’s eyes shut as death finally took her.

“Mother?” Regina whispered, “What’s going on?” she asked Gold as he stood over them.

“Mother?” Nicholas sobbed pressing her hand to his cheek, “Please, no. Don’t leave me again.”

“Don’t leave us, please.” Regina pleaded as she sobbed as well. All she could do was cradle her mother’s corpse while Nicholas sobbed into Cora’s waist, “What are we gonna do?” she whispered.

“Your mother never did you two any favors.” Gold remarked solemnly.

“Shut up!” Regina barked, “You stole her life! You cast some spell.”

“I did nothing.” Gold denied.

“Regina! Stop!” Snow cried as she and David ran in. As he heard her voice, Nicholas stopped crying as his eyes widened in realization.

“You.” he growled as he slowly looked up at her, “You. You!” he roared as his readied his claws and charged at her going for the kill.

Thanks to David pulling his wife away, the only wounds they received were flesh wounds on their shoulders; but Nicholas wasn’t done yet. He was like a wild animal, growling and snarling at them in his furry. He swung his claws hoping to deal more damage and eventually backed them up outside.

**OUaT**

“Nicholas has come out.” Missouri solemnly reported as he watched his old friend attack the royals, “Whitechapel, what’s the status on Cora and Gold?”

“…Cora’s dead.” he briefly replied, “Gold’s right as rain. Africa?”

“Aye.” he nodded, “I have the shot. Wait for my signal.”

**OUaT**

“You bitch!” Nicholas cried as he tried to slash at Snow while Emma, Neal and David tried to hold him off. However, Nicholas proved to be the stronger one as he shoved them off and tackled Snow to the ground. She looked at him in fear as he drew one of his knives.

“You,” he seethed, “You should’ve stayed asleep.”

With the knife held above his head, Nicholas yelled at the top of his lungs before bringing it down at her head. As her loved ones cried in protest, Snow looked away before the sound of gunfire rang through the air. She opened her eyes and saw a bullet hole through Nicholas’s forehead which knocked him back causing him to loosen his grip on the knife and allowed her to scramble away.

Nicholas groaned in pain as his wound vanished while he directed his glare at the direction from where the bullet came from. “So you have turned against me too, have you?” he growled knowing Africa could read his lips even from the distance.

“Emma, did you shoot him?” Neal asked.

“No.” she replied shaking her head.

“After everything we’ve been through, after all we endured, this is how you repay me?!” he shouted, “This is how you repay my love?!”

It was then that Missouri fired his rifle and shot Nicholas in the temple, going through his skull and sending him to the ground. “I see through your betrayal.” he snarled as he healed, “You would take their side over mine! You’re no better than they are! Curse you! Curse all of you!”

Africa shot him again as he ranted. Growing mad, in both insanity and anger, Nicholas grabbed a stone from the ground, threw it, and used his alchemy to change it into a large spike headed in Africa’s direction only to see it shot by Missouri’s next bullet.

“There you are.” he seethed before making an attempt to redo the process. But just as he was about ready to throw, he felt a sharp pain in his right knee; someone managed to break it. Nicholas clutched his knee in pain as it regenerated, but before he could even notice, he felt someone’s barefoot slam across his face; but no one was there!

“Is this to be my fate?” he asked himself as the others looked at him in confusion and fear, and for Emma, sadness. “Am I to be betrayed by everyone I believe to be my friends?! Why must I feel the sting of betrayal every time I open my heart to those I wish to be friends with? Why must I always suffer because I was foolish enough to try and know anything but misery?”

“Nicholas.” Emma thought feeling sorry for her friend as she watched tears stream down his face.

“Am I just that easy to fool?!” he shouted, “Am I so pathetic that the people I meet can’t wait to just stomp all over me like dirt?!”

**OUaT**

“Stop sayin’ that, man.” Missouri pleaded as he kept his eyes and riffle on the alchemist, “You know why we’re doin’ this. If you were in our shoes, you’d being doin’ it too.”

Once again, Missouri pulled the trigger and shot his friend sending him to the ground.

**OUaT**

“Who the hell is shooting him?” David asked.

“Who cares? Let’s get the hell out of here.” Neal urged as he led them away only to see Emma stare at her former friend as he was being shot. “Emma, come on! Let’s go.” he shouted as he pulled her away.

“Oh, no, you don’t.” Nicholas muttered in pain. Next thing the group knew, a large wall formed in front of them and surrounded the area. “Enough!” he cried as his shield covered his entire body before the next bullet could hit him. If they hadn’t seen it with their own eyes, no one would believe the face they were staring at belonged to Nicholas.

The shield covering his head made it look like he was bald and had two red lines going from the back of his neck to over his face reaching to his chest. But the biggest change was that he now had razor sharp fangs resembling as sabretooth’s and black corneas with purple irises.

**OUaT**

“Dammit!” Missouri shouted over the radio, “Africa, I lost visual.”

“So did I.” he responded gruffly, “Whitechapel, are you still within Flamel’s proximity?”

“Negative. I had to get out of his reach after my last attack. He made the wall just as I got past its border.”

“I’m getting to higher ground.” Missouri informed hotly as he grabbed his riffle and attempted to leave his nest.

“Negative, stay where you are, boy.” Africa ordered.

“Boss, I can’t do that and you know it.” he retorted, “The clock tower is right across from me and behind the wall, no one will see me.”

“No one within the wall. But the people gawking at it from their windows will.” Africa retorted, “Whitechapel, can you get over the wall?”

“Oh, yeah.” he remarked sarcastically, “Just let me get my climbing gear and I’ll be over it before the kettle whistles. Oh, wait. That’s right, I’m standin’ here naked lookin’ at a smooth surfaced wall almost two stories high!”

“Alright, alright.” Missouri sighed, “Just try and get up to the clock tower and relay what’s goin’ on.”

“Roger that, mate.”

**OUaT**

Nicholas was seething in pure rage. All he could see were his enemies in red as they were pressed against the wall. As he was about to charge at them once more, the sound of Rumplestiltskin’s voice stopped him.

“Careful, dearie. You already lost one family member today, it’d be a shame if you lost another.” he threatened as he held his dagger at Regina’s throat in his doorway.

“Nicholas. Help me.” she pleaded fearfully.

“Regina.” he whispered in a metallic voice.

“Drop the wall and your shield and admit defeat, then you and your sister can leave with your mother’s body.” Gold negotiated.

Staring at the dark one and panting in anger, Nicholas relented as he dropped his defenses and the wall surrounding them. “A wise decision.” Gold smirked as he tossed Regina to her brother, “Go. Take Cora, before I change my mind.”

“You’ll pay for what you’ve done today.” Nicholas growled as he stood next to the grinning imp, “All of you. Don’t forget, I can’t die; but all of you can.”

“Oh, I’m sure we’ll keep that in mind, dearie.” Gold chuckled.

“Nicholas, wait.” Emma pleaded as she tried to reach her friend only to be held back by her father.

“Emma, no.”

“Nicholas!”

But the alchemist just ignored her; unfortunately, the pain in his heart couldn’t be as easily disregarded. In the back of the shop, he found his tear streaked sister cradle Cora’s head in her lap while looking him in the eyes. Neither sibling said anything, Regina only transported herself and Cora back to her fault while Nicholas followed her through deconstruction.

**OUaT**

Inside the basement of the mansion, the group of five sat in silence at their table; the three who went into town more so than the others. Only the sound of the crackling fire and the ticking of the clock on the mantle beneath a large portrait filled the room.

“Today sucked.” Missouri finally said bluntly in anger as his friends looked at him, “Everybody’s thinkin’ it, I’m just the one who said it.”

“So Cora is dead, then.” the man in blue said feeling sorry for Nicholas.

“And Rumplestiltskin is still the dark one.” the woman sighed.

“Instead of explaining what we already know, why don’t we get down to the question at hand?” Missouri suggested bitterly, “What are we gonna do about Nicholas?”

“Nothing.” Africa answered, “We do nothing. We do nothing concerning him and nothing concerning his sister or anyone else. For the time being, we need to remain out of Nicholas’s sight.”

“Don’t see why you’re worried, tiger.” Whitechapel scoffed, “You and Batty here are immortal, too.”

“True,” Batty, as she was addressed, nodded, “But you cannot say the same for yourself, now can you? Especially since you literally took a swing at Nicholas earlier today.”

“…Good point.” he nervously nodded.

“If that is our decision, then I suggest we do so now before Nicholas comes looking.” the man in blue suggested as he rose from his seat, “It was good to see you all again, my friends. I pray when next we meet, all of us may fill these seats.” he said with a curt bow before leaving.

As everyone left the room, Missouri looked back at the portrait in nostalgia. On the canvas, he saw himself with his riffle over his shoulders, Batty sitting elegantly in a chair, the man in blue looking noble as he puffed out his chest and held the handle of his sword, Whitechapel trying to look stoically stone-faced, a well-dressed man wearing a tailcoat with a monstrous figure shadowing him, Africa holding his riffle like a cane and most importantly, Nicholas looking stoic as he kept one hand in his vest’s pocket and had the other hold his tie.

“I’m sorry, buddy.” he said in remorse as he looked at Nicholas’s image and left the room.

On the lower frame of the picture, a small golden plaque could be seen in the fire’s light. On it, it read, “The L.O.E.G. The Misfits and Sinners of Fairytales: Dedicated to Serve the Light from the Dark and the Dark from the Light.”


	20. Welcome to Storybrooke

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Not long after Cora’s death, Regina and Nicholas finally prepared a service for their mother. It was just the two of them dressed in black with the coffin inside the vault. Regina wasn’t able to stop crying whereas Nicholas did his best to hold back his tears.

“Seems like black suits every member of the family.” Gold remarked as he limped down the steps with a red rose.

“We’re here to bury our mother.” Regina hissed, “So if you’ve come to gloat-”

“I came,” he interrupted, “To pay my respects. We had our differences, but Cora will always have a place in my heart.”

“You killed her to save your own pathetic life.” Nicholas spat.

“Sadly, desperate times call for desperate measures.”

“Like getting Mary Margaret to trick me into killing my own mother?” Regina asked, “You may be able to hide behind your dagger, but she can’t.”

“She’s going to die for what she did.” Nicholas added in spite.

“Oh, come on.” scoffed Gold, “We all know killing her will cost you the things you want most, Henry. Why don’t you just give up this obsession with vengeance? You know it can never make you happy.”

“Yes, it will.” Regina argued.

“You had a whole curse worth of vengeance, and what did it get you? A gaping hole in your heart.”

“That was your curse.” she retorted calmly.

“Which you cast.” he countered, “Still haven’t learned your lesson, have you?”

“What lesson?”

“The same one your mother learned a long time ago. You can’t have everything. She wanted power, ripped her own heart out to get it. You two want vengeance? Henry is the price you’ll pay. Time to cut your losses.”

“Never.” they replied.

“We will get Henry back, and we will have our vengeance.” Regina declared.

“We will find a way to have everything.” Nicholas growled.

At the loft, David entered the kitchen with a sigh as Emma and Henry looked at him with hope. “Anything?” Emma asked.

“She won’t eat a bite.” he replied.

“What’s wrong with her?” Henry asked.

“Nothing. She’s just a little…sick.” lied Emma.

“You guys are lying to me, aren’t you?” he asked.

“No one’s lying.”

“You are,” he countered, “Just like you did about my dad.

“Henry, I…” Emma tried to reassure only to see her son shrug her away, “He’s right. No more lying. 

“Emma-”

“He deserves to know.” she cut off, “Here’s the thing, Henry. Cora’s death…Mary Margaret was partially responsible for it, and that’s why she’s so upset.”

“No.” Henry denied as someone knocked on the door, “No, no, she couldn’t.”

“She was trying to protect us.” Emma defended.

“But she’s Snow White. She wouldn’t hurt anybody.” Henry argued. David went over to answer the door and saw Gold on the other side.

“Get out.” he demanded.

“I think you’re gonna wanna hear what I have to say for her sake.” Gold argued nodding at the bedridden Snow.

“What are you talking about?” Emma asked.

“Flamel and Regina. They’re planning to strike back.” he replied, “Against your mother.”

“What are they going to do to her?” Henry asked.

“Oh, they didn’t say.”

“No. You don’t get to come in here and just drop a bomb like that.” David glared, “You’re gonna figure this out. And you’re gonna help us.”

“And why should I?” Gold asked.

“Because aside from us being family now, Mary Margaret saved your life. Now you owe her a debt. And you always pay your debts, don’t you? You’re gonna help us stop Nicholas and Regina.”

“While I can help you with Regina, her brother is another matter. Alchemy and magic don’t go well together.” Gold reminded.

“Why?” Emma asked.

“After my confrontation with Flamel, I looked into alchemy in hopes to add it to my arsenal. Unfortunately, a person, not even the dark one, cannot wield them both. Alchemy is a science, it is the understanding what’s around you and abides by the process of comprehension, deconstruction and reconstruction. An alchemist must always live by the law of Equivalent Exchange.”

“And what the hell is that?” Emma asked.

“In order to obtain something, something of equal value must be given in exchange. Something I can get away without usually doing thanks to magic. To be honest, I still don’t know why, but it would seem that magic and alchemy are, in a way, natural enemies.”

“What about his immortality? What do you know about that?”

“Not much aside from the source of it is that stone in his chest.” he shrugged, “I can point you in the direction of where you could go to learn more about it, if you’re interested.”

“Where?” asked David.

“Why, the library under the clock tower, of course.” Gold smirked, “Shortly after I gave it to Belle, she stumbled upon some of his research notes. Took her awhile, but she managed to crack the code in one or two.”

“And you think one of them mentions his stone?” Emma asked.

“Possibly.”

“If his secret is so close to you, why haven’t you used it against him yet?” David asked.

“Because even if I could take care of him, I know just how powerful Flamel is. Quite frankly, I don’t want to have a repeat of when we last did battle.”

“Alright. David, why don’t you and Gold check out Regina’s vault while I go to the library?” Emma suggested.

“Alright.” he nodded, “Call me when your done and we’ll meet back here.”

Over at the library, Emma, Leroy and Ruby searched through the shelves hoping to find Nicholas’s notes. “Anyone else think it’s weird that Nicholas would leave the secret to his immortality lying around in the library?” Leroy asked resting his pick axe on his shoulder.

“Well, it was shut down during the curse.” Ruby reminded, “Maybe he thought hiding it in plain sight was a good idea.”

“Or maybe he was hoping someone would find it someday.” Emma suggested, “Though, I don’t think that a dwarf’s axe is his sole weakness, Leroy.”

“You never know.” he shrugged, “Besides, it’s not like I want to use it on him.”

“You don’t?”

“After all he’s done for us? No.” he replied giving the blonde a look, “Charming and Snow may not trust him, but I always respected him. The axe’s for his sister.”

“Ah.” Emma replied as she joined Ruby, “I’m surprised you wanted to come here after the break up I heard you guys had.”

“I’m just trying to make sure Nicholas doesn’t kill my best friend, Emma. That’s all.” Ruby curtly replied.

“Okay.” she nodded as she looked through the books, “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Do you think we were a little too quick to judge Nicholas?”

“…Do you?” she asked.

“Kinda.” Emma admitted, “I didn’t believe it at first. I mean, he’s…he was my closest friend. We barely knew each other and he treated me as though we’d been friends for years.”

“Yeah. He did that with everyone.” Ruby replied, “I think I found it.” she said as she pulled out an old journal.

“What’s it say?” Leroy asked as Emma took it and began to read aloud.

“Year Thirty-four thirty-four of the fifth age of the Enchanted Forest. Herein lies the record of Nicholas Flamel and the secret of the Philosopher’s Stone.” she read, “It is as the dwarf told me, I have been given a body which cannot die. As an alchemist, it was only natural for me to test this. No matter what I tried, death would not take me as it does for others. Stabbing myself, burning myself, hanging myself, poison, tearing open my veins, drowning, snapping my neck…even decapitation. All of these did nothing but cause me brief moments of pain.”

Emma tried to keep her voice steady as she read the turmoil of her friend while Leroy clutched his axe and Ruby gasped. “The abilities given to me are strange. I cannot understand why he gave them to me instead of keeping them for himself. It matters not. My suffering is nothing compared to the souls dwelling inside me.”

“What the hell does that mean?” Leroy asked.

“Every moment of everyday I hear their cries. Men, women…even children calling out in anguish, be it out of fear or calling for their loved ones. I have tried to console them, begging them to calm down so I may be able to end the screaming. But no matter what I do, I hear fewer voices each day and not because of the closure I give them. It is because of what he told me, their energy is consuming them and robbing them of their individuality. They are no longer souls. They are being recycled in order to fuel my eternal life. They have become no different than the cells in my blood and yet each time one of them is silenced, I feel as though I have just witnessed the death of a friend at their bedside. I can only hope that I will at least be able to die at the hands of time. I never wanted to live forever. But that bastard’s twisted sense of gratitude has given me such a ‘blessing’ as he would call it. As a slave, all I wanted was freedom from the shackles which bound me in Xerxes. Now all I want is to be free of life. I want to die. I want to die. I want to die.”

There was more to read, but Emma couldn’t bring herself to continue. With a heavy heart and a massive lump in her throat, Emma texted David and told him they found the book. When they met back at the loft, Gold told her what Regina had instore.

“It would appear that our dear queen is planning on casting the curse of the empty hearted.”

“What the hell does that do?” Emma asked hotly.

“In theory, it has the power to make someone love you.” Gold replied.

“Doesn’t that break magic laws?” she asked, “You can’t bring someone back to life. You can’t force someone to love you.”

“This particular spell can make someone think that they love you.” Gold informed, “And if you’re as desperate for love as Regina and as vengeful as Nicholas appear to be, you might just believe it.”

“They’re going to use it on me, aren’t they?” Henry asked as he came down the stairs.

“Hey, buddy, why don’t you go back upstairs? Let us handle this.” David gently suggested.

“No!” Henry shouted as he pushed him away, “Emma, you said you were gonna be honest with me. Now why are Regina and Nicholas using this curse?”

“Because it’s the only way they can get everything they want,” Gold replied, “That they can get you, and if Flamel wants, Ms. Lucas, as well.”

“But if all they want is me and Ruby-”

“Your mother and uncle are complicated people.” Rumple cut off, “They want your love, of course, but they also want revenge on Mary Margaret.”

“How does the curse give them both?” David asked.

“Because the last ingredient Regina needs to ignite the curse is the heart of the person she hates the most.”

“You have to stop them.” Emma said.

“Oh, I don’t have to do anything.” Gold scoffed, “On the contrary. I believe warning you fulfills my debt.”

“Not even close-this is my wife’s life we’re talking about!” David shouted.

“Not to mention your grandson’s.” Emma added.

“Yeah, well, wars have costs.” Gold retorted.

“Nice.” Emma said in disapproval.

“Well, this is a blood feud, dearie.” Gold reminded, “One that goes back a very, very long time. And the only way you can end a blood feud is by the spilling of more blood and quite frankly, I think we all know who the winner will be in the end.”

“What do you want us to do, kill them?” David asked.

“Is there no other option?” Emma asked.

“I’m afraid not.” Gold replied.

“Stop!” Henry cried, “Listen to yourselves. You’re talking about killing my mom and uncle. You used to be heroes. What happened to you?” he asked before storming out.

“Henry.” Emma called as she grabbed her coat, “No matter how this plays out, we need to keep him as far away from it as possible.”

“She’s right.” agreed the dark one as she left, “Cora was dangerous because she didn’t have a heart. Regina’s more dangerous because she does. And Flamel’s even more dangerous because he has the brains to back up his power.”

Emma eventually caught up with her son and took him to meet up with his father at Granny’s. “Why did you bring me here?” he asked, “I don’t wanna talk to you.”

“You don’t have to.” Emma replied as she walked him over to Neal.

“Hey, buddy. Saved you a seat.” Neal greeted happily.

“I’m gonna get a coffee.” she informed giving them some space while Ruby came over with an ice cream.

“Here you go. One sundae, extra everything.” she said kindly as she gave Neal the treat.

“Thank you, Ruby.” he said as he slid it to his son playfully.

“Extra everything?” Henry asked flatly as he slid it back.

“What?” Neal asked playing dumb.

“You think I don’t know a bribe when I see one?” he asked.

“That obvious, huh?” Neal sighed.

“So what do you want?” he smirked.

“Well, your mom told me about what’s been going on, we think that Storybrooke might not be the safest place for you right now. So I was thinking, why don’t we go to New York?”

“New York?” Henry asked.

“Well, Regina can’t cast that curse if you’re in New York. There’s no magic there. Plus, I doubt Flamel would use his alchemy there, too.” Neal reasoned.

“Someone should find a way to get rid of magic and alchemy here.” Henry suggested, “My mom wouldn’t be able to cast the curse. My uncle wouldn’t be immortal anymore. My family wouldn’t want to kill them. It’d solve everything.”

“Yeah.” Neal nodded even though he didn’t fully agree, “You know what? You’re right. But until then, why don’t you come with me?”

“Alright.” Henry nodded, “Just need to use the bathroom.” he said while taking his backpack.

“How’d it go?” Emma asked as she came over.

“Went good.” Neal replied, “He said yes.”

“Seriously?” she asked skeptically.

“Yeah, he’s in the bathroom right now. I’m just gonna go home and pack. Not bad for day three as a dad, if I do say so myself.”

“Wait. Where’s his backpack?”

“Well, I don’t know. He took it with him.”

“To the bathroom? Did you really fall for that?” Emma asked loudly, “He’s your son.”

“He’s running.” he realized before the two of them dashed out of the diner.

**OUaT**

Nicholas quietly sat in his office as he thought of the best way to get his revenge on Snow should his sister fail. She was currently off to the loft in order to get the heart. As he sat in silence, his nose picked up the scent of his nephew nearby with a faint trace of ammonium-nitrate, or as most people would know, a key ingredient of explosives. Without another thought, he got up from his chair and followed the scent towards the mines.

**OUaT**

As for the “heroes,” they were searching through the mines seeing as it was the last place Henry ran off to when he was upset. They all called out to hoping he would answer.

“Why would an eleven-year-old kid run away to the mines?” Neal asked as they searched.

“Wouldn’t be the first time.” Emma bluntly replied.

“I think I know what he was looking for.” David said as he went over to a box of dynamite, “The dynamite the dwarves used for blasting.”

“What the hell would he want dynamite for?” Emma asked. Before anyone could answer, red lightning in the outline of a rectangle appeared on the wall as it turned into a smooth door. Knowing fully well who it was, David and Emma drew their guns and aimed them at the door as it opened and Nicholas walked out.

“Oh, great.” he groaned while smacking his head, “It’s you guys, again.”

“What the hell are you doing here?” Neal asked.

“Looking for the reason why I caught whiff of my nephew’s scent with explosives added to it.” he replied with a glare, “Why are all of you A-holes here?”

“Looking for Henry, same as you.” Emma answered, “And who are you calling an A-hole, A-hole?!”

“You and your little posse, sheriff. Nice comeback, by the way.” he dryly retorted, “Now will someone tell me why Henry is off running around with explosives?”

“To get rid of magic and alchemy.” Neal realized.

“Wait. What?” Emma asked.

“At the diner, someone should get rid of magic and alchemy.”

“So he’s gonna blow them up?” Ruby asked.

“No, of course not. That’s impossible.” Nicholas said harshly.

“Where does he think he can even do that?” Neal asked.

“That damn wishing well.” Nicholas growled before deconstructing himself. A few moments later, he reconstructed himself and saw Henry strike a match for the dynamite he had on the well and his sister approach him.

“Henry?” she asked as she used magic to snuff out the flame.

“Kiddo, what are you doing?” Nicholas gently asked as he joined his sibling.

“I’m getting rid of alchemy and magic.” he declared hotly while clutching the bomb, “They’re ruining everything, and you can’t stop me.”

“All that’s gonna do is get you killed.” Regina argued gently.

“You just say that because you two need magic and alchemy. So you can stay immortal and cast that curse on me.”

“Henry, believe me, the last thing I want is to stay immortal.” Nicholas replied as Regina made the dynamite disappear, “We can’t lose you, Henry.”

“You mean too much to us.” Regina said with love as they approached him.

“Then don’t cast the curse. Don’t kill Mary Margaret.” he pleaded.

“Henry, she has to pay.” Nicholas argued.

“The curse, it won’t make me love you for real. It won’t make Ruby love you either.” he stressed.

“I don’t want or need Ruby’s love, Henry.” Nicholas said as he cupped the boy’s chin, “All I need is yours.”

“It’ll be fake.”

“But it will be something.” Regina countered, “I know it’s hard for you to understand right now, but you’ll see. We can be happy. We can have everything.”

“Not like this.” Henry refused stepping back.

“Hey, Regina!” Emma shouted as she and the others, minus Ruby, showed up, “Get away from my son!”

“He’s not yours. He’s mine.” Regina snapped, “And after I cast this, you’ll never see him again.”

“That’s never gonna happen.” David denied.

“You wanna kill Mary Margaret, you two are gonna have to go through us.” Emma declared standing her ground.

“Okay.” Regina smirked as she made a ball of fire and Nicholas readied his shadows while David aimed his gun at them.

“Stop!” Henry cried as he stood between them.

“Henry, get out of the way!” Neal shouted.

“Not until someone helps me destroy magic and alchemy!”

“There’s no way to get rid of them. You can’t just blow them up.” Nicholas explained.

“Magic and alchemy aren’t the problem, kid. It’s her.” Emma said as she stretched her hand to him.

“It’s not just her. It’s everyone. Look what magic did to Mary Margaret.” Henry reasoned, “Look at what it and alchemy did to you.” he said looking at the siblings, “They’re ruining everything. They make good people do terrible things.”

“And bad people.” Emma reminded.

“Please.” Henry begged as he turned to Nicholas and Regina, “They’re gonna destroy my family. Help me get rid of them.”

“We can’t do that, Henry.” Nicholas replied softly, “But there is something we can do, instead.” he said giving his sister a nod. Regina knew what he meant and dropped the scroll containing the curse into the fire and crushed the ashes in her hand.

“Thank you.” Henry said before going to the others. As they walked away, Emma’s gaze lingered on Nicholas as he gave a dejected, downcast look to the ground before deconstructing himself away.

Later that day, upon hearing a knock on the door, Nicholas answered it and saw Snow on his porch with tears in her eyes. “What the hell do you want?” he growled as Regina joined him.

“Kill me.” she said simply.

“What?” Regina scoffed.

“Regina, we have been fighting for so long. It’s cost us so much. It has to end before anyone else dies. So please…just do it.” Snow begged softly.

Nicholas looked at his sister as silence filled the air until she finally spoke. “Henry would never forgive us. But you know what our family’s problem is? We never learn from our mistakes.” she said before jamming her hand in Snow’s chest causing her to cry out in pain. As she ripped it out ready to squeeze, she noticed something in the center.

“Well, what’d ya know?” Nicholas asked with a crazed grin as he looked at the organ.

“What?” Snow asked as Regina showed her a black spot in the center.

“Do you see that?” she asked.

“What did you do to it?” Snow asked.

“Oh, she didn’t do anything.” Nicholas informed, “You did.”

“You darkened yourself.” Regina said.

“No.” Snow refused sobbing, “No.”

“Yes. And once you blacken your heart, it only grows darker and darker.” Regina explained solemnly, “Trust us. We know.”

“So crush it.” Snow begged, “Do it. Crush it. Get it over with.”

“And put you out of your misery?” Nicholas asked, “It’s all so clear now. We don’t need to destroy you. You’re doing it to yourself.”

“And along the way, you’ll bring down that perfect little family you fought so hard to reunite.” Regina added darkly, “And then Henry will be ours.”

“Please, kill me.” Snow whispered through her tears, “Please, just kill me.”

“You see,” Regina said happily, “Nicholas and I can have everything. Thanks to you.”

She then jammed the heart back in Snow’s chest and watched her gasp in pain. “Now get off our porch.” Nicholas demanded as he slammed the door in her face.

Little did any of them know, Greg Mendel, the visitor, recorded the entire meeting.


	21. Straight on 'Til Morning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Two weeks following the confrontation between Snow and the Mills siblings, Regina and Nicholas joined Gold as they watched from afar as Henry crossed wooden blades with his father. Jealousy and longing coursed through their veins as they watched the boy have fun with someone other than them.

“Seems like the three of us have been pushed to the sidelines.” Regina commented as she stood next to her old teacher and rival.

“What are you two doing here?” the dark one asked.

“The real question is, what’s your son doing with my nephew?” Nicholas asked dryly.

“Oh, that.” Gold smirked, “That’s right. Neither of you got the birth announcement, did you? That’s Henry’s father.”

Shock filled them both as the truth was revealed. “What?” Regina asked lowly.

“Do I have to spell it out for you?” he asked, “Ms. Swan and my son-”

“We got it.” Nicholas cut off feeling uncomfortable with the topic for some reason.

“You’re Henry’s grandfather?” Regina asked.

“Guess that makes us family. He’s got my eyes, don’t you think?” Gold taunted.

“You did this.” Regina accused as they followed him.

“Trust me, dearie, it was a much a shock to me as it is to the both of you.”

“Puh, I find that hard to believe. You must have known.” Nicholas argued, “When Regina and I adopted him, it was you who procured him for us. You expect us to believe that that was a coincidence?”

“No, not coincidence. Fate.” Gold corrected, “And apparently, fate has a sense of humor.”

“Please,” Nicholas scoffed, “There’s no such thing as fate. And don’t act like you’re the loving grandpa all of a sudden. None of them will accept you. No one. Be it your son, or any of them. You’re in the same boat as us right now, dark one.”

“We’ll see.” he replied aloofly.

“We’ve already seen, Gold.” Regina argued, “I’ve seen your dark heart, and it always wins out. You always choose darkness.”

“You know, you think you know me, dearie. But you don’t.”

“We know you well enough. If your own son couldn’t bring out the good in you, who will?” she asked as they walked away.

As the day went on and Regina further tormented Gold by giving Belle her cursed memories, which were of her being a bar skank, Nicholas tried to settle back in his old routine by taking a walk through town. As he walked by the docks, he spotted the town’s beautiful sheriff sitting with Henry’s book in her lap.

“Reading up on Henry’s father?” he asked trying to sound playful, “Or maybe his grandfather, perhaps?”

“I take it you and Regina know?” she asked grinning sheepishly as he sat down next to her.

“Yep, and my dear sister is very unhappy. Well, a bit more than usual.” he remarked.

“Well, I was going to tell you, but I was kinda busy trying to stop you, your sister and your mother from killing me and my entire family.” she retorted with a grin which went away as soon as she saw Nicholas’s downcast look.

“…I wasn’t…I wasn’t trying to kill you.” he whispered, “I was in a bad place at the time, Emma. My plan was to keep my mother from killing Gold and just let Hook’s poison finish him. Needless to say…that didn’t work.”

“Yeah.” she said softly, “You know, I can’t find your story anywhere here in the book.”

“That’s because it’s a book of fairytales. My story belongs in a book of horrors.” he replied bitterly.

“I read your journal.” Emma blurted.

“Which one?” Nicholas asked sadly.

“The one where you wrote that you want to die three times.”

“Ah. That one.” he recalled, “Well, it’s not like anyone needs to worry about me committing suicide. Not that anyone would really care aside from my sister.”

“Don’t say that.” Emma scolded.

“Am I wrong?” he asked, “Name one person in this town who would actually miss me if I was gone, besides Regina. You can rule out your parents because all they see in me is the same ‘evil’ my mother and sister had/have. None of the dwarves because I almost killed Mary Margaret and David. Ruby won’t because I found out earlier that she only went out with me because of her leftover lustful urges from the curse. Henry wouldn’t because he just sees me as a monster. Nobody in this town would care.”

“That’s not true.” Emma said grabbing his limp hand and looking him in the eyes, “I would. Nicholas, you’re my best friend.”

“Figured I ruined that the moment I did nothing when Cora killed that old woman Snow knew.” he grumbled as his eyes filled with grief.

“No. I get why you sided with Cora. I…we didn’t give you a chance when you deserved it. I let you down.”

“It was an air-tight case. Not like you know anyone else who can use alchemy to change his appearance at will.”

“Do you know who can?” she asked.

“…I don’t wanna talk about that anymore, Emma.” Nicholas replied, “But I did not kill that child.” he stressed.

“I know. I believe you.”

“You didn’t believe me before.” he countered.

“You’re right.” she nodded gently with guilt, “And I’m sorry that I didn’t. I should have, but I didn’t.”

“Whatever.” he shrugged, “Can’t change the past.”

Emma just looked at the man who used to be filled with so much life and being when she met him. Now he was a shell of that man wallowing in his grief and negative emotions. “Nicholas, what’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong?” he asked looking out at the sea, “What’s wrong is that for the second time in my life, I’ve had to stand over my mother’s coffin. I’ve found out that nearly all of the people who I thought were my friends lied to me just so I would protect them from my sister. My nephew will never see me for more than a monster and I just found out that my ex-girlfriend was using me just for pleasure. I-I…I just don’t want to be constantly in pain anymore.”

Before he could continue to mope even further, Nicholas felt a quick pain coming from the back of his head. He looked up and saw Emma with a stern look on her face and her hand raised.

“Did you just slap me upside the head?” he asked bluntly.

“Yep. And if you don’t stop feeling sorry for yourself, I’m gonna do it again.” she informed. Nicholas just stared at her with a blank look for a few moments before chuckling at the blonde who eventually joined him.

“Thanks, Emma. I needed that.”

“Anytime.” she relied still smiling, “Besides, if I can’t hit your sister, the least you can do is let me hit you once in a while.”

“What are you talking about? You slugged her last year.” he reminded.

“Oh, yeah.” Emma remembered grinning, “That was a good punch.”

And just like that, Emma Swan and Nicholas Flamel became best friends again. Sounds a bit cliché, right? Maybe. But sometimes, all someone really needs is for somebody they care about give them a good smack to the head to get them out of a funk.

They spent the rest of the day just hanging out and making up for lost time. Eventually, night fell and they wound up at the loft having a heavy discussion about which was better, the Harry Potter movies or books.

“How can you say that?” Emma asked laughing with a beer in her hand, “The fifth movie was way better than the book!”

“Oh, come on!” Nicholas groaned as he took a swig of his own beer, “That movie clearly lacked the finer details regarding the background of Dumbledore’s Army. Not to mention, it explained how Fred and George managed to get enough money for their shop. You’re just mad that Dumbledore admitted to Harry that he knew about all the crap in his life in the book.”

“Let’s get something straight,” she said trying to act serious but failing, “Dumbledore did not admit he knew everything about Harry’s crappy life.”

“Yes, he did.” Nicholas laughed, “He flat out told Harry he knew about the abuse he went through with the Dursley’s and that he knew Sirius was innocent. That was an entire chapter’s worth, right there.”

“…Which chapter?” Emma asked.

“You know that scene when Dumbledore takes Harry to his office to talk? In the book, that’s when he comes clean.”

“Oh, my god.” she said as the memories filled her head, “Okay, okay. But the fight scene between him and Voldemort was totally badass, you got to admit that.”

“That I will agree with.” he nodded raising his beer.

“Hey, you know what I just remembered?”

“What?”

“You were pretty much the main reason behind the whole ordeal for the first book. Care to explain?” Emma asked with a playful grin.

“Hey, don’t look at me. As far as I know, Hogwarts doesn’t even exist.” Nicholas laughed as someone knocked on the door.

“I got it.” Emma said, as she walked to the door, Nicholas noticed that she added a little extra sway in her hips; and he certainly didn’t mind. “What, did you tranquilize him?” Emma asked as she saw Neal carry Henry over his shoulder while he slept.

“I just gave a couple bourbons.” Neal joked as he walked in, “Kid’s a real lightweight-”

As he talked, he noticed Nicholas sitting on the couch drinking his beer. “Oh, hey, how’s it going?” he kindly greeted, “We haven’t been properly introduced. Nicholas Flamel, I’m Henry’s adoptive uncle.”

“Uh…Emma?” Neal asked nervously, “I think you might want to call David. Tell him to bring his gun and a lot of bullets.”

“Oh, stop.” she waved off smacking his free shoulder, “Nicholas, come on, get up. Let Henry sleep there.”

“Well, since milady asked so nicely.” he teased as he got up letting Neal set the boy down. After covering his son with a blanket, Neal looked at his former flame with a baffled look on his face.

“What?” Emma asked, “I invited him over. Me and Nicholas are friends again.”

“He tried to kill us.”

“Actually, I was trying to kill Mary Margaret. You guys were just in the way.” Nicholas smirked as he grabbed his coat, “Water under the bridge, by the way. I think I’m gonna head out, Emma.”

“Really?” she asked slightly disappointed.

“Yeah, I have some things to check on. See you tomorrow?”

“Count on it.” she replied before giving him a hug and letting him leave. As he walked happily through the brisk Maine evening, Nicholas took in a feeling he hadn’t felt in weeks; happiness.

Like most days in Storybrooke, it had rained earlier so naturally there were multiple large puddles in the street. With a large one in front of his path, he so no issue with just walking through it. As he walked through the water, Neal’s fiancé, Tamara watched him from the driver’s seat of her car. She then reached into her purse and pulled out a powerful Taser while glancing at the alchemist.

Nicholas was completely oblivious to the stranger following him. As he was about to finally get out of the puddle, Tamara crouched down to where it began and stuck her Taser into the water shocking Nicholas and bringing him to the ground unconscious.

It wasn’t until later the next morning when Nicholas finally regained consciousness. He found himself strapped to a chair and had rods protruding through his arms, legs and shoulders which kept him pinned even more. He tried to shift around but stopped as he felt his nerves enflame with pain from the rods.

“I imagine that stings a bit.” Greg Mendel said smugly as he approached his prisoner.

“I don’t know. How’s about you and I trade places?” Nicholas asked through his pain.

“Oh, I-I’m good, thanks.” Greg replied smirking as he pulled up a chair and sat in front of him, “You have no idea who I am, do you?”

“No, I know who you are.” Nicholas replied, “You’re like everyone in this town. You answer to two different names. Currently, you go by Greg Mendel; Storybrooke’s guest who crashed his car and is on the mend. But the last time you were here, you went by little Owen Flynn; an innocent boy who stumbled upon a strange town with his father in 1983.”

“And you’re Nicholas Mills; the younger brother to Storybrooke’s Madam Mayor and the Immortal Alchemist, Nicholas Flamel.” Greg/Owen replied.

“I’m curious, why come back now, after all these years? Did you forget about us?” Nicholas asked mocking him, he knew fully well why he was in town and why he didn’t show up sooner.

“You know why. I’m here for my father.” Greg informed becoming serious.

“No, there’s more to it than that. You wouldn’t have gone as far as kidnapping me if he was the only reason. Finding Kurt is just an added bonus. Now I’ll ask again, why are you here?”

“Magic.” Greg replied, “You know, unlike where you people are from, it’s pretty rare here, and every time it shows up, terrible things tend to happen. I’m what you could call…a magic hunter.”

“A ‘magic hunter?’ Really?” Nicholas asked finding the title lame.

“Yep. And our mission, people like me who know just how dangerous and evil magic is, is to destroy anything to do with magic.”

“Impressive.” Nicholas said with sarcasm and false amazement, “So there really is a job for everything out there. I take it that you aren’t exactly fond of the residents here, then?”

“You ‘people’ are nothing more than freaks parading around looking like actual human beings.” Greg scoffed, “It’s disgusting.”

“You’re the disgusting one. Acting all high and mighty with a holier-than-thou complex. It’s people like you who make me sick. Although, it was a nice touch keeping me pinned with these rods. Won’t do you much good when I deconstruct them and kill you, though.” Nicholas remarked as he tried to use his alchemy only to see nothing happen. Nothing he tried worked, not his shield, not his shadows; the only thing he could do was have his wounds try to heal around the rods. “What the hell did you do to me?”

“What, you didn’t notice the gift I got you?” Greg asked pretending to act hurt. He then pulled back Nicholas’s left sleeve and revealed a black leather cuff on his wrist with a transmutation circle etched into the center. “This little accessory cuts off your alchemy. I was hoping it would make you mortal again, but I’ll just have to deal with what I’ve got.”

“How did some orphaned little brat like you come across this thing?” he asked glaring at his captor, “I doubt it came from an old friend of your dad.”

“Let’s just say that when somebody talks about something for as long as I did, some people will listen once in a while.”

“Oh, and I bet you talked about the mysterious town that no one could find was holding your father hostage for a long time. Too bad the Twilight Zone wasn’t making new episodes back then; you could have been the inspiration for their comeback.” Nicholas teased.

“Where is my father?” Greg asked as he began to lose his patience.

“Do I look like I’m going to tell you?”

“Fine.” he sighed, “We’ll just have to move along with your little torture session, then.”

“Torture?” Nicholas scoffed, “I’ve experienced more pain than anyone. Whatever you have in store for me, won’t work.”

“We’ll see.” Tamara said smugly as she walked in with a pair of wireless headphones and an iPhone. Unfortunately, Nicholas had his head strapped so he couldn’t do anything to stop her from putting the buds in his ears. She then pressed play and waited to see his reaction. At first, there wasn’t any sound; Nicholas began to wonder what they had planned for him just before his thoughts were interrupted.

“CRACK!” The sound of a whip rang through his ears causing him to jolt in panic. Five seconds later, the sound came again and sent fear through his body as memories filled his mind.

“You may not be afraid of pain, Nicholas,” Greg began to say, “But you are afraid of something; your past. And evidently, whips.”

Crack after crack made him think back to his days as a slave. The merciless lashing from his master and the other nobles along with the vile monsters who captured him in the first place. Nicholas was completely helpless as the sound repeated itself every five seconds.

“We know that you were a slave.” Tamara added, “Can’t exactly walk away from the scars that left behind, now can you? We may not be able to kill you, even though we really want to, but we can make you relive your worst nightmares.”

“But we can also stop them.” Greg reassured soothingly as he bent down to meet Nicholas’s bloodshot gaze, “Just tell me where my father is and we’ll let you-”

Nicholas cut him off by spitting in his eye, trembling in anger and hysteria from the constant cracking.

“Fine.” he huffed whipping his eye, “I wonder if Regina will be more cooperative.”

“You know, I may not be a religious man, but I swear to God, if you lay one hand on my sister, I will kill you both; slowly, and painfully.” Nicholas snarled before jolting at the sound of the whip again.

“Seeing as you’re the one strapped and bolted to a chair, that’s unlikely.” Tamara grinned as she left the room with Greg behind her.

“I’m gonna get out of this chair sooner or later, Owen, and when I do…I’m gonna tear out your trachea.” he threatened coolly.

“Oh, I-I-I’m sure you will.” Greg chuckled leaving the alchemist to suffer with the ghosts of his past. Flashes of the trauma which plagued his mind for decades filled Nicholas’s mind for hours. He was drenched in cold sweat and his eyes were bloodshot from the mental torture. It drove him mad enough to the point of throwing a fit to where he snapped the strap around his head; unfortunately, a few seconds afterwards, Nicholas hyperventilated to the point of throwing up.

With his head limp and his mind numb, the Immortal Alchemist was a twitching, drooling unfortunate soul unable to remove the ear buds and forced to watch his sister be electrically tortured through the broken glass of the room before him. Eventually, Greg stormed in and dragged Nicholas’s chair to the room Regina was in.

“Nicholas,” Regina whispered hoping to gain her brother’s attention, “Nicholas? Can you hear me? Brother? Abba?”

Even with his real name being uttered, Nicholas was unresponsive.

“They found us.” Tamara warned.

“Who, Emma and Neal?” he asked, “I thought that you took care of them.”

“Yeah, so did I. We need to go.”

“No, no. No, no, no.” Greg denied anxiously, “I-I need more time with them.”

“Greg, if you get caught, this whole thing is blown.” Tamara stressed.

“We wouldn’t even know about this town if it wasn’t for my dad. I’m not leaving until I find out where he is.”

“Fine. Meet me at the rendezvous point when you’re done.” she said before leaving. 

“I’m moving up the timeline.” Greg informed as he increased the voltage and connected Nicholas to the machine, “Now I’m gonna give you two one last chance. Tell me where my father is.”

Neither sibling said anything.

“Okay, time’s up.”

As soon as he said this, Nicholas gave a wicked, slurred chuckle which increased into maniacal laughter.

“Where is he?” Greg asked over the laughter.

“Dead.” Regina spat, “We killed him. The minute you ran away.”

“We made him an all-you-can-eat-buffet for the maggots of Storybrooke years ago.” Nicholas laughed tiredly.

“No, you’re-you’re lying to me.” denied Greg.

“You don’t believe us?” Regina asked, “Go see for yourself.”

“We left his corpse at your campsite.” Nicholas spat, “I’m sure he doesn’t get too many visitors there. Poor little Owen. Looks like you weren’t able to save him after all.”

Having heard enough, Greg slammed his fist on the machine and electrocuted the brother and sister.

“You feel that?” he said through his teeth, “Huh? That’s the end of you. That’s scary, ain’t it? Now neither of you are going to hurt anyone ever again.”

Suddenly, David came in and shot the machine causing Greg to hold his hands up in surrender.

“Don’t move!” he shouted; of course, Greg shoved his equipment at him and made a break for the nearest exit. As he was about to chase after him, Snow stopped him.

“David! We can’t leave them. Regina will die if we don’t get her help.”

“We gotta get her to Mother Superior.” he suggested.

“Help me get these things out of Nicholas.” Snow pleaded as she tried to pull out the rods.

“Emma?” David asked over his radio, “You gotta block the exits.”

“Already on it. You guys alright?” she asked.

“Oh, we’re fine. We found Regina and Nicholas, with Mendel.”

“Wait, what? Nicholas is here too?” Emma asked in a panic, “What happened? Is he okay?”

“They had him skewered with a bunch of metal rods that we’re trying to get out. He’s looked better, that’s for sure.”

“I’ll be better as soon as somebody gets this damn cuff off of me.” Nicholas slurred as Snow finally yanked out the last rod.

“Here, let me.” she said as she took it off. Feeling his powers return to him, Nicholas leapt from the chair and grabbed one of the rods before transmuting it into a cavalry sword.

“When I get through with them, no one will be able to tell them from the chum on the floor.” he growled before storming off to join Emma. As he tried to find them, he heard gunfire and followed the echo. When he found the source, Nicholas saw Tamara nearly pressing her gun against Neal’s forehead while Emma struggled to rise from the ground.

“I’m sorry, Neal.” she said.

“Not yet, you’re not.” Nicholas spoke up as he extended his claws to nick Tamara’s hand and break the gun.

“It’s over.” Emma said as she finally got up.

“No.” Tamara spat reaching into her pocket, “It’s not.”

Spotting the object in her hand, Nicholas’s eyes dilated in panic as he realized it was a magic portal bean. “Oh, not again.” he muttered as Tamara threw it at their feet, “Emma, get out of the way!” he cried pulling her way.

“Bye.” Tamara said as she escaped.

The portal was made and just like with what the hat used to make, it tried to suck in the three of them to its destination. With quick thinking, Nicholas dug his free claws into the floor as he held onto Emma’s waist. Unfortunately for Neal, the portal began to eat at his area of the floor.

“Neal!” Emma cried as she grabbed his arm.

“Emma! Nicholas can’t hold all of us! Just let go!” Neal pleaded.

“Yes, he can!” she shouted. As Nicholas struggled to hold on, he felt his body shift just slightly closer to the portal. Now remember, Nicholas’s shield gave him incredibly sharp claws; so sharp that sense the floor was made of wood, his claws were cutting through it because of the portal trying to drag them in.

“Guys, I’m slipping!” he warned.

“You’re shot! If you fall through that portal, you’ll die no matter what world you land in!”

“I know, but, Emma, Henry needs you. He can’t lose both of us. Don’t make him grow up like we did.”

“Then don’t let go.” Emma pleaded through her tears, but Neal didn’t listen. He let go of her hand and fell into the green vortex. “No!” she cried.

Upon sensing that someone went through it, the portal closed leaving a pit in the ground and Emma sobbing. Nicholas didn’t say a word. He only did what he knew he had to do more than anything; hold his dear friend as she let lose her pain and tears.

After Emma composed herself, Nicholas helped her out of the cannery and back to the loft, not taking his arm away from her even for a second. When they arrived he saw his sister unconscious on Mary Margaret’s bed as Mother Superior healed her. Looking to see Emma nod at him, he finally let go of her and went to check on his beloved sibling.

“We’re just bred for all kinds of trouble, aren’t we, sis?” he whispered as he stroked her hand with his thumb as Snow watched, “Why did you save us?” he asked the former bandit.

“Because after everything you’ve done for us and all I’ve done to you…it was the least I could do.” Snow replied with regret.

“And despite our differences, we’re family.” David added with just as much guilt as his wife.

“Where are they?” Regina asked as she came to, “Where are Greg and Tamara?”

“For now, they got away.” Nicholas replied as he helped his sister sit up.

“So they still have it.” she exhaled.

“Still have what?” Snow asked.

“My trigger.” Regina whispered.

“How in the hell did they get their hands on that?” Nicholas asked in shock.

“A trigger?” David asked.

“A failsafe with the power to destroy Storybrooke…and everyone in it.” Nicholas explained, “My question is, sister dear, why were you strolling around with the damn thing in your pocket?”

“She was going to destroy us, Nicholas.” David answered.

“I was going to use the beans to take Henry and Nicholas back to the Enchanted Forest.” Regina replied flatly.

“And in the process, kill us all.” Snow concluded.

“You want to talk about justification?” Regina asked hotly, “You were going to abandon my brother and I here and take Henry over there yourselves.”

“You were?” Nicholas asked before waving off his own question, “We’ll discuss this later. Right now, the very thing capable of destroying us all is in the hands of two psychopaths with a vendetta against magic.”

“So what do we do?” Snow asked.

“Get all the help we can get, for one thing.” Nicholas suggested, “I say we look for Rumplestiltskin.”

After leaving the loft, the found the dark one watching his grandson on a swing in the park. “Gold.” David called, “What are you doing here?”

“Well, my son made it clear I’m to stay away from him, so I’m spending some time with my grandson instead.”

“Emma, why don’t you talk to Henry?” Nicholas recommended. As she reluctantly went over to tell her son the heartbreaking news, the three of them broke it to Gold. Instead of wanting to help them take down the people who killed his son like they hoped, he succumbed to his grief and left them to their imminent doom. When they went back to the loft with Henry, the entire town shook and rumbled.

“Regina,” Emma asked, “Was that-”

“Yes. The trigger was activated.” she nodded.

“So we’re all gonna die?” Henry asked.

“You were born here, so you’ll live.”

“But…I’ll be alone.”

“I’m so sorry, Henry.” Regina apologized.

“It’s not gonna happen.” Emma denied, “I’m not gonna let it. You did this. Now make it stop.”

“I can’t. There’s no way.”

“Well, figure it out. It’s your fault.” she barked.

“Stop!” Henry shouted, “I already lost my dad. I don’t wanna lose anyone else. We have to work together.”

“From the mouths of babes. I’d say the lad has a point.” Hook agreed as he unexpectedly showed up only to be punched in the face by David.

“That’s for the last time we met.” he spat.

“Bloody hell.” Hook muttered.

“Now tell us why you’re here before I use something other than my fist.” he demanded as he pulled out his pistol.

“I think threatening to kill me is a bit redundant when we’re all about to die anyway.” Hook retorted.

“No thanks to you.” Emma remarked, “Regina just told us you were working with Tamara and Greg to get your revenge.”

“Well, that was before they told me I had to die to get it.”

“We don’t have time for this.” Nicholas interrupted, “We have a real problem.”

“Which is why I’m here, ‘cause staring death in the face has made me realize there’s one thing I want more than my revenge, it’s my life. So should we start this thing now and then resume bickering?” asked the pirate.

“There is no stopping it.” Regina repeated, “The best thing I can do is slow it down, but that will only delay the inevitable.”

“Or give us the time we need.” David suggested.

“For what?” Snow asked.

“To steal back the beans. Use them to get everyone back to the Enchanted Forest before Storybrooke is gone.”

“How?” Emma asked, “We don’t even know where Greg and Tamara are.”

“Not to mention, the portals made by the beans don’t stay open for long. They’ll close as soon as even a single group goes through.” Nicholas informed.

“Well, luckily, I know where they are. I can help.” Hook offered.

“Yourself. You’ll take them and leave us all behind. Why should we trust you?” Emma asked.

“No, we won’t have to.” David reassured, “I’ll go with him. If he tries anything, I’ll shoot him in the face.”

“Quite hostile, aren’t we?” Hook joked.

“Just being clear.”

“Emma, Regina, and I will head over to sow down the trigger, give you guys some time.” Nicholas added, “Mary Margaret, take Henry and gather everyone in front of the town hall. Make sure they’re ready to go as soon as we have those beans. If we aren’t able to get them back, take this,” he said handing her a flare gun from his coat, “Shoot it into the air, wait five minutes until you see a small group of people and tell them what happened; they’ll handle the rest.”

“H-how will I know them from the others?” she asked.

“Oh, trust me, you’ll know them when you see them.” he reassured.

“Who are these people, exactly?” Regina asked.

“Just some old friends of mine.” he replied.

“Henry,” Regina said just before they left, “Before you go…I’m sorry for what’s happened.”

“So am I.” Nicholas added as he crouched down with his sister to Henry’s level.

“We tried to be the people you wanted us to be, and we failed.”

“But neither of us will ever let you be alone. Just know that we love you.”

“I love you, too.” Henry said softly as he finally hugged his adoptive family for the first time in weeks.

In the depths of the mines, Emma, Regina and Nicholas followed the flowing force of power emanating from the trigger. “I can feel it.” Emma informed, “It’s like the oxygen’s being sucked out of the air.”

“Not the oxygen. The magic.” Regina corrected.

“Found it.” Nicholas informed as he spotted the floating, glowing diamond.

“Once it stops glowing, its destruction is achieved, and then…well, then we’ll see the real carnage.” Regina said fearfully, “I’ll try to contain its energy as long as I can.”

“It won’t be long. We’ll have the bean soon. Then we can get the hell out of here.” Emma reminded.

“Slowing the device…it’s going to require all the strength I have.”

“Regina…what are saying?” Nicholas asked.

“You’re not coming with us, are you?” Emma asked, “When you said goodbye to Henry, you…were saying goodbye.”

“He knows I love him, doesn’t he?” she asked.

“Regina, there has to be some other way.” said her brother.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t the best big sister.” she chuckled sadly, “If it wasn’t for me…you never would have been taken from us.”

“That was not your fault and you know it.” he choked.

“You were right, Emma. Everything that’s happening, it’s my fault. I created this device. It’s only fitting that it takes my life.”

“What are we supposed to tell Henry?” she asked.

“Tell him that in the end, it wasn’t too late for me to do the right thing. Everyone looks at me as the Evil Queen, including my son. Let me die as Regina.”

“Sis, please-” Nicholas begged only to stop when he saw her use her magic on the device. On their way back to Granny’s, Nicholas stayed quiet and somber the entire time.

“I’m sorry, Nicholas.” Emma apologized taking his hand in hers.

“Alchemy and magic have always been two opposing forces incapable of working together.” he said, “Both have so much power, and yet I can’t use mine to do anything to help this town or my own sister. How am I supposed to tell Henry on the same day he learned that his father died that I left his mother to die?”

“It won’t be easy. But I’ll be with you all the way.” she promised while squeezing his hand. As soon as they made it to the diner, David and Hook came in.

“We have the beans.” David said.

“You did it?” Emma asked.

“Yeah.”

“Okay, let’s get going. Henry?” Emma called for her son.

“Wh-where’s my mom?” he asked not seeing Regina.

“Kiddo, your mom can hold off the self-destruct device long enough for us to escape, but…she won’t survive.”

“No. No.” he denied.

“Henry, we’re sorry.” Emma apologized, “We promised her we’d get you to safety.”

“But we can’t do this. She’s family. We don’t leave family behind.”

“I know, but this is what she wants.” Emma stressed, “We have a way out. We have to take it.”

“We saved her from being killed by the wraith. How is this any different?”

“The wraith.” Snow gasped

“What?” Emma asked.

“We sent it through a portal. Why can’t we do the same thing with the self-destruct?” she asked.

“Because we don’t know if it’ll work.” Nicholas countered.

“It could.”

“Yeah.” David agreed.

“It’s too risky. No one will go along with it.” Emma argued.

“Yes, we will.” Archie spoke up, “Because it’s the right thing to do. Nicholas, we didn’t stand by you when we should have, and we will never forgive ourselves for it. Thanks to you, we were able to find happiness even in our bleakest moments. Let us try to help you for a change. Who’s willing to repay this man for all he’s done?”

“I am!” one of the dwarves yelled with his brothers following with just as much vigor.

“You can count on us, Flamel.” Leroy promised.

“Me!”

“I am!”

“Right here!”

“Without a doubt.”

“Nicholas, this is what we want to do.” Snow said kindly.

“And will do.” David added before the town shook once again.

“This plan could fail.” Emma debated, “If we use that bean now, we can get away for sure. We will survive.”

“But it’s wrong.” Snow stressed, “Emma, I killed their mother.”

“You did that to Cora because you had to.” she argued.

“I did it because it was easy.” she said causing Nicholas to glare at her, “It was a mistake. There were other paths; harder paths, and I wish I had taken them. So please, Emma, honey, let’s take the hard path. Because if we don’t, we will be building a future on Regina’s blood.

“…Whatever you do…just make sure Henry doesn’t end up alone.” he begged as he backed away to the door, “Don’t let him feel as empty as I did.”

“Nicholas, what are you doing?” Emma asked softly.

“I’ve witnessed too much death in my life, Emma.” he said, “I’ve already had to bury half of my family. I will not do that again, not when I have the strength to stop it.”

“Nicholas…you’ll die. That magic will kill you” she whispered as tears formed in her eyes.

“Then I’ll finally be able to pay for all the suffering I’ve caused. And if I die, he can’t use me and all of you will be safe. I will not let my sister die alone. If I die, then I die with my sister. Let’s go.” he said as he led the Charmings out the door. When they got back to the mines, they found Regina right where they left her.

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

“Regina,” Nicholas said bluntly, “For once in your life, just shut up.”

“You were willing to die to save us. That makes you a hero.” Henry explained, “And now we’re gonna be heroes.”

“We’re gonna open up a portal and throw this thing into a void.” David informed.

“No.” Regina argued, “You don’t know that it’ll work.”

“We have to try.” Snow retorted as Emma searched for the bean in the pouch Hook gave her.

“Emma?” David asked when he saw her do nothing.

“…It’s empty.” she said softly.

**OUaT**

Out at the docks, Captain Hook clutched the bean in question in his hand as he began to sail away.

**OUaT**

“I can’t contain this much longer.” Regina said weakly.

Realizing the situation, Emma looked to her parents and finally let down her walls. “Mom,” she said shakenly, “Dad.”

While they were happy to finally hear their daughter call them by those names, they were heartbroken that it would be the last time in this life. Nicholas looked to his sister who struggled to hold her tears and simply nodded at each other; they didn’t need to say anything, they already knew what the other was feeling/thinking. Henry broke from the hug and went to them to hear their last words for he would be the only survivor.

“We love you, Henry.” Regina said as she began to cry.

“Looks like this is it, huh?” Nicholas asked Emma who was silently crying.

“Yeah,” she scoffed through her tears, “I guess so. I’m sorry you’re stuck down here with us instead of with Ruby.”

“I don’t want to be with Ruby, Emma.” he replied.

“But…but you love her.” she said.

“What I had with Ruby wasn’t love.” Nicholas said cupping her cheek and looking into her eyes, “It was a distraction.”

Emma said nothing as she pulled him into a tight hug and cried into his shoulder.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to stop this.” Regina said to Henry, “I’m just not.”

“You may not be strong enough.” Emma said as she broke away from her hug, “But maybe we are.”

“Only one way to find out.” Nicholas said as he joined the two women, “Time to see if alchemy and magic really can work together.”

As the others took cover, Emma joined Regina in using magic while Nicholas tried to use his alchemy to deconstruct the diamond. With each of their powers surging, it was only a matter of moments before they were sent back in a blast of energy which stopped the trigger and saved the town.

“We’re alive.” David said happily to his wife.

“Emma?” Snow asked as she helped her daughter up.

“We did it.” she breathed happily.

“Yes, we did.” Regina nodded as she helped Nicholas to his feet.

“That was nuts!” he exclaimed causing them all to laugh.

“Got to hand it to Henry, he’s right about a lot of things.” David praised.

“Ain’t that the truth.” Nicholas nodded.

“Isn’t that right, kid?” Emma asked her son only to find him missing, “Henry?”

“Henry?” Regina called.

“Henry?” Nicholas tried only to see his nephew’s backpack on the ground.

“Nicholas, what is it?” Snow asked.

“Those bastards took him.” he growled.

As they ran out to catch up with them, Nicholas tracked them to the docks and saw Greg toss the last bean into the water creating a portal which they jumped in.

“No!” Emma cried as it closed on them, “We have to go after them!”

“Not only do we not know where they went, but Hook stole the last bean.” Regina reminded in an equal panic.

“I don’t care!” Emma yelled.

“Without it, there’s no way to follow them.”

“There has to be. We can’t just let them take Henry.”

“They’ve taken Henry?” Gold asked as he and Belle (with her memories returned) approached them.

“Yeah. You’re the dark one, do something.” David ordered.

“Gold, help us.” Emma pleaded.

“There’s no way.” Gold replied, “I spent a lifetime trying to cross world to find my son. There’s no way in this world without a portal.”

“So that’s it?” Regina asked hotly, “He’s gone forever?”

“No he’s not.” Nicholas replied in anger.

“What is that?” Belle asked as she saw something out on the horizon. From the distance, they could tell that it was Hook’s ship coming towards them.

“Hook.” Emma said in hope, “What the hell are you doing here?” she asked him once he arrived at the dock.

“Helping.” he replied.

“Well, you’re too late.” Nicholas retorted bitterly.

“Am I?” he asked.

“I thought you didn’t care about anyone but yourself?” Emma asked.

“Maybe I just needed reminding that I could.” he said giving the final bean to Emma.

“Enough waiting around. Let’s go.” Regina snapped.

“Go? Where?” Hook asked, “I thought we were saving the town?”

“We already did.” David informed.

“We need to get Henry. Greg and Tamara took him through a portal.” Emma explained.

“Well, I offer my ship and my services to help follow them.” he offered.

“Well, that’s great, Hook, but how will we track them?” Regina asked.

“Leave that to me.” Gold replied, “I can get us where we need to go.”

“Then let’s do it.” Snow declared as they boarded the ship.

On the main deck, Gold summoned a pure white globe and pricked his finger on its needle. After that, he let his blood drip on it which formed a landmass which revealed Henry’s location.

“Where is that?” Nicholas asked, “Where did they take Henry?”

“Neverland.” Hook replied with dread in his voice. With a mighty throw, he tossed the bean into the sea creating a portal large enough for the ship.

“So who are we up against?” David asked over the roaring of the portal, “Who are Greg and Tamara?”

“They’re merely pawns,” Gold said, “Manipulated by forces far greater than they can conceive. They have no idea who they’re truly working for.”

“And who’s that?” Emma asked.

“Someone we should all fear.” he replied.

“Well, doesn’t that sound reassuring?” Nicholas said sarcastically as they sailed into the portal.


	22. The Heart of the Truest Believer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

As the Jolly Roger finally made it through the portal, everyone on board looked at the night sky of Neverland. “Is that it?” Emma asked.

“Aye.” Hook nodded as they stared at the island, “Neverland.”

Instead of taking the ship as close to the island as he could, Hook decided to sail port and at a slower speed.

“Why are you slowing down?” Regina asked, “In case you didn’t know, my son’s life is in danger.”

“Oh, I know, my hotheaded queen.” Hook acknowledged, “My plan is to bring us to the far side of the island, link up with the widest part of the river, then we sail right through and take him by surprise. The irony.”

“What irony?” she asked.

“Oh, I spent more time here than I care to remember trying to leave this place to kill Rumplestiltskin. And here I am, sailing right back into its heart with him as my guest of honor. It’s not quite the happy ending I was hoping for.”

“Yeah, life’s funny like that.” Nicholas nodded as he gazed out at the sea.

“First time on a ship, mate?” Hook asked.

“No, just the first time I’ve been on one that didn’t go under the waves in a long time.” Nicholas replied confusing everyone who heard him, “Last time I was on a ship like this, I was a newly freed man trying to get used to immortality.”

“What do you mean by that?” Hook asked, “Newly freed?”

“Oh, I was a slave for the bitter part of ten years when I was younger.” he replied, “You would’ve hated it. I was stuck in the middle of a desert kingdom where water was considered both a necessity and a treat.”

“How did you escape, if you don’t mind my asking?”

“I didn’t.” Nicholas replied looking at the captain, “Everyone else was killed in a single night; including the person who owned me.”

“Bloody hell.” Hook muttered, “You come from Xerxes, then?”

“No. Slave number 23 did.” he replied softly as he stared out at the ocean again, “I’m just the one who got out.”

As Emma looked out at the sea as well, her parents approached her. “Hey.” Snow greeted hesitantly. Emma didn’t respond. “What happened to Neal and Henry, it’s not your fault. You can’t blame yourself.”

“I don’t.” she said before glaring at her parents with a blank expression, “I blame you. All this happened because I listened to you. You say good always wins? It doesn’t. I didn’t grow up in some fairytale land. My experience is different. That’s all I can go on.”

“And all we have to go on is ours.” Snow replied trying to get over the shock of her daughter blaming them, “So if you would just let us share our wisdom-”

“I appreciate you trying to be parents.” Emma cut off, “But we’re the same age. We have equal amounts of wisdom. And all I want is Henry back. I never should have broken the curse. I should’ve just taken Henry and-”

“You’re right.” Snow interrupted, “Then you’d be together. We missed you growing up, Emma, and it haunts us every day.”

“And that’s why we’re here now.” David agreed, “We don’t want you to have to go through the same thing, too. And you won’t. We are gonna get our family back.”

“How can you two be so infuriatingly optimistic?!” Emma shouted gaining everyone’s attention.

“It’s who we are.” David calmly replied.

“Why?! Ever since you got your memories back, ever since you remembered that you’re Snow White and Prince Charming, your lives have…they’ve-well, they’ve sucked!”

“No. No, we found you.”

“And lost Neal and countless other people!”

“Emma,” Mary Margaret said looking her daughter in the eye, “The minute I let go of the belief that things will get better is the minute I know they won’t. We’ll find Henry.”

“No, you won’t.” Gold disagreed as he came out dressed in his old dark one clothes.

“Oh, that’s a great use of our time, a wardrobe change.” Hook remarked sarcastically.

“I’m gonna get Henry.” he informed.

“We agreed to do this together.” Nicholas glared.

“Actually, we made no such agreement.” Gold retorted.

“Why are you doing this?” Emma asked.

“Because I wanna succeed.”

“What makes you think I’m gonna fail?”

“Well, how could you not?” he asked, “You don’t believe in your parents, or your friend, or in magic, or even yourself.”

“I slayed a dragon and I watch Nicholas cheat death nearly on a daily basis. I think I believe.” Emma shot back.

“Only what was shown to you. When have you ever taken a real leap of faith?” Gold asked, “You know, the kind where there’s absolutely no proof? I’ve known you some time, Ms. Swan. And sadly, despite everything you’ve been through, you’re still just that bail bondsperson, looking for evidence. Well, dearie, that’s not gonna work in Neverland.” 

“I’ll do whatever it takes.” Emma said meeting his gaze.

“Well, you just need someone to tell you what that is. Sorry, dearie. Our foe is too fearsome for hand-holding. Neverland is a place where imagination runs wild. And sadly yours doesn’t.”

And with that said and done, Gold gave his cane a twirl and disappeared in an instant leaving it behind.

Sometime later, Emma went below deck in order to get herself ready for the upcoming battle; starting with a series of pull ups. Nicholas spotted her when she went down and decided to follow her.

“Would you like me to get you a pitcher of raw eggs?” he asked with dry humor, “Maybe play ‘Gonna Fly Now’ to get you pumped up before climbing up the stairs?”

“No thanks, I’m good.” Emma grunted.

“Emma, what are you doing?” Nicholas asked dryly.

“Getting ready for a fight.” she grunted again.

“Funny, I don’t recall you ever doing anything like this in the previous fights you’ve had since we’ve met. I always thought it was a natural state.” he joked, “Don’t let Gold get you down.”

“What do you want, Nicholas?” she asked jumping down.

“Hook wanted me to give you this.” he said handing her a cutlass, “Evidently, Neal, or rather Baelfire as he was known back then, spent some time with him on this ship. This belonged to him.”

“Didn’t take him to be sentimental.” Emma remarked.

“Well, sometimes even the littlest things from our pasts can hold the biggest memories.” Nicholas reasoned.

“You got anything like that?” she asked.

“Yep. Take a look.” he said as he lifted up his pants to just below his knees. Around his legs were straps that looked like they belonged with old sandals, “These were once part of the sandals I wore when I was a slave. While it was without a doubt, the most horrible decade of my life, I’ve never been able to part with them. The actual sandals wore down years ago, but these managed to survive. They remind me that no matter how much better my life would get as the years went by, I must never forget my time as a slave. If I were to forget that, then I’d forget about all the other people being owned like livestock in other parts of our realm. Sentimentality can have various meanings, Emma.”

“Wow.” was all she could say. Just then, the ship violently rocked against the rough waves outside. Nicholas and Emma came up to see Hook struggle with the helm.

“The hell’s going on?” Nicholas asked.

“I’m trying to keep my ship steady, mate!” Hook said over the waves, “Prepare for attack!”

“Be more specific.” Regina snapped.

“If you’ve got a weapon, then grab it!” he clarified as screeching filled the air.

“Why does that screeching sound familiar?” Nicholas asked himself aloud.

“What’s out there?” Emma asked, “A shark?! A whale?!”

“A kraken?” David asked.

“Worse.” Hook said as Snow, David and Emma looked over the starboard side. In the depths, they could see strikingly beautiful women swimming around and under the Jolly Roger.

“Oh, cripes!” Nicholas cursed, “Now I remember. Mermaids!”

“Aye.” Hook nodded in fear, “Bloody mermaids.”

“Mermaids?!” Emma shouted.

“Yes, and they’re quite unpleasant.”

“You think?” Regina asked bluntly.

“I’ll try to outrun them.” he informed.

“How many of them are there?!” Emma asked as the sea demons slammed their tails against the ship.

“I will not be capsized by fish!” David refused as he went over to the nearest puckle gun and readied a chain shot. As he fired, Emma and Mary Margaret threw a net over the side and managed to catch a mermaid as the others escaped.

“We caught one!” Snow alerted.

“What are you doing?!” Nicholas cried, “Let her go now!”

“Why?” Regina asked calmly, “It’s not like she can do anything. I’ve had enough of this.” she stated as she threw a fireball into the water scaring the rest off, “There. They’re gone.”

“Guys, we should really let this one go.” Nicholas stressed nervously as Emma and Snow pulled in the net and Regina tied her down, “Trust me. In my experience, no good comes from capturing a mermaid.”

“Flamel’s right.” Hook agreed, “Get that thing off my ship!”

“No.” Regina coolly replied, “Now we have a hostage.”

“I hate to say it, but I’m with Hook and Nicholas.” David admitted, “Those things just tried to kill us.”

“And perhaps we should find out why.” she countered.

“How? By torturing her?” Snow asked as the mermaid reached for her conch shell.

“Well, if need be. Sure.” Regina answered just before the mermaid blew the shell.

“Oh, cripes.” Nicholas muttered, “We’re in deep shit now.”

“What the hell was that?” Emma asked.

“A warning.” the mermaid replied as a storm approached, “Let me go or die.”

“Told you so.” Nicholas said to them bluntly.

“What is this?” David asked threateningly in the mermaid’s face, “What did you do?!”

“She used an old technique mermaids use to wreck ships when they come to close to their territory.” Nicholas explained, “She just called up a storm that will only get worse and worse until it becomes a maelstrom.”

“Let me go.” she softly pleaded.

“Call it off or we’ll make you call it off.” Regina threatened.

“Threatening her isn’t the way to motivate her.” Snow said hotly.

“Well, I’m all out of fish food.” Regina snapped back.

“Doesn’t matter if you get her to talk.” Hook argued, “You can’t trust her. Mermaids are liars.”

“Of course they are.” Emma said dryly.

“Maybe they’re just scared of Pan. If we let her go, maybe they’ll be on our side.” Snow reasoned.

“Or maybe she and her friends will come right back to kill us.” Regina debated.

“I don’t need my friends to kill you.” the mermaid grinned as the storm became worse, “You’ll kill yourselves. Now let me go.”

“What the hell?!” David asked over the thunder.

“I told you, she called up a maelstrom on us.” Nicholas repeated hotly.

David, in his anger and frustration, grabbed the nearest sword and held the blade against her throat. “Stop the storm, then we let you go.” he forcefully negotiated. She shook her head with a smug grin just before David grabbed her head and was ready to slit her throat.

“That’s more like it, Charming.” Regina laughed evilly, “Filet the bitch.”

Before he could do it, he looked at his wife and daughter’s shocked expressions and had a quick change of heart. “No. We’re not barbarians.” he said stomping away from the girl.

“What we’re going to be is dead.” Emma remarked.

“Hold on!” cried Hook, “I’m gonna turn her around.”

“Make it stop or die.” Regina threatened the captive.

“We are not killers!” Snow shouted in protest.

“Yes, you are.” the mermaid snapped, “And you’ve brought this death upon yourselves.”

“This is why we should free her!”

“That feel-good nonsense, Snow, might play in the Enchanted Forest, but this, this is Neverland.” Nicholas growled as the storm became worse.

“Keep your grip, pirate!” David shouted harshly.

“It wasn’t me, mate! It was the ship!” Hook shouted back, “We’re taking on water!”

“Now may I resume killing her?!” Regina asked.

“No!” David and Snow shouted.

“You kill her, and her kind have a personal vendetta against us.” Snow lectured.

“Look, the queen is right.” Hook admitted, “Flamel, you said you’ve dealt with this before. How the bloody hell did you stop it last time?!”

“We didn’t!” he shouted as the ship rocked, “The mermaid who did this was inexperienced so it didn’t last that long! Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case this time around! Besides, they already have a vendetta against us; they’re just racist against humans!”

“Stop!” Emma shouted, “That’s enough! We need to think this through!”

“I already have.” Regina stated calmly.

“Sis, don’t!” Nicholas shouted, but it was too late. With a wave of her hand, the mermaid turned into wood.

“There. That should stop the storm.” she reassured.

“You’d think so, wouldn’t you?” Nicholas dryly asked as the storm became even worse.

“Regina, what did you do?!” Emma shouted.

“No.” Regina said in horror as a massive wave formed before them.

“What have you done?!” she shrieked as they rode the wave.

“I miss the Nautilus.” Nicholas whimpered.

“Why would you do this?” Snow asked Regina.

“You’re going to blame me?!” Regina asked over the howling wind.

“You turned the mermaid into wood!”

“I did something about it, which is more than what you can say!” she retorted.

“Undo your spell! Bring back the mermaid!” Snow ordered.

“And what, you’ll win her over with your rainbow kisses and unicorn stickers?!” Nicholas shouted at the spoiled princess from the rear of the ship.

“Considering that your sister’s plan failed, at least we could try!”

“You’re such a naïve princess!” the siblings spat.

“And you two are such…” Snow couldn’t even bring herself to finish; instead, she clocked Regina in the face.

“Is that your best?” Regina asked grinning.

“Not even close!” Snow snarled as lightning struck the ship’s mast, “I am so tired of you ruining my life!”

“I ruined your life?!” Regina asked before slugging Snow.

“Hey!” David yelled trying to get to his wife while Nicholas tried to get to his sister.

“Hey, let the slags go. I need you at the mast.” Hook said stopping the prince.

“Don’t call my wife/sister a slag!” they shouted as they punched Hook who naturally fought back.

“Stop it!” Emma yelled as she took the helm. As everyone fought, Emma began to realize that the storm grew as everyone’s anger grew. “It’s not the mermaid. It’s us! If you don’t stop fighting, we’re all gonna die! Don’t you see we’re causing the storm?!”

But nobody was listening. All they did was throw punches at each other.

“Hey!” Emma shouted as she stood on the railing, “Stop! You need to listen to me!”

Seeing no other option, Emma jumped over the side which snapped everyone out of their brawls. “No!” Snow cried.

“Emma!” Nicholas and David shouted. Originally, Emma was just going to swim back up as soon as everyone stopped fighting. Unfortunately, one of the pullies from the ship rope snapped and dropped right on her head in the water, rendering her unconscious.

“Dammit to hell.” Nicholas muttered before jumping in after the blonde. As soon as he spotted her, Nicholas swam over to her and grabbed her before using his alchemy to extend his arm and grab the ship. With the others helping him up, the young alchemist pulled him and his friend over the side as she coughed up water.

“Told you.” she breathed as the sky cleared and her parents held her close. Not long after, the party reached the shore and trudged up the sand.

“We don’t have to do it this way.” Regina offered, “I can fix the Jolly Roger. My magic is powerful enough. We can execute the pirate’s plan.”

“Sneak attack?” Emma asked, “Let’s not be naïve. Save your magic. We’ll need it later, because Pan already knows we’re here. It’s time we stop running. Gold was right. This place is run on belief and all of us have been too busy being at each other’s throats to be believers. I was as wrong as anyone else. It’s time for all of us to believe. Not in magic, but in each other.”

“You wanna be friends?” Regina asked skeptically, “After everything that’s happened between all of us?”

“I don’t want or expect that.” Emma replied, “I know there’s a lot of history here and a lot of hate.”

“Actually, I quite fancy you from time to time, when you’re not yelling at me.” Hook corrected smoothly which irked Nicholas.

“Shut up, pirate.” he growled in his mind.

“We don’t need to be friends. What we need to know is the only way to get Henry back is cooperation.”

“With them?” David asked indicating to the siblings and pirate, “No, Emma, we have to do this the right way.”

“And what’s that?” Nicholas scoffed, “Follow your hair product trail through the jungle and find Henry at the expense of your sense of faith and hope? Seems like going by what the only person who has been on this island has to say is the better option.”

“All we need to do is succeed.” Emma continued, “And the way we do that is by just being who we are: a hero, a villain, a pirate, an alchemist. It doesn’t matter which, because we’re gonna need all those skills, whether we can stomach them or not.”

“And what’s your skill, Savior?” Regina asked.

“I’m a mother,” she said not wavering in the slightest, “And now I’m also your leader. So either help me get my son back or get out of the way.”

And with that, the newly appointed leader of the group stormed into the jungle with the others following.

Eventually, David took the lead as he made a path through the bushes with his sword. “The ridge is just a few hundred paces up ahead.” Hook informed the prince.

“You really think we’re gonna be able to see Pan’s hideout?” Emma asked.

“From there, we should be able to see everything, including where he’s keeping your son.” he replied.

“You know, I could have just poofed us up here in an instant.” Regina remarked with a huff.

“Where?” Nicholas asked, “Regina, have you any idea what’s up here or anywhere on this godforsaken island?”

He then moved to the front when he saw David about to hack at a plant better left alone, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” he warned as he grabbed the prince’s arm.

“I can handle a couple of thorns.” David retorted stubbornly.

“I’d listen to him, mate.” Hook recommended, “That’s Dreamshade. It’s not the thorns you have to worry about. It’s the poison they inject you with. This is the source of the toxins I used on the dark one.”

“The poison that almost killed Gold?” Emma asked.

“Indeed. I used a concentrated dose. In its natural form, death would be slower and far more painful. I suggest we go this way.” he said indicating to another path on his right. David looked to his left and saw a different path.

“We’ll go this way.” he said leading the way.

“Control freak.” Nicholas muttered loud enough to be heard as they pressed on.

“Your father’s a distrustful fellow.” Hook remarked as he walked with Emma and Nicholas.

“He’s just not used to working with the bad guys.” Emma replied.

“I can assure you, on this island, I am not the bad guy.” Hook replied.

“Yeah, well, Pan’s not supposed to be one either.” she remarked.

“What possibly gave you that idea?” he asked.

“Every story I ever heard as a child.”

“Well, they got it all wrong. Pan is the most treacherous villain I’ve ever faced. Tell me something, luv.” Hook said curiously, “In these stories…what was I like? Other than a villain. Handsome, I gather.”

“If waxe-d moustaches and perms are your thing.” Nicholas mumbled feeling annoyed at the pirate’s flirting.

“I take it by your tone, perms are bad?” asked Hook.

“We made it.” David said as they reached the cliff.

“Pan’s lair should be just down there.” Hook informed.

“Where?” Regina asked, “All I see is jungle.”

“The Dark Jungle, as the natives like to call it.” Hook nodded, “Though, it does seem a bit bigger than the last time I was here.”

“So this nature hike was for nothing.” Regina huffed.

“Hook may have led us astray, but at least we’re in a good position to start combing the jungle.” David suggested while taking a shot at the pirate.

“Not exactly.” Nicholas disagreed, “The Dark Jungle’s the last place you wanna set foot. Best bet is for us to go around. We’re gonna need our strength for that, I suggest we find a spot to make camp.”

“You wanna sleep while my son is out there suffering?” Regina asked hotly.

“If we want to live long enough to save the boy? Yes.” Hook nodded.

**OUaT**

Later that evening, Emma woke everyone up and informed them of her meeting with Pan; and how he gave her a supposed map that would lead to Henry.

“He so likes his games.” Hook said bitterly.

“What game?” Regina asked, “There’s nothing there.”

“If he said there’s a map on this parchment, then there is.”

“Great.” Emma huffed, “So if I just stop denying who I really am, whatever that means, then we’ll be able to read this thing.”

“But how do we know Pan won’t use it to lead us straight into a trap?” Regina asked.

“Because he doesn’t need to.” Nicholas replied as he smoked, “This whole island’s his damn trap.”

“There’s no sign of him anywhere.” David informed as he and Snow came back from scoping the area.

“Any luck with the map?” Snow asked.

“Don’t hold your breath.” Regina remarked annoyed.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Emma asked.

“Don’t you see what he’s doing? Every second we spend talking about this is another second we’re not looking for my son.”

“You got a better idea?” she asked dryly.

“Magic. If there’s a lock on there, I’ll find a way around it.”

“That’s a bad idea, sis.” Nicholas warned.

“Pan said it had to be me.” Emma reminded.

“I’d listen to them, luv.” Hook said to the queen, “Breaking Pan’s rules would be unwise.”

“Sadly, I agree with the pirate.” David admitted.

“I’m winning you over. I can feel it.” Hook joked.

“And your magic doesn’t exactly have a gentle touch, Regina.” Snow added.

“Use it on the map, it might blow up in all our faces.” David stressed.

“Well, that’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

“Well, I’m not.” Emma said rising to her feet, “If I’m the one who’s supposed to figure out this thing, I need to do what Pan said.”

“Great.” Regina muttered.

“She’ll get there.” Snow defended, “If he’s playing a game, you can win.”

Despite the overload of confidence from her parents, Emma was completely stumped on what she need to do. With no other thought in mind, she tried the simple approach first.

“My name is Emma Swan.” she said to the map.

“I’d wager the solution to Pan’s riddle is a bit more complicated than that.” Hook remarked.

“Don’t hold anything back.” Snow coached.

“I’m Henry’s mother.” Emma tried again, “I used to live in Boston, and I was a Bails bondsperson. I’m now the sheriff of Storybrooke.”

“That election was a sham.” Regina cut off.

“Regina,” Nicholas snapped, “Not now.”

“Don’t you think maybe you’re leaving some things out?” Snow asked gently.

“…I’m the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, which apparently makes me the product of true love.”

“Oh, for cripes sake, they just wanted to hear her say it.” Nicholas thought bluntly.

“I was born in the Enchanted Forest and I was sent through a portal in a tree so that I could break a curse.”

“And you were able to break the curse because…” David carried, “You’re the…”

“Come on. You don’t need to be embarrassed to say it.” Snow reassured.

“Say what?” asked Hook.

“The ‘S’ word.” Regina replied flatly.

After taking a moment to admit who she was, Emma gave in and said it. “I’m the Savior.”

Unfortunately, the parchment was still blank.

“Well, that was anticlimactic.” Nicholas dryly joked.

“I don’t get it. I said I’m the Savior. There’s nothing I’ve denied more than that.”

“No, it’s okay. We’ll figure it out.” Snow soothed.

“No, you won’t.” Nicholas replied.

“But I can.” Regina said as she took the map.

“Regina!” Snow exclaimed.

“I’m beginning to think there isn’t a map on here. That doesn’t mean it can’t lead us to Henry.”

“I thought we decided that using magic was a bad idea.” David reminded.

“For once I agree with the prince.” Hook threw in causing David to give him a surprised look, “Well, I told you we were getting along.”

“What the hell are you doing?” Emma asked as Regina made the map glow with magic.

“A locator spell.” she replied, “This parchment belonged to Pan. It’ll lead us to him.”

As the magic took its effect, the map floated past them and into the trees. “So it appears we will be venturing into the Dark Jungle after all.” Hook dryly observed.

“You mean the place you told us never to set foot?” Emma asked flatly.

“That’s the one.”

“Well, Emma,” Regina said, “You said you wanted to be the leader. Lead.”

And with that, the party made their way into the dangers of Neverland once more. As they managed to safely maneuver through the jungle, Regina decided to take a moment to gloat.

“Ready to thank me?” she asked Emma.

“Actually, yeah.” she admitted.

“If you’d let me do this sooner, maybe we’d have found him by now. Wait.” Regina said stopping everyone as the map stopped, “He’s there.”

“Oh, yeah.” Nicholas nodded, “I can smell his smugness. Shall we?” he asked as he readied his claws.

“While we still have the element of surprise on our side?” David asked as he drew his sword.

“Careful.” Hook warned, “He may look like a boy, but he’s a bloody demon.”

As they continued on their path, the group saw nothing in sight beyond the surrounding plants and trees. “No one’s here.” Snow said stating the obvious, “Maybe your spell was wrong, Regina.”

“Yes.” she snapped, “Blame me. Again.”

As they made it to the abandoned camp, Emma caught a glimpse of a single person wearing the same clothes as Henry. “Guys. Hold on. Is that…”

“Emma, wait.” Nicholas warned, but the blonde ignored him.

“Henry!” she called as she ran towards the boy. But as he turned around, it was revealed to them all that it was Pan instead.

“Hi, Emma.” he greeted smugly.

“Where the hell is Henry?” she demanded.

“You broke the rules. That’s not fair.” Pan whined with a fake pout, “Bad form. I expect more from you, Captain.”

“Aye, and you’ll get it.” he retorted.

“Give Henry to me.” Emma ordered.

“Sorry. Can’t. Don’t you know? Cheaters never win.” Pan lectured as his followers, the Lost Boys, appeared with their weapons ready.

“Watch out for their arrows.” Hook warned as everyone readied for battle, “They’re laced with Dreamshade.”

As soon as he mentioned the arrows, the Lost Boys fired at them from all sides. David did his best to deflect them as he covered Snow who fired her own arrows at the archers. Seeing one get past him, David knocked his wife out of the way as an arrow tore through his jacket. Regina used her magic to effortlessly render several of the teenagers unconscious while her brother knocked them out with an impressive display of hand-to-hand combat.

Emma tried to get to Pan but was tackled by one of his followers. Thankfully, as they tumbled down the hill, Emma pinned the boy to the ground and pressed her sword against his throat.

“Where’s Henry?! Where is he?!” she shouted, but as she looked into the teen’s eyes, her heart became filled with a feeling she hadn’t felt in years. In her state of shock, she rose to her feet not taking her eyes away.

“Emma, are you alright?” Nicholas asked as Pan gave out a sharp whistle. Hearing their master’s call, the Lost Boys returned to his side like loyal lapdogs.

“Remember what I told you.” he said to Emma, “That map will show you where Henry is, only when you stop denying who you really are. I’ll make sure to send Henry your regards.”

And with that, Peter Pan and his Lost Boys ran back into the jungle in victory. Not much later, the group decided to set up camp and rethink their strategy. Nicholas took the chance to think things through as he smoked his pipe on a rock while Emma leaned against a tree next to him. Noticing their daughter’s frustration, Snow and David decided to try and act like supportive parents again.

“Don’t let him shake your confidence.” Snow coached, “We’ve all had moments where we felt we couldn’t prevail.”

“She’s right.” nodded David.

“Guys, not now. Please.” Emma begged as she walked off with Nicholas following her.

“Emma, wait.” David pleaded only to be stopped by his wife. She then joined the two as they sat in silence staring at the map.

“Please talk to me.” Snow begged.

“Is this the part when you two tell me about how you know exactly what I’m going through?” Emma asked, “How what happened to you in the Enchanted Forest is what I’m dealing with right now?”

“Depends if you’re willing to listen.” Nicholas replied.

“We had our chance and we lost. I lost.” she retorted.

“Then you have to keep fighting.” Snow stressed.

“You heard what Hook said. Pan is a demon.”

“And you are a-”

“What? A Savior?” Emma snapped, “Because if that were true, this map would’ve shown us the way already.”

“Maybe who you think you are isn’t who you really you are.” Nicholas offered.

“What do you mean?” Emma asked.

“Sometimes we think we know ourselves, but we need a push to show us the reality.” he explained, “Just look at me. What do you see? The Evil Queen’s brother? The Immortal Alchemist? The Mayor of Storybrooke’s little brother? That’s not what I see.”

“What do you see?” Emma asked.

Nicholas hesitated before taking a deep breath and gave his answer. “The same thing I have always seen for nearly fifty years. It doesn’t matter how hard Regina tries, how much time she spends trying to make up for lost time. The amounts of gifts and love she gives me…I can never see myself anything other than the lowly thing those bastards made me.”

As he said this, tears silently rolled down his face as everyone, especially Emma and Regina, listened to him and looked to him with sympathy and remorse.

“I can’t look at, hear, or even think about a whip without having a panic attack. I’m afraid that if even one thing is out of place, if a single speck of dust is spotted, someone will lash me. Hell, I can’t even bring myself to get rid of the only scraps I have left that remind me of what I was; what I’ll always be. A nameless boy raised as a piece of property. I will always…always be a slave. Broken, beyond repair.”

“Oh, Abba.” Regina thought sadly as she clenched her fists. Despite her hatred for Snow in the past, if you were ever to ask the queen who it was she hated most, she would say that the monsters who took her brother away from her and made him a slave.

“You know why you couldn’t bring yourself to harm that boy earlier, Emma.” Nicholas stated, “I know you do.”

“Because he was just a boy.” she replied clearly lying.

“No.” Snow disagreed, “There was something else. We could see it in your eyes. Why did you stop?”

“Because when I looked at his face, I saw me.” Emma replied as her voice shook, “That look in his eyes…the despair. I had it back when I was in the foster system. Just a lost little girl who didn’t matter and didn’t think she ever would. A little girl who cried herself to sleep at night ‘cause she wanted her parents so bad.”

As Emma said this, her own voice broke as tears began to form and fall. Nicholas, who managed to dry his own, bowed his head knowing the exact same pain his friend went through. “I couldn’t even do that.” he thought sadly, “Some of the older slaves threatened to kill me if I kept them up with my crying.”

“And could never understand…why they gave her up.”

“…And then you found us. It was too late.” Snow whispered shedding tears of her own.

“It’s just, on this island…I-I don’t feel like a hero or a savior. I just feel like what I’ve always been. An orphan.”

Finally admitting who she was, Emma sat in silence as the map revealed the true location of Henry. Rising to his feet, Nicholas gave the two women a moment alone while he composed himself. Putting a bit of distance between himself and the camp, Nicholas began to seethe with anger, the type that would only go away after hitting something. So, Nicholas took one look at the closest tree, clenched his hand as it sparked with alchemic electricity, and slammed it against the trunk causing it to deconstruct into millions of tiny splinters.

He didn’t say anything, he only growled like a wild animal before storming back to camp to join the others.


	23. Good Form

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

“How much further?” Regina asked as the party walked through the ever humid jungle of Neverland.

“We should be getting close to Pan’s lair.” Emma replied as she took out the map. But as soon as she did, the X indicating Henry’s location moved to an entirely different spot on the island.

“How is it behind us now?” Nicholas asked.

“You got us lost.” Regina said flatly.

“No, she didn’t.” Hook replied, “It’s the camp, Pan’s moving it.”

“He’s playing tricks on us.” David stated.

“If Pan’s camp keeps moving, how are we gonna find Henry?” Emma asked.

“I assume that’s Pan’s idea.” Nicholas speculated.

“So this whole trek has been for nothing.” said Regina, “I told you walking was idiotic. If I can just use some magic, we can materialize in the camp and grab Henry.”

“We don’t know where the camp is. Have you even been listening?” Snow asked.

“Pan will have shields against magic.” warned Hook, “I fear such an attempt would end in your death, and, more importantly, mine, which is why we’re walking.”

“Well, then what’s your idea?” she asked, “How are we going to find it?”

“By using someone he trusts.” he replied.

“Who?” David asked, “Because I guess he certainly doesn’t trust you.”

“A fairy who lived here when I was about. She might still be on the island. She’d be an inside source. Knows all about the cam, can get us in. She might even have some pixie dust left. Perhaps we could fly in.”

“You mean fairy dust.” Emma corrected.

“Actually, pixie dust is much stronger. Think nuclear fairy dust.” Nicholas explained.

“Wait. A fairy…Tinkerbell?” Emma asked not believing her ears.

“What’d you expect? We’re in freaking Neverland.” Nicholas replied.

“Bad idea.” Regina denied, “Mark my words. This Tinkerbell is not going to save us.”

“What makes you say-oh, right.” Nicholas said as he remembered his sister’s past with the fairy. As they day went on, the group eventually realized that the former fairy was out to end Regina’s life, which she nearly did shortly before they found them and learned of her change of heart. So thankfully, they found themselves with a new ally. The following morning, they decided to review their plan of attack.

“This is where they’re keeping Henry.” Emma said as she pointed to a dirt map, “According to, uh…”

“Tinkerbell.” she finished.

“Yeah, I know. Still weird to say.” Emma said awkwardly.

“Tink is fine.” she offered.

“Not sure that’s any better.” Emma muttered, “Anyway, she says that there are sentries positioned across the front, which is why we are gonna come in through the back entrance here. She’s gonna talk her way in. Once she makes sure the coast is clear, then we are going to sneak on in.”

“You’ll still have to deal with any Lost Boys once you’re inside.” Tink reminded.

“I think we can handle a few children with pointy sticks.” Regina dryly reassured.

“It’s not the sticks you need to worry about.” snapped Tink, “It’s the poison they’re dipped in.”

“Dreamshade. Hook warned us.” Nicholas informed while smoking.

“Good. Because one nick, and you’ll spend the last of-”

“Poison sticks equal death. We got it.” David interrupted, “Now can we put this rescue mission into action?”

“I wonder how long he thinks he can fool the others besides me and Hook that he got cut the other day?” Nicholas flatly thought as he glanced at the former shepherd.

“I’m ready to go. Just as soon as you tell me the exit plan.” Tink informed. No one spoke up at the mention of an exit plan. “You do have an escape plan, don’t you?”

“Well, to be honest, the majority of us thought we’d be done by now.” Nicholas bluntly remarked.

“If you don’t have a way off this island, then none of this matters.”

“We’ll figure it out.” said Regina.

“No one comes and goes from this place unless he allows it.” Tink stressed, “This is a waste of time.”

“When it comes to family, we always find a way.” David argued.

“You don’t get it. Let me show you something. You know what this is?” Tink asked as she pulled out a wrist watch, “I got it from the people who brought your son here for Pan.”

“Greg and Tamara?” Emma asked, “Where are they? Why’d they give you that?”

“I got it off the girl’s body.” Tink clarified, “Spent half the night cleaning the blood off it. And the other guy…well, there wasn’t enough left of him to find anything useful.”

“So much for tearing out Owen’s trachea.” Nicholas bluntly thought in disappointment.

“This is what Pan does to people he employs. What do you think he’s gonna do to you?” Tink asked as she walked off, “I’m not sticking my neck on Pan’s chopping block without a way off this island. When you figure that out, you know where I live.”

“Where the hell is she going?” Snow asked.

“I’ll get her.” David offered only to be stopped by his daughter.

“Don’t, she’s right. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, you never break in somewhere unless you know the way out.”

“And where’d you get that, in bail bondsperson school?” Regina asked.

“Neal taught me that.” Emma retorted.

“What about you, Hook?” David asked, “You got off this island before.”

“Yes, aboard my ship, which would require some form of magic to create a portal, which I got from Pan in a deal I don’t think he’s ready to repeat.”

“So no one’s ever left the island without Pan’s permission?” Regina asked hotly.

“One man.” Hook replied, “Emma’s partner in crime, Neal.”

“Maybe we can find out.” Hook suggested as he led the way. Eventually, the party came to an abandoned cave covered with a door.

“What is this supposed to be?” Nicholas asked.

“So what, Neal swung out of Neverland on a vine?” Emma asked.

“Well, if someone would be kind enough to lend me a hand.” Hook joked, “What do you say, Savior?”

“I’ll do it.” David said stepping in as he raised the door.

“Ladies first.” Nicholas gestured.

“Hook!” Emma called from inside the cave, “What is this place? What are we doing here?”

Hook tried to use his namesake to light a torch but was quickly shown up by Nicholas who simply snapped his fingers with a smirk. As light filled the room, everyone could see drawings scratched onto the walls, clearly made by a child.

“Neal.” Emma realized, “This is where he lived.

“Aye.” Hook nodded, “Baelfire spent some time in Neverland as a boy. This was his home.”

“So you think he may have left a clue as to how he escaped from here?” Nicholas asked.

“Well, let’s hope so, or we’ll be lost just like he was.”

Given the lack of things inside the cave, Emma and Nicholas resulted in going by what was drawn on the walls while the others searched through what was left.

“Any luck on your end?” Nicholas asked Emma.

“I can’t tell yet. I’m hoping Neal left something useful in the details of one of these. Maybe a map, some kind of clue.” she explained before spotting a coconut candle next to David, “Hand me that candle.”

“Has found anything yet?” Nicholas asked.

“No potted bean plant or swirling vortex under the rug, if that’s what you mean.” Hook replied, “There are other drawings on the far wall, but as far as I can tell, that’s all they are. Probably just a way to pass the time and keep occupied.”

“You knew him pretty well, didn’t you?” Emma asked.

“We spent some time together.” Hook replied in sadness.

“What’s all this?” Nicholas asked the others.

“Uh, just some cups and bowls he fashioned from things he found here.” Snow replied.

“Don’t know how great a cup this coconut would make.” David said as he inspected one, “It’s filled with holes.”

“Looks more like a lid, to me.” Nicholas observed.

“Uh, maybe it’s a tiny colander.” Snow speculated.

“Yes, because preteen Balefire probably made lots of pastas.” Regina said sarcastically.

“Or better yet, something well more useful.” Emma said as she took the lid from David, “Hook, snuff out that torch.”

As he did, the light from the candle shined through the little holes up to the ceiling. “Am I supposed to be impressed that he made a nightlight?” Regina asked.

“Look up.” Emma said. Everyone did and saw that the little lights greatly resembled one thing in particular, “Stars.”

“It’s a map.” Nicholas observed, “Nicely done, Emma.”

“To where?” David asked.

“Home.” Emma replied.

“How can you be so sure it’s a map?” Snow asked.

“Star gazing was a hobby I picked up on after I escaped Xerxes.” Nicholas replied as they all looked at the ceiling, “Had to do something to pass the time when I wasn’t having a night terror.”

“He’s right.” Hook nodded, “There was a short time in Neverland when Balefire was aboard my ship. I taught him to navigate using the stars. What you’re looking at is the fruit of my labors.”

“Then you can read it?” Regina asked.

“Sadly, no.”

“I thought you just said you taught him how?” David asked.

“You taught him to how to keep it in code, didn’t you?” Nicholas asked.

“Aye. He was an apt pupil.” Hook nodded.

“So you’re saying the only person who can read this map is Neal?” Snow asked.

“Which means the only person who can read it is dead.” Emma pointed out before leaving the cave with her parents following her.

“Certainly doesn’t look like our fearless leader is completely over her old flame.” Regina observed speaking to her brother.

“Is that what you’ve gathered?” he asked dryly.

“Guess you struck out on this one, too.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Stop it.” Regina said flatly, “Don’t think I haven’t noticed the way you’ve been looking at her since we got here and that I didn’t see your little moment back in the mines.”

“Is there a point you’re trying to make, sister dear?” Nicholas asked as his temper began to rise.

“What exactly do you think will happen when this is all said and done?” she asked.

“I expect us to be back home with Henry and be as far away from Peter Pan and Neverland as possible. What did you have in mind?” he snapped.

“Nicholas,” Regina sighed.

“No, go on.” he urged, “Speak your mind. Nothing’s stopped you before, why stop now?”

“I’m just saying, that maybe Emma isn’t exactly the best choice for you right now.”

“Are you saying this because you hate her and her parents or because you’re acting like an over-protective sibling again?” Nicholas asked, “And despite what feelings you think I have for her, all that matters is getting Henry back. Besides, even if I did- and I’m not saying I do, because I don’t! What future would I have with her? She’s the Savior and I’m an immortal monster. So let’s just drop it and try and find another way to get out of here.”

“Stop calling yourself that.” Regina sighed as the others came back in. Emma went back to her searching and discovered a chilling sight; a patch of the wall covered in tally marks.

“Whoa.” she said.

“What is it?” David asked.

“It appears Neal marked his days trapped on this island.” Hook observed.

“Yeah, but it looks like he stopped at some point.” Nicholas pointed out.

“Because he got off the island.” Snow said with her annoying sense of hope.

“He was here longer.” Emma denied.

“Then why would he stop?” David asked.

“Because he lost hope.” Nicholas replied.

“You got that from scribbles?” Regina asked.

“It’s what I did every time I went to a new foster home.” Emma pointed out, “I counted days until counting seemed pointless. You ever do that, Nicholas?”

“I didn’t learn to count until I was thirteen. Besides, I had forgotten most of what my family was like so there was no real sense in hoping to escape. Especially when you’re raised not to hope and think that all you’ll ever be is a filthy slave.” he said bluntly before pretending to be peppy, “I’m not bitter~!”

“You think Henry’s lost hope too.” David said to Emma.

“Pan said that he would.”

“Hey. We’re gonna rescue him.”

“Yeah, I know that and you know that, but Henry doesn’t know that.” Emma reminded, “Pan wants him to lose faith.”

“So what, you want to send him a message?” Regina asked, “Because I haven’t seen a Neverland post office. What are you suggesting?”

“We take a page from Pan and we start being clever. We need to send a simple sign, a sign that we’re coming.”

“Yeah, with Lost Boys running around, trying to kill us all?”

“Yeah, maybe it’s time we used that to our advantage.” Snow suggested.

“How?”

“Follow me, I’ll show you.” she said leading them out of the cave. At their newly made campsite, Snow and Emma sat in front of the fire as they made snares for Snow’s plan.

“A trap?” Regina scoffed, “That’s your plan?”

“The Lost Boys wanna come after us, we need to go after them.” Snow replied.

“You really think a Lost Boy is gonna betray Pan?” Hook asked.

“David, we need more vines.” Snow informed while ignoring the pirate.

“On it.” he said, “You’re coming with me, pirate.”

“Why is that?”

“Because we need more rope.” Emma reminded.

“If the lady insists.” Hook relented as he went off with David. As this happened, Nicholas, once again, took a moment to smoke as he stared off into space.

“Hey, Nicholas,” Snow said, “You mind giving us a hand?”

“Hmm.” he said not paying attention.

“Nicholas.” Snow said again, “Nicholas!”

“Here.” Regina said picking up a rock, “Let me.”

She then threw it directly at her brother’s head only to watch him catch it without so much as looking. Letting out a puff of smoke, he looked to his sister with an unimpressed look.

“Throwing a rock? That was your big idea?” he asked.

“Worked, didn’t it?” she retorted, “Now stop puffing like a chimney and help us.”

“Fine.” he sighed as he reached into his vest pocket. Pulling out a piece of thread, Nicholas held it in his fist which sparked with alchemy before throwing it into the air and watched as it came back down as rope. “There. Now may I go back to smoking, please?”

“Why do always do that?” Emma asked.

“Do what?” he asked.

“Smoke at every chance you get even when we’re about to face danger.”

“It helps me think.” he replied before taking a deep breath and letting out a ring of smoke, “Besides, it’s not like it can kill me. Though, I don’t recommend doing it. It’s an unhealthy habit.”

“Then why do it?” she asked bluntly.

“It’s not unhealthy for me.” Nicholas chuckled while sticking it back in his mouth. Eventually, David and Hook came back with more rope and possible good news. Hook had discovered a chance at finding his late brother’s sextant on the island which could help navigate with Neal’s map.

“You’re telling us about this now?” Emma asked hotly.

“How do we know you’re not lying?” Regina asked.

“He’d have nothing to gain from it, guys.” Nicholas defended, “Seriously, stop trying to find a reason not to trust Hook and just accept his help. This is beyond getting old.”

“Aye, thanks, mate.” Hook said to the alchemist who nodded back, “Anyway, it’s the best hope yet we’ve had of an exit plan. And don’t forget, we’re gonna need one.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Emma asked.

“Emma,” Hook whispered, “You were right. We need to get that message to Henry. Every day without hope is a day closer to becoming a Lost Boy. Your father and I should go.”

“Hook’s right.” David agreed.

“You wanna split up?” Snow asked.

“It’s the last thing I wanna do. But there’s a chance he can get us home.”

“Okay.” she relented.

“Emma,” he said looking deep into his daughter’s eyes, “While I’m gone, just-”

“Listen to my mother?” she teased.

“Be careful.”

“Always am.”

“And when you send that message to Henry, add something to it, would ya? Tell him…tell him grandpa loves him.” he said before pulling her into a tight hug.

“Oh. Um, okay.” Emma said surprised, “Good luck.”

“Yeah. You too.” David whispered before going to his wife.

“Are you alright?” she asked.

“Yeah. I just gotta go.” he said as he pulled her in close.

“I’ll see you soon.” Snow said with love.

“Well, you know,” David said nervously, “Neverland’s a dangerous place, and you know, you-you just never know what’s gonna happen.”

“David. You’re gonna be fine.” Snow reassured before sharing a passionate kiss with her husband.

“I love you.” he whispered before leaving.

Soon afterwards, they three women and Nicholas set up the trap which was only a net hanging over a pig being hunted by a Lost Boy. With a shot from her bow, Snow tried to trap him with it, but was unsuccessful due to the boy moving out of the way. So, to make sure he didn’t get away, Nicholas used his alchemy to make a cage around the boy instead.

“I knew this plan wasn’t gonna work.” he muttered as they approached the cage.

“What are you doing?!” the boy exclaimed, “Are you trying to start a war with Pan?!”

“Pan started the war when he kidnapped my son.” Emma spat.

“But that doesn’t make you our enemy.” Regina reassured as she made a candy bar appear in her hand.

“What’s that?” he asked defensively as Nicholas brought the cage down.

“Chocolate. I thought you might like the taste of something sweet.” Regina replied smiling.

“We don’t wanna hurt you.” Emma informed, “We just need you to deliver a message to Henry.”

“Why should I help you?”

“Because you had a home and a family once and you stopped believing you could get back to them. Now we’re here. We can help not just Henry, but all of you. We can get you home.”

For a moment, the boy seemed willing to take their offer after taking the candy, but this was proven wrong when he threw it into the trees. “Don’t you get it?” he asked, “I’m here because I don’t want to go home. None of us do.”

“Pan’s a monster. Look what he did to you.” Emma pointed out indicating to the cut on his face.

“Oh, Pan didn’t do that.” he laughed, “Henry did.”

“You’re lying.” Emma said trying to control her anger.

“Am I?” he asked smugly. Next thing he knew, Emma shoved him against the nearest tree and began to strangle him, “It’s too late. Henry is a Lost Boy now. Your boy is one of the most vicious new recruits we’ve had in ages!”

Having enough, Snow pulled her daughter off the child before she did anything she would regret. “Don’t let him get to you.”

“Enough of this.” Nicholas hissed as he slammed his hand against the boy’s mouth before he performed his alchemy.

“What are you doing?” Snow asked the angry alchemist.

“Speeding things along. Either do as we say or else.” Nicholas threatened.

“Or else what?” the boy asked.

“This.” Nicholas snarled as his hand surged with alchemic electricity over the boy’s face. Filled with pain, the boy screamed at the top of his lungs as blood erupted from his face. With his face and hands covered in his own blood, the boy sank to the ground and covered what was left in pain just before Nicholas grabbed him again and healed the injury he inflicted. In a bright light, the boy’s face was completely healed, even the cut Henry gave him was gone.

“Next time I do that, I won’t so courteous as to heal you. Understand?” Nicholas asked. As the teen looked up at him, he could swear that one of the alchemist’s eyes was glowing red in the shadow on his face.

“Nicholas, how could you do that?!” Snow cried in horror.

“Because I am tired of having to tip-toe my way around this island because of you and your husband’s constant nagging about how things ought to be done the ‘right’ way.” he snapped, “What better way to convince a stubborn, adolescent child to do something than by using the fear of pain? Emma was right, we don’t need to worry about morality here. Results are the only things that matter, and if being this brutal to our enemies is what gets us closer to Henry, then I’m prepared to shed as much blood as necessary.”

After his heated rant, Nicholas looked back to the cowering boy with a terrifying glare. “Now,” he growled, “Where is he?!”

“Despite how proud I am of your display in methods, brother dear,” Regina interjected, “I have something better in mind.”

“Don’t you think he’s been through enough?” Snow asked.

“Not hardly.” Nicholas muttered, “What did you have in mind?”

“Simple, I tear out his heart and he’ll do exactly as we say.”

“This is not how we do things.” Snow lectured, “Emma, we can find another way to get Henry.”

“Really?” Regina asked, “And what do you think, Emma?”

“…I think we need to talk to our son.” she replied.

“We can’t do this, that is brutal.” Snow stressed.

“I know, but she can.” Emma said as she pulled her mother to the side and held her back.

“Emma!”

“Do it, Regina.” Emma ordered.

“Emma!” Snow cried.

“I’m sorry.” Emma whispered as Regina did the deed. Sometime later, Emma sat in silence as her mother stood next to her disappointed in her decision.

“Mary Margaret, I’m sorry.” Emma apologized.

“You don’t have to apologize to me.” she replied flatly, “It’s Henry I’m worried about.”

“I know. That’s why I’m willing to let Regina and Nicholas do whatever it takes.”

“When we finally get to him, I just wanna make sure the line is still there.”

“What line?”

“Between what Regina and Nicholas are willing to do and what you are.”

“I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get him home.” Emma replied.

“But the cost can’t be this family.”

“It won’t be.”

“You can stand there and huff all you want, princess.” Nicholas remarked as he smoked, “But you know that what we did was the best option. So stop pouting because we didn’t do things your way.”

“Second thoughts?” Regina asked after letting the boy go.

“Let’s get him that message.” Emma answered.

“Oh, we’re gonna do more than that.” Regina informed as she pulled out and separated a compact mirror, “We’re gonna see him.”

Eventually, the boy did as he was forced to do, deliver the mirror to Henry. Thanks to Regina’s magic, the three women and Nicholas were able to have a magical facetime with the boy.

“Henry, are you okay?” Regina asked.

“Henry, can you hear me?” Emma asked.

“Mom?” Henry asked.

“I’m here too, Henry!” Snow said happily.

“Hey, kiddo!” Nicholas added.

“No.” Henry denied, “This is a trick.”

“No. No, it’s not a trick. Henry, I promise you this is real.” Emma reassured, “Kid it’s Operation Cobra Rescue. It’s us.”

“You’re here?”

“Yes. We’re coming to get you.”

“There’s someone coming.” he warned, “It’s Pan. I-I gotta go.”

“We love you.” Regina said hoping to say it at least one more time before he tossed the mirror away.

“You think he’s okay?” Snow asked as they went back to camp.

“He’s fine.” Nicholas reassured, “I raised him to be tougher than anything those boys can dish out. Besides, he’s a survivor. He knows we’re coming so he knows he has something to survive for.”

“I’m sorry I doubted you, Emma.” Snow apologized, “I’m just…I know how easy it is to give into the darkness. I didn’t want you to-”

“She didn’t.” Regina interjected, “We did. That’s what Nicholas and I are here for.”

“I smell rum and hair gel.” Nicholas informed as he sniffed the air.

“That would be us.” David informed as he and Hook joined them.

“Aha! He admits it!” Nicholas exclaimed pointing at the prince who rushed up to passionately kiss his wife, “Get a room, why don’t you?”

“Where’s the sextant?” Regina asked.

“I’m afraid Pan got to it first.” Hook informed as the couple separated for air.

“Not that I’m complaining, but-”

“Okay, I’m complaining.” Emma said bluntly in disgust at her parents’ display.

“What I wouldn’t give for another sleeping curse.” Regina muttered.

“Hook,” David said after they finally finished kissing, “He saved my life.”

“You sure you wanna tell them that, mate?” Hook hesitantly asked.

“On our trek, we were ambushed by Lost Boys. Pinned down, outnumbered. But Hook, he risked his life to stop me from getting hit by a poisoned arrow. If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be alive. Your flask, please.”

Hook pulled it out and watched the prince uncork it. “I thought he deserved a little credit.”

“Thank you.” Hook nodded as the prince took a drink and then gave the flask to his wife.

“To Hook.” she praised before taking a swig.

“I don’t do rum.” Regina said when Snow offered it to her.

“I do.” Nicholas informed as he took the flask and drank, “To Hook.”

“To Hook.” Emma nodded as she did the same.

“Thank you.” Hook nodded, “All of you. And while I am very much enjoying basking in your good graces, for a change, keeping the prince alive all day has left me weary. Goodnight.”

“Well, today was certainly productive.” Nicholas said once it was just him and Emma.

“Hopefully, things will keep going this way. Then we can get Henry and get the hell out of here.” Emma nodded.

“What? You’re not enjoying our little humid as hell, deadly, tropical rainforest vacation from hell?” he asked playfully.

“If you like it here so much, we can just leave you behind, if you want.” Emma teased.

“Come on. You’d miss me and you know it.”

“To be honest, I’d rather be off in Middle Earth fighting Orcs instead of a bunch of teenagers. Think it’s too late to join up with the Fellowship?”

“Heh, heh, hate to burst your bubble, Em, but that story ended a long time ago.” Nicholas chuckled.

“How do you know that?” she asked.

“Well…”

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.” Emma deadpanned, “You went to Middle Earth?!”

“The books and movies may say nine companions, but there were far more than you’d think.” he replied, “I’m in more stories than most even know, Emma.”

“Anything I’d be interested in?” she asked with a coy smirk.

“Uh,” Nicholas stuttered. Despite normally being calm, cool and collected and having a (brief) relationship with one of the biggest, most beautiful flirts in Storybrooke, Nicholas was still nervous when it came to attractive women flirting with him; and seeing as it was Emma for a change, he was even worse than ever.

“Uh, w-we-well, wha-wha-”

“Nicholas, relax. I’m just messing with you.” Emma said before walking off with an extra sway in her hips. “I just love teasing him.” she thought grinning.

“Why’d I have to go and fall for a girl like her?” Nicholas asked in his mind.


	24. Dark Hollow

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

Later that evening, Emma decided to do the one thing she never thought she would ever do, take magic lessons from her step-grandmother the Evil Queen. It was a tough decision, one that her parents were clearly against, but knowing what or rather who was at stake, Emma realized there was no other choice.

“Focus.” Regina instructed. The current lesson was trying to light a camp fire, “Concentrate.” she snapped.

“It’s kind of hard when you’re talking in my ear.” Emma shot back.

“And when the wind blows or it’s raining, or someone’s shooting arrows at you. Yes, concentrating’s hard. That’s the point. Find your anger and use it to focus.” Regina lectured.

“No. There has to be a way without going dark.” Emma debated.

“The only one who can make sure that doesn’t happen is you, Emma.” Nicholas informed while enjoying yet another smoke.

“You’re such a pathetic waste of ability.” Regina diminished.

“And you’re a monster.” Emma retorted hotly.

“Smell that?” Regina asked.

“What?”

“Smoke.” she said pointing at the slowly building flame. Nicholas then noticed Hook have a brief conversation with Emma’s parents before they decided to gather their things.

“Where you guys going?” she asked.

“To get firewood.” Hook answered.

“Water.” David lied as Hook lied.

“Guys, what’s going on?”

“Neal’s alive.” Snow blurted causing Nicholas to choke on his smoke.

“Oh, just my luck.” he muttered as he coughed.

“Neal i-is…alive?” Emma softly asked.

“Maybe. Sorry, she deserved to know.” Snow said to David and Hook.

“Ever the blabber mouth, eh, Snow?” Nicholas asked while coughing, “Oh, what’s in that stuff?”

“If we head out now, maybe we can find him before dark.” David offered.

“Why?” Regina asked, clearly unhappy, “So we can make another detour from finding my son?”

“Regina, we all want to save Henry,” Snow reminded, “But if Neal’s here, we have to-”

“No, we don’t.” she snapped, “This is a waste of time. He’s toying with us.”

“I don’t think so.” Snow denied before going over to a patch of tracks, “Look. More scuffling. Someone was definitely resisting.”

“How do we know that means Neal?” Emma asked.

“Well, then someone was fighting for his life.”

“Are you really going to fall for this?” Regina asked, “Fine. You wanna follow the evil munchkin’s dirt road? Be my guest.”

“Wait.” Nicholas said as his sister walked away, “Sis, where are you going?”

“To save our son.”

“We need to stick together.” Emma stressed.

“No, we don’t.” Regina laughed, “You may be prepared to risk Henry’s life over some heartbroken fool’s errand, but I’m not. I’m tired of waiting around. Nicholas, come on.”

Instead of following his sister, Nicholas looked back and forth between her and the others. Seeing this, Regina stopped and looked to her sibling hotly.

“Are you coming or not?” she snapped.

“I-”

“I see. Looks like I accused the wrong person of being a fool.” Regina said coldly, “While you’re busy acting like a lapdog for these morons, I’ll be getting Henry. See you around, little brother.”

And with that, the Evil Queen left her brother with the Charmings and pirate.

“Oh, she’s such a hot head.” Nicholas groaned.

“What if she’s right? Pan could be lying.” Emma said.

“Just because it seems too good to be true doesn’t mean it is.” Snow reassured, “Don’t give up. You owe it to Henry to find out if his father’s still alive, and you owe it to yourself. The tracks lead directly into that cave.” she informed once they reached the end of the trail.

“So this is where Pan’s keeping Neal.” Nicholas observed, “Yah! We go save my crush’s ex!”

“If the cave is some sort of prison, why aren’t there any guards posted to stop us?” David asked.

“Because this prison doesn’t require guards.” Hook informed solemnly, “Echo Cave.”

“You know it?” Snow asked.

“All too well. I lost half my crew inside those rock walls. The only way to rescue someone from inside is to reveal a secret.”

“A secret?” she asked, “That’s all?”

“Your darkest secret.” Hook clarified.

“Oh, crap.” Nicholas thought, “Well, at least I have plenty to choose from.”

“Echo Cave derives its name from an old saying: the deeper the lie, the more truth in its echo. The cave demands that you reveal a truth about yourself. A secret you would never admit to anyone.”

“This is ridiculous.” Emma said flatly.

“Don’t kill the messenger, luv.”

“Even if we spill our guts, how do we know Neal’s still alive in there?” Nicholas asked.

“Because this is what Pan wants.” Hook replied, “He wants us to rescue him.”

“Why?” David asked.

“So that we reveal our secrets. He believes once we do, our secrets will destroy us.”

“Ain’t that a pleasant thought?” Nicholas said bluntly as they ventured into the cave. Once inside, they came to a cliff and saw a bamboo cage on a rock column over a gorge with Neal inside.

“Emma!” Neal called out as he spotted her.

“Neal.” she whispered.

“It must be a hundred feet across.” Snow speculated.

“A hundred and eight, to be precise.” Nicholas corrected, “Though something tells me I can’t just make a bridge and get him out of here.”

“Even if we fashioned a rope, there’s nothing to attach it to.” David observed, “We can’t swing over.”

“So what do we do?” Emma asked.

“I told you what needs to be done.” Hook reminded, “Consider this the moment of truth; literally. Now who wants to kick things off?”

“So what? Someone tells their secret and they sprout wings?” Emma skeptically asked.

“I don’t know the particulars, only what I’ve been told.” Hook retorted.

“Well, how do you know it’ll work?” David asked.

“There’s only one way to find out, I suppose.” Hook said with a heavy sigh, “I kissed Emma.”

“You did what?!” David asked while Nicholas nearly did the same.

“David, now is not the time.” Snow reminded.

“I already told Mary Margaret, so technically it’s not a secret.” Emma informed, “But it was just a kiss. How’s that your darkest secret?”

“It’s what the kiss exposed. My secret is, I never thought I’d be capable of letting go of my first love, of my Milah. To believe that I could find someone else that is, until I met you.”

As soon as Hook finished, the ground shook and a piece of a bridge formed at the edge of the cliff.

“Uh, Mary Margaret,” David said only to be cut off by his wife.

“No, no. No. Me next.” she said nervously, “Ever since the curse broke, since we found each other, since we found Emma and all of that happiness, there is something I haven’t wanted to admit. Our daughter is a beautiful, smart, amazing woman whom I love very much, and of whom I could not be more proud. But she’s all grown up. And as much as I wanna pretend I’m okay with that, I’m not. We missed it, David. What we have with her is unique, but it’s not what I wanted. We were cheated out of everything, her first step, her first word, her first smile. We missed it all.”

Hearing this made Nicholas feel guilty. True, he wasn’t the one who cast the curse. But he didn’t do anything to stop Regina and that made him angry. Despite his anger towards Snow and David, he still had a conscience and that conscience told him then that he should have done something because he knew one thing that he had known for a long time.

No parent or child should live without one another.

“What are you saying?” David asked.

“When we get off this island and get back to Storybrooke, I want another go at it. I wanna have another baby.”

Another piece of the bridge was formed, and yet David looked absolutely heartbroken.

“Nothing in this world would make me happier, and I know with all my heart that you would make an amazing mother. But it can never happen…at least not with me.”

“What do you mean?”

“When Hook and I went to search for the sextant, he was really taking me to find a cure.”

“A cure for what?” Snow asked growing angry.

“Dreamshade.” David whispered.

“The Lost Boys, the arrow-you pushed me out of the way-”

“I wasn’t fast enough. I was hit. Hook was able to find a cure, but it comes at a price. I can’t leave Neverland. If I do, I’ll die.”

And so, another piece formed. Only one more was needed to complete the bridge. Nicholas decided it was his turn.

“Alright.” he muttered as everyone looked to him, “As all of you, save for Hook, know, my immortality comes from my Philosopher’s Stone. But what none of you, not even Regina, know is how it works.”

Moving it from his chest, Nicholas willed the Stone to show itself in the flesh of the palm of his hand.

“The Stone isn’t some sort of wondrous achievement. It’s the devil’s work.”

“What do you mean?” Emma asked as Nicholas clenched his fist in frustration.

“The Stone can only be created by sacrificing multiple human lives. It’s the energy of a person’s life force condensed into physical form; the more lives used, the stronger the Stone and the longer it will last. But mine is different. Unlike other Stones, mine is what you could call ‘perfected.’ An average Philosopher Stone eventually burns out and disintegrates once all its energy is used up. But mine won’t, it recycles the energy of the souls that make it up in a constant cycle every time I use my alchemy. The only reason I have so much power is because of the number of souls the bastard who gave me my stone used.”

“How many lives were sacrificed for it?” Snow asked feeling sorry for Nicholas. But the alchemist looked away in both shame and pain.

“Nicholas, how many?” Emma asked softly. With a deep breath, he gave his answer.

“536, 329.” he informed causing everyone to gasp in horror, “And that was only half the population of Xerxes.”

“What happened to the other half?” David asked.

“What do you think?” Nicholas asked, “He used them to make a Stone for himself; though, it’s not perfected like mine. But that’s not my secret.”

“What is it then?” Emma asked.

“The souls of the people were like an ocean of screaming and despair flowing throughout my body. One of the main reasons why I tried to commit suicide so many times was to stop the voices. But eventually, I tried to console them and make peace with them. Unfortunately, one by one, their souls’ energy was being used to keep me alive and to fuel my powers. Day by day the amount of screaming slowly dwindled to the few I managed to help and befriend. I had actually wanted them to stay because they were the only ones I could relate to. But every time they faded away, it was like kneeling on the floor next to their deathbeds as I felt them leave me. My secret is, that even though I was sad that they were gone…I was actually happy that the screaming in my head was gone. I was happy that their individuality and very existence was gone. What kind of person does that? I can never forgive myself for that. Never. I really am a monster.”

Everyone became sad for Nicholas when he admitted his secret, they didn’t even notice the bridge completing itself until Emma took a glace and headed over Neal’s cage.

“You okay?” Emma asked trying to get over what Nicholas said.

“Yeah.” Neal nodded, “But Henry-”

“It’s okay. We’re gonna take care of him. Just need to get you out of here first.” Emma said before she tried hacking at the cage with her cutlass.

“Wh-Emma, Emma, Emma, Emma!” Neal exclaimed over the clanging, “You know that’s not how this works. It’s okay, you can tell me anything.”

“…When I heard you might be here, that you might be still alive…I knew I should be happy, but I wasn’t. I was terrified.” she admitted, “I didn’t understand why until now. From the moment I saw you in New York, the instant you stepped back into my life, I knew. I knew I’d never stop loving you. And before I even had a chance to take a breath, I lost you once more, and all that pain that I pushed down for all those years, it just came rushing back, and I didn’t know if I could go through it again.”

By this time, Emma was crying. “I love you. I probably always will. But my secret…is that I was hoping that this was a trick. I was hoping you were dead because it would be easier for me to put you behind me than to face all the pain we went through all over again. My secret is…I love someone else and that I was afraid that if you really were alive…I’d never get to be with him because the walls I had up to keep you from hurting me again would keep him out too.”

No one on the other side could hear this, so when the cage opened and Neal flung his arms around Emma in apology, Nicholas took this the wrong way and believed that Emma had made her choice. He looked down trying to mask his pain and made his way out of the cave first.

As everyone else came out, Neal looked to the group in gratitude. “Thank you.” he said.

“Well, don’t thank us yet. We still have to save Henry.” David reminded.

“We found your star map, so the real question is, do you know how to get off this island?” Hook asked.

“If we can find Henry, I can get us home.”

“Then let’s get Tinkerbell and retrieve the boy.” Hook said as he and everyone else headed back to the camp. As Nicholas followed them, he saw Emma and Neal talk through the branches and look away in sadness and pain before pressing on. Once they made camp again, Neal discussed his plan of getting everyone off the island.

“Pan’s shadow?” Emma asked, “That’s your way off the island?”

“Unfortunately, it’s the only way.” Neal replied.

“We thought you learned how to navigate the stars.” said David.

“I know how to navigate the stars, but I can’t fly.” Neal replied.

“I’m guessing that’s where the shadow comes in.” Snow pointed out.

“That’s why we have to capture it.”

“Capture it?” Emma asked, “We’ve never been within ten feet of Pan unless he wanted us to be. Sneaking up on him to steal his shadow? That sounds insane.”

“Except Pan’s shadow is rarely with him. It’s an entity unto itself. It can carry out his will from miles away.” Hook explained.

“What does that mean for us?” Nicholas asked.

“It means we can get his shadow without having to be anywhere near Pan, as long as we know where to look. I know where to look.” Neal informed.

“Okay. You and I are on shadow duty.” said Emma.

“As am I.” Hook decided, “This trek won’t be easy. You could use another veteran of the island.”

“Thanks, man.” Neal nodded.

“Well, in the meantime, we’ll give Tinkerbell a heads up, see if she can make good on her promise to get us into Pan’s camp.” David said.

“Okay, we meet back at Tink’s. Then we get Henry and get the hell back to Storybrooke.”

“Nicholas,” Emma said as the alchemist stared into space, “You coming?”

“…I guess.” he muttered as he got up and followed the blonde and two men. Back at Neal’s cave, the former Lost Boy searched around for something clearly important.

“Something tells me we won’t find Pan’s shadow in here, mate.” Hook said dryly.

“Yeah, well, we’re looking for something else.” Neal replied, “It’s a coconut carved in two. One part holds a candle the other part goes on top of it.”

“Yeah, your star map.” Emma realized, “We hid it. I’ll go grab it.”

“I owe you thanks, for being so understanding.” Hook said to Neal once Emma left.

“Understanding about what?” Neal asked.

“Emma and me.”

“Emma and you?” Nicholas asked.

“Our dalliance.” Hook replied only to see blank stares, “You don’t know, do you? Well, this is awkward. The two of us shared a kiss. Apologies. I assumed she told you.”

“Honestly, it probably slipped her mind.” Neal guessed, “We’re kind focused on getting our son back.”

“Of course.” Hook nodded.

“Oh, great.” Nicholas thought in dread, “Now she’s having a fling with the pirate too.”

“Everything alright?” Emma asked once she came back and noticed the awkward tension.

“Couldn’t be better.” Neal muttered.

“Here it is, your star map.”

“It’s not a star map. It’s what we’re gonna use to trap Pan’s shadow.” Neal explained.

“A coconut?” Hook asked, “Are you daft?”

“You came to Neverland on a pirate ship through a portal but you draw the line at a magic coconut?” Neal asked.

“There’s a sentence you don’t hear every day.” Nicholas dryly joked, “What’s our next stop on this little excursion?”

“Dark Hollow.”

“Really?” Emma asked, “Why couldn’t it be called something like Sunshine Valley or Rainbow Cove? What exactly is it?”

“Just what it sounds like, the darkest spot in the entire island.” Hook replied, “Any light that makes its way in is snuffed out by the shadows that call it home. Even I managed to avoid it.”

“Well, time to break tradition. Dark Hollow it is.” Emma said lacking enthusiasm, “That’s where we’re gonna find Pan’s shadow, right?”

“Yeah. It’s the only way we’ll ever get back to Storybrooke.”

After leaving the cave, Neal led the way to their destination. Once they arrived, the path was covered in a variety of plants, blocking them from the entrance.

“We’ll have to cut through it.” Neal said just before a stream of red lightning streaked against the ground and separated the path for them. Everyone looked at Nicholas’s emotionless face as he walked down the path and entered the hollow.

“Swan,” Hook mumbled, “Is everything alright with our dear immortal?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t seen him like this since Cora.” she replied.

“Are you guys coming, or not?” Nicholas asked from inside, “So this is where the victims of Pan’s shadow reside?” he asked once they joined him.

“Yeah.” Neal nodded, “Forced to spend eternity in this darkness. Let’s be sure not to join them.”

“So we just wait for Pan’s shadow to show up?” Emma asked.

“Yeah. And when it does we’ll be prepared.”

“You mind telling us how that coconut works?” Nicholas asked.

“We light the candle and shadow is drawn to it. When it gets close enough, the flame will suck it in, we put the lid on, then it’s trapped inside this bad boy.”

“Sounds like a fine plan, except for one thing, our lanterns went out.” Hook informed, “How the devil are we gonna ignite that bloody thing?”

“Welcome to the twenty-first century.” Neal smirked as he pulled out a lighter, however, it proved difficult to light.

“How’s it coming over there, guys?” Emma asked.

“Hang on.” Neal said.

“Let me help.” Hook offered.

“No. I got it.”

“Well, I’ve only got one hand. I can do better than that.”

“You know what? Now’s not the time to try to impress Emma.”

“Oh, you think that’s what I’m doing?”

“Really?” Emma asked, “You’re doing this now?”

“Please tell me you two aren’t going to waste our time and argue?” Nicholas groaned.

“You heard them. Are we gonna stand here and argue, or are we gonna get that candle lit?” Hook asked impatiently as he struggled to lit the flint.

“Hard than it looks, huh, pal? Let me see it.” Neal demanded as he tried to take the lighter from Hook, “Give it to me. Give it to me.”

During their struggle, they managed to toss the lighter into a nearby tree trunk.

“Oi vey.” Nicholas groaned as he ran his hand over his face.

“Guys, we don’t have time for this.” Emma said as the shadow arrived, “We really don’t have time for this!”

“I take it that’s Pan’s shadow?” Nicholas asked as he readied his claws.

“Yeah, it’s Pan’s shadow!” Neal exclaimed in panic.

“What about the other two?!” Hook asked.

“He’s controlling them!” Neal shouted as the shadows swarmed around them. One then pinned Hook against a tree while another did the same to Neal leaving Emma huddled against a fallen tree and Nicholas on the ground waving his claws and his own shadows at Pan’s; the ones holding Neal and Hook were trying to rip out their shadows in the process.

“Emma, get out of here!” Neal shouted.

“Just go!” Hook cried in pain.

“Hold still, you jackass!” Nicholas shouted as his shadows kept missing their target. Seeing his enemy, Pan’s shadow swooped down and passed his hand through Nicholas, causing his face to be harmed the same way the Fairy Dust did.

“Nicholas!” Emma cried as the alchemist struggled to heal himself. With no other option, Emma focused on the candle and with a wave of her hand, it was lit and absorbed Pan’s shadow in the process.

“How did you do that?” Neal asked.

“Regina.” Emma panted.

“She’s teaching you magic?” he asked.

“Yeah, I guess she is.”

“Oh,” Nicholas groaned as he finished healing, “Is it in there?”

“Yep.” Emma nodded.

“Well, in that case, I’ve got just one thing to say. One in the box!”

“Ready to go.” Emma chuckled as he realized where the alchemist was going.

“We be fast.” he grinned.

“And he be slow!” they said laughing at the quote.

“I feel like I’ve missed something.” Hook said bluntly.

“When we get back, I’m introducing you to movies, pal.” Neal chuckled but stopped once he saw Emma’s glare. As she stormed out while dragging Nicholas with her, Neal tried to catch up.

“Hey, hey, hey, I’m sorry. I know I screwed up.” he admitted.

“Yes, you did. You both did.” Emma snapped, “We almost lost our shot at trapping the shadow because you two were fighting over a lighter.”

“It wasn’t the lighter that we were fighting over, luv.” Hook corrected.

“Okay, let me be very clear about something. If I had to choose someone, I choose Henry. He’s the only love I have room for in my life.” Emma said as she walked away in a huff.

“Get your priorities straight, fellas.” Nicholas added, “We came here to get the boy, not a woman’s attention.” A few moments, they met up with the others at the base of Tink’s treehouse. “We got it. Not much thanks to these two, though.”

“Are you finally ready to do your part, Tink?” Hook asked.

“Yes. Yes, I am.” she said as she led everyone inside her house. As Nicholas was about to follow them, he was stopped by the Savior.

“Nicholas, can I talk to you for a sec?”

“Uh, yeah, sure.” he replied, “What’s up?”

“Are you okay?” she asked, “You’ve been acting weird since Echo Cave. What’s wrong?”

“…It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

“Nicholas.” she said in a warning tone, “I don’t think I need to remind you about my super power. What’s going on?”

“Fine.” he sighed, “Ever since the cave…ever since you and Neal had your little moment, I’ve…I’ve accepted your decision and have just had a hard time with it.”

“What decision?”

“How you still have feelings for Neal and how when this is all said and done you’ll probably get back together with him.”

“You think that’s what happened?” Emma asked completely baffled, “You think I want to get back with Neal?”

“He is the father of your child and an old flame.”

“Yeah, and he’s also the guy who hurt me more than anyone else has in my entire life.” Emma reminded, “Nicholas, I will always have a place for Neal in my heart, but I don’t love him anymore; not like that.”

“Oh. I get it now.” Nicholas nodded causing Emma to smile in hope.

“Really?”

“Yeah. You and Hook will make a…lovely couple.” Nicholas lied choking on his words.

“Ugh!” Emma groaned in frustration, “You are such an idiot!”

“Que?” Nicholas asked in surprise.

“I don’t like either of those two! I have feelings for you, you moron!”

As soon as she shouted this, the only thing that could be heard throughout Neverland was the sound of the wind blowing through the trees. Emma’s face was almost as red as he favorite jacket and Nicholas was almost as pale as the moon. Thankfully, no one in the treehouse heard them as they were too busy focusing on a plan of attack.

“Well?!” Emma hotly said, “Say something!”

“…You do?” he asked.

“Yes. I’ve had a crush on you since a little while before the curse broke and after everything we’ve been through…”

“Even though you thought I was gay we first met?” he asked still in shock.

“…Yes.” she admitted in embarrassment, “Not exactly one of my best moments, but yeah, even then. So are you just gonna stand there with your mouth open, or are you gonna tell me what you-”

It was then that Nicholas went into pull Emma in for a deep passionate kiss.

“…Wow.” Nicholas whispered after the parted.

“Wow.” Emma nodded.

“Hey,” Tink called from the treehouse, “You two coming up, or what?”

“Y-yeah, we’re coming.” Nicholas called back, “Probably best if we keep this between us for now, right?”

“Yeah.” Emma nodded as she wrapped her arms around his neck, “But when we get back, we can see how this goes.”

“I think I like the sound of that.” Nicholas said before giving her another kiss.


	25. Think Lovely Thoughts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

The next morning, everyone readied themselves for the final battle against Pan and hopefully save Henry. With Nicholas leading, he took a moment to stop and sniff out two familiar scents ahead; Regina and Gold’s.

“Well, if this is your version of a rescue party, we got here just in time.” Regina remarked.

“Impeccable timing as always, sister dear.” Nicholas said dryly. 

“What are you two doing here?” asked Snow.

“Well, same as you, except we actually have a chance.” Regina said gesturing to the small cube in Gold’s hands, “Pandora’s Box. It could trap Pan for eternity simply by opening the lid.”

“You didn’t tell me my father was with her.” Neal said to Emma.

“I didn’t know.” she replied.

“Wait, your father is the dark one?” Tink asked.

“Yeah, and he’s not getting anywhere near Henry.”

“Bae.” Gold pleaded.

“Why? What are you talking about?” Nicholas asked.

“There’s a prophecy that says that Henry will be his undoing. He didn’t come here to protect him. He came here to kill him.”

“That’s why you didn’t want to find Neal before you got Henry back.” Regina realized, “Because you knew he’d spill your secret.”

“Everything I did was to protect Henry, to rescue him from Pan.” Gold defended.

“It all makes sense.” Emma deduced, “You left before we even made shore.”

“You wanted to get to Henry first.” Snow continued as she readied her bow.

“To be on his own.” David said as he and Hook drew their swords.

“So no one could stop you.” Hook added.

“So you could kill him.” Nicholas finished as he hardened his shield and drew his sword.

“It’s not gonna happen.” Emma denied, “Not unless you go through all of us first.”

“You’re making a mistake. I don’t care if the boy is destined to be my undoing. I won’t hurt him.” Gold calmly informed.

“Because that sounds just like you.” Regina said sarcastically.

“Without me, you will fail. I’m the most powerful amongst us.”

“Magic wise.” Nicholas muttered.

“That’s why we can’t trust you.” Neal glared.

“If I could give you my dagger, I would. But I can’t.”

“But you can give me Pandora’s Box. I don’t have to trust you if I could stop you.”

“Son.” Gold pleaded, but the look on Neal’s face proved he wasn’t going to change his mind. So, in order to gain at least some trust with his son, Gold gave him the box.

“Hey, you so much as lift a finger to perform magic, you’re gonna spend an eternity in this box.” he warned.

“Let’s go.” said Emma. About an hour of walking later, Tink informed the group they arrived.

“We’re here. Pan’s perimeter.” she confirmed.

“It’s time. Tink will sneak us in the back like we planned. We grab Henry. In and out, simple.” Emma explained before asking Neal, “You good with Pan patrol?”

“Locked and loaded.” he nodded.

“You mind if I borrow this?” Gold as taking Hook’s sword, “You said no magic, I agreed. But I’m not walking in there with nothing but my good looks.”

“Here.” Nicholas said giving Hook his own sword, “In case your good looks fail you.”

“Thanks, mate.”

“Let’s get Henry.” Emma said.

As everyone peered through the bushes and branches at the camp, they waited for the opportune moment to strike. “Can I at least use magic on these boys?” Gold asked.

“No.” Neal answered.

“I’ll do it.” Regina offered.

“You remember the spell?” Rumple asked causing Regina to glare at him before rendering the teens unconscious.

“Where’s Pan?” Nicholas asked.

“I don’t know.” Emma responded, “Henry!”

“He’s gotta be somewhere.” David said.

“Where?” Snow asked.

“Help!” a girl cried. Emma ran towards the voice and found a blonde girl in a nightgown held in a cage similar to Neal’s, “You-you’re an adult.”

“My name’s Emma. I’m looking for my son.” Emma said as the others caught up.

“Wendy?” Neal asked.

“Of course, why not?” Nicholas asked bluntly.

“Do I know you?”

“It’s Baelfire.” he laughed.

“You two know each other?” Emma asked.

“Bae!” Wendy gasped.

“Yeah. Yeah, we do.”

“Can it really be you?” she asked as he opened the cage and pulled her into a hug, “I thought I’d never see you again.”

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Well, I-I came back to save you.”

“You did that for me?”

“Well, I couldn’t bear for you to be without a family, not after you told us that your mother and father were both dead.”

“You told her I was dead?” Gold asked.

“It was easier than telling the truth, my own father abandoned me.”

“Okay,” Nicholas carried impatiently, “Can we get back on track to finding my nephew?”

“Right.” Neal nodded, “Wendy, since you’ve been here, have you seen my son? His name’s Henry.”

“You have a son?”

“Yeah. Pan needs his heart.” 

“Has he said anything about the Heart of the Truest Believer?” Emma asked.

“No. I’m sorry, he never mentioned anything about a heart.”

“She’s lying.” Gold accused pointing his sword at the girl, “Where is he?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, what the hell are you doing?” David asked getting between them.

“I’ve carried enough lies in my life to recognize their burden.”

“For once, I agree with the imp.” Nicholas admitted, “She knows where Henry is.”

“Is that true?” Neal asked.

“You don’t understand.” Wendy admitted.

“You’re helping Pan?” Snow asked.

“He’s keeping John and Michael alive, only if I do as he says.”

“Trust me, whatever he’s promised, he will go back on his word.” Gold informed.

“And why should I trust a man who abandoned his own son?” Wendy sneered.

“Because your brothers did.” Regina replied, “They trusted a woman named Belle. They helped her get this box so we can defeat Pan.”

“They’re okay?” Wendy asked in hope.

“For now, and only if we succeed.” Gold stressed.

“Wendy, we will save John and Michael, I swear to God.” Neal promised, “But right now, I really need your help. Please.”

“…Pan told Henry that he needs his heart to save magic.” Wendy explained, “But it’s a lie. He needs it to save himself.”

“What do you mean?” Hook asked.

“Pan’s dying. He needs the Heart of the Truest Believer to absorb all the magic in Neverland. And once he does…he will be immortal, all powerful.”

“And what happens to Henry?” Snow asked.

“Equivalent Exchange.” Nicholas said aloud, “Pan lives and Henry dies. Is that right?”

“Yes.” Wendy nodded causing everyone to pause for a moment.

“How do we stop Pan?” David asked.

“Pan took Henry to Skull Rock. But you haven’t got much time.”

“Then we stay behind. Someone needs to be here to guard the Lost Boys when they wake up.” he decided.

“You don’t need to stay behind.” Emma argued.

“David’s right.” Snow agreed, “You get him home, tell him we love him.”

“Tell him yourself when you get back from Deadman’s Peak.” Emma corrected, “Gold can cure you back in Storybrooke. We just need to bring some of the water with us.”

Hearing this, Snow rushed up and gave her daughter a tight hug. “You didn’t give up.” she whispered before looking to Gold, “Thank you.”

“Well, apparently, that’s the only thanks I need these days.” he replied dryly.

“Tink and I will take care of things here.” Hook added, “Meet you back at the Jolly Roger when you find Henry.”

“Promise me if your father and I don’t make it back, you get him home.” Snow pleaded.

“We’re all going back home.” Emma corrected, “Together.”

Soon the group went their separate ways, Emma, Gold, Nicholas, Regina and Neal sailed over to Skull Rock as fast as they could. When they arrived, Nicholas inspected the ground.

“They’re here.” he informed, “Those are footprints are Henry’s.”

“Wendy was right. They’re here.” Emma said as she tried to climb the nearest stairs but was thrown back by a barrier; thankfully, Nicholas caught her before she could hit the ground.

“I got you.” he whispered, “Mind telling us what that was, Rumple?”

“Pan cast a protection spell.” he answered simply.

“There has to be a way to break it.” Regina said as she threw a fireball at it. Unfortunately, it bounced right back.

“Careful with that!” Neal shouted.

“Try all you want, but Pan’s magic is too powerful. At least for you.” lectured the dark one as he crossed over with ease.

“How did you do that?” Emma asked.

“The spell is designed to keep anyone who casts a shadow from entering.” he explained.

“And you don’t have one.” Neal observed, “You were telling the truth about ripping your shadow off.”

“And Pan knows it. That’s why he cast the spell he did. This isn’t about keeping you out. It’s about drawing me in. He knows I won’t give up the chance to finish what I came here to do.”

“You really did come here to save Henry.”

“I gave you my trust with that box. Now I need you to give it back.”

As Neal was about to give it to his father, Regina snatched it from him and held it close to Rumple’s face threateningly. “You better come through, Gold. Or Nicholas and I will make whatever Pan has planned for you look like child’s play. You understand me?”

“Well, a simple ‘good luck’ would’ve sufficed.” joked Rumple as he marched up the stairs.

“So what are we supposed to do now?” Nicholas asked.

“What about the spell my father used to rip off his shadow?” Neal suggested.

“You think if I knew how to do that, I wouldn’t have done it already?”

“The moon.” Emma said out of the blue.

“The moon?” Regina asked.

“The moon is what causes our shadows, right? What if there was a way to block it out using magic?” she offered.

“If you were able to make an eclipse last long enough for us to cross over, it could work.” Nicholas speculated.

“So?” Emma asked her teacher.

“I need help.”

“With magic?” Emma asked in surprise.

“It requires a lot. I guess we’re about to find out how much those lessons I gave you paid off. Follow my lead.” Regina instructed as they raised their hands and looked to the moon.

“Just make it quick, okay?” Nicholas asked nervously before thinking, “Last thing I need is to speed up his plans.”

As the moon became as dark as night, everyone rushed past the barrier line and ran up the stairs as fast as they could. One they reached the top of the skull, they saw Pan with Henry who was taking his own heart out.

“Henry, wait!” Neal shouted.

“Kiddo, whatever Pan’s telling you to do, don’t do it.” Nicholas pleaded.

“Dad?” Henry asked, “You’re alive?”

“I am, buddy. And I need you to listen to us. Pan is lying to you.”

“Oh, pleasure to see you, too, Baelfire, not to mention the Savior, her boyfriend the Immortal Alchemist, and the Evil Queen.” Pan greeted in distaste.

“Boyfriend?” Regina asked.

“Later.” Nicholas waved off.

“Henry, you need to get away from him now.” Emma warned, “He’s trying to hurt you.”

“No.” Henry argued, “The Heart of the Truest Believer. It’s what’s gonna save magic. It’s gonna save all of you.”

“No, it’s not.” said Regina, “This was never about magic, Henry. You have to believe us.”

“The only person Pan’s interested in saving is himself.” Nicholas added.

“That’s not true!” Henry debated.

“Of course it isn’t.” Pan defended.

“Yes, it is!” Neal shot back, “Pan can’t live without you dying. If you give him your heart, it’s gonna kill you.”

“They’re trying to stem your belief, Henry. But don’t let them.” Pan lied, “Remember, every hero gets tested.”

“Henry,” Emma said seeing her son’s confliction, “I know what being a hero looks like, and this isn’t it.”

“Why would they lie?” Henry asked Pan.

“Because that’s what adults do, Henry. You know that better than anyone.” Pan replied.

“Henry, you have to believe us.” Regina pleaded.

“Your family doesn’t care about Neverland, Henry. They know if you give your heart to save it, then you’ll have to stay. They’re being selfish because they don’t wanna lose you.”

“Henry, you have to trust us.” Emma begged.

“Trust?” Pan scoffed hotly, “I’m the only one who’s ever been honest with you, Henry. The only one who ever believed in you. This is your choice, not theirs. You have to choose now. We’re running out of time.”

“We believe in you, Henry.” Neal said with honesty and love.

“Because we love you.” Emma added.

“More than anything.” Regina said sincerely.

“That’s always been the truth.” Nicholas nodded.

“I love you, too.” Henry said with a sad smile, “But I have to save magic.”

“Henry, don’t.” Nicholas pleaded.

“I’m sorry.” he apologized as he slammed his heart into Pan’s chest.

“NO!” they all cried as a shock wave of magic erupted from Pan and engulfed Neverland. Pan rose into the air triumphantly while Henry laid motionless on the ground. Everyone went over to him and looked up to see the smug teenager grinning at the maniacally.


	26. Save Henry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

“I’m waiting!” Rumplestiltskin shouted from his cell. Moments earlier, his student had killed her father and enacted the dark curse. In a second later, the Evil Queen appeared in a puff of smoke. “What took you so long, dearie?”

“You know what took so long.”

“Oh, yes. The curse. You did it.”

“That’s right.” she said in triumph, “I did it. And I wanted you to know it. Before you, like all the pathetic denizens of this wretched land, forgets everything.”

“How did it feel?” Rumple asked.

“Watching the curse cloud form? Felt like victory.”

“No.” he giggled, “How did it feel to kill the thing you love most? Ripping out the heart of your father and robbing your brother of yet another family member. How did that feel?”

“It was the price of the curse.” Regina hissed, “How it felt doesn’t matter. They would’ve understood. I took my life back. I had to. I won.”

“And yet, here you are feeling the need to gloat.” Rumple observed, “Something’s missing, isn’t it, dearie?”

“Not at all. I have everything I want. Nothing can stop me now.”

“Not quite.” Rumple giggled insanely.

“What does that mean?”

“The Savior. The child of Snow White and Prince Charming. She can stop you. She can break the curse and do the one thing you fear most; take your precious brother away from you.”

“Well, it looks like getting rid of a baby just made my to-do list.” Regina said as though there was no harm in it.

“Of course it did. But even if you succeed with that, you have an even bigger problem.” Rumple informed, “Now there’s a hole in your heart. And no amount of love your brother can give you can fill it. And someday, you will come to me to fill it.”

“You overestimate your powers of foresight.” Regina said with pity as she walked away.

“And you underestimate the price of what you’ve done!” Rumple yelled before singing, “You shall see, you will come to me; there is more you need, oh!”

“Your taunts will get you nowhere.” Regina barked, “I know you too well. You wanna make another deal. Well, I won’t.”

“A deal?” he giggled, “You’ve already promised me a good life in this new land. What more can I want from you?”

“Oh, to be…let out of this cage? To be let out of our last deal? To escape the curse?” Regina offered.

“But why would I desire that, dearie?” Rumple asked, “I’m exactly where I want to be.”

**OUaT**

“Oh, God.” Emma said in a panic, “Is he unconscious?”

“Henry, can you hear us?” Regina asked as Emma shook him.

“He passed out as soon as his heart went into Pan.” Nicholas recalled.

“Is he breathing?” Regina asked.

“Just hang in there, buddy.” Neal begged.

“What the hell did you do to him?” Emma asked Pan.

“Oh, I didn’t do anything to him, Emma.” Pan scoffed as he descended to the ground, “It was Henry. He offered me his heart of his own free will.”

“Then we’ll just have to take it back from you.” Nicholas snarled as he readied his claws and shadows while Emma drew her sword. With a lunge, Emma tried to pirece him but watched as he vanished in a split second.

“I don’t think you have it in you.” he taunted from behind holding Pandora’s Box, “Rumplestiltskin didn’t. Why should you?”

“I’m not him. You’d be right to be afraid of me.” Nicholas warned.

“Where is he?” Emma asked.

“What did you do?” Neal asked.

“Why, he’s right in this box, safe and sound and out of the way. Unfortunately, for you, he can’t hurt me anymore. And neither can you.”

“Really?” Emma asked as she cut his arm, “How did that feel?”

“Like a tickle.” Pan chuckled just before Nicholas ran up and tried to deconstruct his face like he did with his follower before. After the lights dimmed, Nicholas expected some mark left on Pan’s face, but all they saw was his irritating smirk. “Nice try, alchemist. But it’s gonna take a lot more than that to take away my good looks.”

As he said this, the evil teen rose into the air and flew out of the cave. With nothing more they could do with Pan, Nicholas and Emma went back to Henry’s side.

“You’re gonna be alright, Henry.” Regina reassured, though it was more for herself, “We’re gonna get you home.” 

With a wave of her hands, Henry’s body was covered in a veil of magic. “This preservation spell can keep him in this condition for a while longer. It’ll buy us time to get to Pan.”

“You were a Lost Boy. Any idea where he went?” Emma asked Neal.

“Well, I-I mean, I know where he lived, his compound.” he stuttered.

“Well, that’s idiotic.” Nicholas said harshly, “We already know that. You honestly think he’s stupid enough to go back?”

“You’re useless.” Regina muttered.

“Okay, enough.” Emma quipped.

“Don’t tell us what’s enough.” Regina snapped, “My son is dying!”

“Our son.” Emma reminded, “So yes, I know how you feel.”

“You have no idea what I feel. You have your parents. A pirate and former Lost Boy pinning over you. You have everything, and yet you claim to know what I feel?” Regina asked as her voice shook, “All I have is Henry and Nicholas, who you seem to be ensnaring too, and I am not about to lose them, because they are everything.”

“Emma, without Henry…Regina and I have no one.” Nicholas added, “He’s the only thing that’s kept us from going down the wrong path permanently.”

“…You’re right.” whispered Emma, “I don’t know what you feel. So what do you wanna do? You wanna run the show? Run it. How do we save Henry?”

“I don’t know.” Regina whispered.

“Even if we can find Pan, he was powerful before. With Henry’s heart, I-I don’t know if we can hurt him.” Neal said hopelessly.

“One thing I’ve learned in my experience, is that even immortals feel pain. And if we can do that, then we have a shot at winning.” Nicholas replied.

“And we can.” Regina agreed while staring at Emma sword, “Look, you nicked him. If he can bleed, we can hurt him. And if we can hurt him, we can kill him.”

“And we will.” Nicholas growled. Once they returned to camp, Emma explained everything that happened to the others while Regina stayed close to Henry.

“Gold is in a box.” Snow repeated, “Then David can never leave the island.”

“Mary Margaret, that doesn’t matter. I’ve already made peace with that.” David waved off, “What matters is Henry. How much time do we have?”

“Maybe an hour before the preservation spell wears off.” Regina replied.

“If he’s airborne, he could be anywhere on the island.” Neal sighed while Nicholas tried to use his shadows’ eyes throughout the island.

“It’s no use. I can’t see him anywhere. Not even smell him.” he informed.

“An hour isn’t much time. I suggest we get started looking.” Hook advised as they all approached the captured Lost Boys.

“Where is he?!” Regina yelled as she grabbed Pan’s number two, Felix by the collar.

“Gone.” he said smugly, “There’s nothing you can do. He’s already won. Pan never fails.”

“You won’t talk?” Regina asked in rage, “How about I make you talk?”

“Regina, wait.” Emma halted as the mayor was about to rip the boy’s heart out.

“There’s no time!” she spat.

“I don’t think torture is our best move here. Look at these kids. They’ve been to hell and back. We need to try something else.”

“Yeah, we tried the cute and cuddly. They don’t respond to reason. What else do you have to offer?”

“What every kid once.” Emma said looking at her mother with a kind smile, “A mother.”

**OUaT**

Eleven years ago in Storybrooke, Nicholas was sitting at his desk with his glasses hanging loosely on his nose as he scribbled down more of his scientific notes as he sister came through the front door. Looking up, he saw a happy and excited look on her face, one he hadn’t seen in years.

“You seem awfully happy.” he pointed out while taking a bite from one of his freshly grown plums, “What’s up?”

“I have exciting news, brother dear.” she smiled, “I just got back from Gold’s and he’s going to look into my request.”

“Uh, what request?” he asked.

“Oh, right. I haven’t told you yet, sorry.” Regina said trying to get her head together, “I’m going to adopt a baby.”

As soon as his sister said this, Nicholas sucked in his plum and began to choke on it before hacking it up and watched it soar into the trash can across the hall.

“Nice shot.” she muttered.

“A-a baby?” Nicholas asked in shock, “Wh-wha-when did you decide this?”

“The other day with Dr. Hopper while you were out fiddling with one of your experiments.” she replied, “We talked, and one thing led to another and I realized that I needed to have someone to share my life with; besides you, of course.”

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Nicholas asked skeptically.

“What do you mean?”

“Regina, don’t get me wrong, I would be thrilled to be an uncle and I am beyond happy for you that you’ve decided this. But think about the situation the child would face.” Nicholas gently explained.

“What situation?” Regina asked with her tone rising.

“The situation of literally being the only resident in town that ages, for one thing.” he reminded, “Another would be never being able to form bonds with other children for more than just a year. How are you going to explain all that to your child once they start putting the pieces together and start asking questions?”

“I’ll tell them the truth.” Regina replied, “Once their old enough, I’ll tell them everything they need to know and we can all live happily here in Storybrooke with everyone under our control.”

“Happily, huh?” Nicholas asked crossing his arms, “Funny, I thought that was an immediate guarantee as soon as the curse was cast. Is this part of the process, or are you improvising, what?”

“Are you going to question everything I do or are you going to support me?” she asked.

“I only question what lacks all the answers.” Nicholas sighed while leaning back in his chair, “Alright. Alright. I suppose that can be handled later on. So has Gold given you any information on your child-to-be?”

“Not yet. He said he’ll call as soon as he can get me the earliest spot on the waiting list.” Regina said smiling again.

“Boy or girl?” Nicholas asked grinning at his sister’s excitement.

“No idea. I told him I’d take either one.”

“Any name ideas?”

“Well, if it’s a girl, then I was thinking we’d name her after mother and name a boy after father.”

“Hmm, I think they’d like that, Regina.” Nicholas nodded. Later that afternoon, Gold called and asked for the two siblings to stop by his shop.

“You have news?” Regina asked as they walked in.

“Yes. Fate may be on your side. This morning, I, uh, spoke with an agency who had placed a baby boy from Phoenix with a family nearby in Boston.”

“With a family?” Regina asked, “How is that fate?”

“Because at the last minute, the adoption fell through. It happens.”

“So the baby still needs a home.”

“Indeed. As I said, fate appears to be on your side.” Gold nodded as he grabbed an envelope, “The agency is in Boston.”

The next day, both siblings took a drive to the agency and eagerly waited for the interview to be over so they could meet their newest addition to the family.

“Well, Ms. Mills, your application is almost too good to be true.” the interviewer said happily, “I mean, your references are impeccable. And this town you live in, Storybrooke, you’re the mayor?”

“Third term.” she nodded, “All unopposed.”

“Never heard of Storybrooke.”

“Oh, it’s a…hidden gem. Peaceful, perfect for children.”

“Like a fairytale.” Nicholas added with a smirk, “You should come visit sometime.”

“I get two weeks off a year. And all due respect, Sandals has an inclusive buffet. You got that in Storybrooke?”

“Can’t say that we do.” Nicholas chuckled.

“One question I meant to ask, Mr. Mills. Your sister has put you down as the child’s godfather, we would like to know what it is you do.”

“Oh, I’m what you could consider the…Doc Brown of Storybrooke. I like to spend my time working on experiments when I’m not helping around the town. I have a lot of secure investments and savings so money wouldn’t an issue for me or the boy.”

That wasn’t entirely true. Nicholas did indeed have a lot of money in his bank account, much more than Regina’s, but that was due to him secretly turning scrap metal he didn’t use in his experiments into gold with his alchemy. To sum it up, he had more money than anyone in town; including Mr. Gold.

“Alrighty then. Now, I’ve explained both your rights and responsibilities, but there’s one item I’d like to go over in detail. This is a closed adoption, which means you’ll never be able to contact your child’s birth parents. It’s a complete information blackout-parents’ names, ethnicity, genealogical records. Neither of you will have access to any of it.”

“My brother and I are concerned with my child’s future, not his past.” Regina replied politely.

“Well, then congratulations. You ready to meet your son and nephew?”

“Yes!” they chuckled. With a beep of an intercom, they watched as a woman brought in a beautiful baby boy swaddled in blankets and passed him to Regina. They were both so happy as they looked at the baby, happier than they had been in decades.

“Well, hello there.” Regina greeted happily, “It was fate, wasn’t it, Henry?”

“Henry, huh? You don’t meet a lot of Henrys nowadays. Very old world.”

“It was our father’s name.” Nicholas replied not taking his eyes off his nephew, “He passed some time ago.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. I hope it was peaceful, at least.” he said as Henry began crying, “Need some help?”

“Oh, no, no.” Regina said readjusting Henry, “We’ve got it. Come on, Henry.”

“Let’s go home.” Nicholas smiled as he stroked the baby’s cheek.

**OUaT**

At the camp, Emma did her best to try and convince the teens to reveal Pan’s location. “Guys, listen to me. We are not gonna hurt you. I know you’re loyal to Pan, and I get that. But you are making a terrible mistake. For a long time, I thought I was never gonna find my family. I was an orphan, like all of you. A lost girl. And I was reminded today that I am not alone, that I have a lot of people that love me. And I never thought that was gonna happen. If that can happen to me, it can happen to you.”

“Pan is the only family we need.” Felix argued.

“No. Family doesn’t do what he did. Pan lied to you and made you do terrible things. He lied to Henry, and convinced him to give up his own heart.”

“To save the island.” the youngest Lost Boy retorted.

“No, to save himself.”

“Don’t listen to her.” Felix ordered, “Pan cares about all of us.”

“If that were true wouldn’t he already be here to rescue you kids from the danger he’s convinced you about?” Nicholas asked.

“He doesn’t. We care about you. And we can save you!” Emma promised, “We can take you home with us to our land. There’s no reason to fear Pan anymore. Until he absorbs the power from Henry’s heart, he can be stopped. You just have to tell us where he is.”

“Leave now while Pan still allows you to breathe.” Felix warned, “That’s the only help you’ll get.”

“I’m starting to wonder if he’s supposed to be that buck-tooth kid in the fox suit from the movie.” Nicholas muttered to David who shrugged.

“Where is Pan?” Emma asked softly.

“Not telling.” Felix replied mocking her tone.

“Can you really bring us home?” the youngest asked.

“Shut your mouth!” Felix snapped.

“Yes.” Emma said kneeling in front of him, “With your help.”

“His thinking tree.” he confessed.

“NO!” Felix cried in protest.

“Yes, his thinking tree.” another boy said.

“Stop it all of you!” Felix thrashed.

“What is that?” Emma asked.

“It’s where he goes when he wants to be alone. You can find him there, it’s not far.”

“No, don’t trust her.”

“Can you tell us where that is?” she asked.

“Yeah, but you have to swear, swear that you’ll take us with you.

“I promise.” Emma said with sincerity, “We are going home. All of us.”

**OUaT**

In Storybrooke, Regina was struggling with being a parent. This was proven as she tried to get Henry to quiet down at Granny’s while Nicholas was in the restroom.

“Who is this bundle of joy?” Granny sweetly asked.

“Do you have a problem with him crying?” Regina snapped bitterly.

“No, of course not.” Granny replied as she went back to work.

“Okay, it’s time to be quiet. It’s time to be quiet.” Regina said and noticed Granny looming over her again, “What?!”

“You want some advice?” she asked calmly, “Try a story. That’s how they soothe themselves. A bedtime story. Gets ‘em used to your voice. Worked with Ruby. Her issues came later.”

“Hey. Okay. It’s okay. Once upon a time, there was-oh!” Regina soothed as she picked her son up and held him against her chest, only to feel him spit up on her blouse. Ironically, this happened as soon as Nicholas came back.

“I take it little Henry’s still being fussy?” he asked with a sympathetic smile which quickly went away once he saw his sister’s glare, “Here. Give him to me and you go clean yourself up.”

“Alright.” she sighed as she passed her crying baby to her brother.

“Come here, goober.” Nicholas said as he readjusted the baby against his shoulder. Thankfully, he was smarter than his sister and remembered to put a spit up cloth over his chest and shoulder so he didn’t repeat what Regina did.

“What’s the matter?” he cooed as he gently rocked the wailing baby, “Huh? What’s the matter, Henry? Are you being all fussy for mommy and unky today?”

“Looks like you’re doing better than your sister.” Granny observed as she cleared the nearest table.

“Ah, she’ll get there.” Nicholas reassured, “Regina just rushed into things when she wanted to adopt.”

“How so?”

“Not a single book.” Nicholas said shaking his head while Henry began to slightly settle down.

“Really?” Granny asked.

“Not one.” he laughed, “I don’t know if she thought it was going to be easy, or that she didn’t need them, but yeah. She dived into this unprepared. But I’m not worried. She’s always been a fast learner and she just needs to get into the swing of things. Isn’t that right, Henry?”

By now, the baby was silent and giving a big, cute yawn as his uncle held him and kissed his forehead. Just then, Regina came back and eagerly took back her son thinking everything was going to be alright; but sure enough, Henry immediately started crying again.

“I don’t understand.” Regina said growing frantic.

“Regina, relax. You just upset him, is all.” Nicholas sighed.

“I’m his mother.” she snapped, “All I do is love him. How would that upset him?”

“Gee, maybe because he was getting settled and tired and you interrupted that when you pulled him from me.” Nicholas dryly suggested even though his sister was ignoring him.

“Oh, he must be sick. I’m taking him to Dr. Whale.” she said while putting Henry in his carrier and grabbing her purse while shoving the baby bag in Nicholas’s arms.

“Yeah, because that’s the only explanation.” Nicholas said dryly as he followed his sister, “Don’t listen to your brother who knows more about the human body and infants than you do, Regina. You just know everything based on your maternal instincts.”

At the hospital, Whale and Regina hovered over Henry as he continued to cry while Whale listened to his heart and Nicholas gave them space.

“Well, his heart’s as strong as a locomotive.” Whale explained over the crying, “And his lungs are healthy, clearly.”

“Well, what about a blood test? Or a chest x-ray?” Regina asked.

“Is he a smoker like his uncle?” Whale joked.

“What?!” Regina asked not seeing the humor.

“Regina, will you relax?!” Nicholas said in exasperation, “He’s probably just scared that he’s in a place he doesn’t know and surrounded by people hovering over him every second. He’s just a baby.”

“I agree with Nicholas, Madam Mayor.” Whale admitted, “Crying is just how a baby communicates. And from the sound of things, he has a lot to say.”

“I paid for this?” Regina scoffed.

“Actually, your insurance did.” Whale corrected.

“What do I do?” Regina asked in frustration.

“Listen to your little brother!” Nicholas stressed over Henry’s wailing.

“I can prescribe you something. 10 CCs of maternal love.” Whale quipped. Regina, however, didn’t like this as an answer and pushed for more while Nicholas went to comfort his nephew.

“Dr. Whale, no one loves their child more than me. Which means there’s something wrong with my son. Your job is to help him. Do it!”

“Sure, I could order additional testing, but with babies, there are risks. And it’s generally nothing and not worth it.”

“Generally?” Regina asked.

“Well, in some cases, there could be something abnormal happening. But we’d need the birth mother to find out.”

“You mean the woman who abandoned him?” Regina asked hotly, “You think she can soothe him? I’m his mother.”

“You misunderstand me, Regina. If something were in fact wrong with the baby, maybe there’s something in her medical records, something genetic that could be causing a problem. But the only people who can fill in those blanks are the biological parents.”

“Even though, that outcome is rarely above a 5% chance and that Henry is as healthy as a prized stallion.” Nicholas bluntly reminded as he gently rubbed the crying baby’s stomach, “Besides, if there ever were a need for that, we couldn’t receive that information. It was a closed adoption.”

Once they were finished, Regina called Sydney and told him to try and get information regarding Henry’s birth parents as they walked through the children’s ward of the hospital. She then handed Henry to Nicholas so she could talk to the reporter.

“Oi vey, Henry.” Nicholas sighed as he bounced the boy, “That’s something you’re gonna hear me say a lot in the future.”

“Excuse me,” Mary Margaret said before noticing she was trying to pass her friend, “Hey, Nicholas. What are you doing here? And who’s this little cutie?”

“This is Henry.” Nicholas introduced as the baby began to settle down, “My nephew. Regina and I adopted him yesterday and…well, she’s having a hard time trying to get things situated. You wanna hold him?”

“Oh, yes, definitely.” she said happily as she took the baby and gently rocked him. Unfortunately for Nicholas, all he could see was an image of Snow White doing the very same with her daughter, even though it never happened.

“I can’t believe I did nothing to stop this curse.” he thought guiltily, “If Boss were around to see me, he’d shoot me in the head. Though, I probably deserve worse.”

“How did you do that?” Regina asked snapping the duo to her attention.

“Do what?” Mary Margaret asked nervously.

“Get him to stop crying.”

“Oh, I -I’m just holding him. He’s so sweet.” she said smiling as Regina took him back.

“Oh, not again.” Nicholas muttered as Henry began crying once more.

“No.” Regina denied, “Oh, no, no.”

“I’m so sorry. Did I do something?” Mary Margaret asked.

“No. No, you didn’t. It’s me.” Regina said as her heart broke.

“Here, let me.” Nicholas said hovering over his wailing nephew, “Quiet!” he shouted startling the two women. Surprisingly, Henry immediately stopped crying and instead gave a cute coo. They looked at him in surprise only to see him shrug.

“It’s all in the delivery.” he said, “If you need me, I’m gonna go out and smoke.”

**OUaT**

“The pixie woods?” Nicholas asked, “That’s where it is?”

“It’s just North of here.” the Lost Boy explained, “It’s where the Pixie Dust used to grow.”

“Do you know where that is?” Emma asked Neal and Hook.

“Aye.” Hook nodded, “The whole region is deserted now. No one but Pan has set foot in those woods in centuries.”

“Then let’s make history.” Neal suggested.

“We’ll need you to stay here.” Emma denied, “Once we get Henry’s heart, it’s gonna be a race back. We need help on both ends.”

“Okay.” he nodded.

“What do you need from us?” David asked.

“Let’s gather up the Lost Boys. Get ‘em on board the Jolly Roger. Prepare the ship to fly.” Neal advised.

“Well, unless you have a Pegasus sail, we’re at the mercy of the trade winds.” Hook remarked.

“Pan’s shadow’s in here. It’ll get us home. As long as your ship holds together.” he said slinging the coconut over his shoulder.

“Well, as long as your plan holds together, she will.” Hook retorted.

“Henry is going to be with me the entire time. Nothing is gonna happen to him while you two are away.” Neal reassured Emma.

“You mean three.” Snow corrected.

“No, make that four.” Nicholas said rising from his seat.

“What?” Emma asked.

“I may be trapped on this island for the rest of eternity. So if you think I’m not going to be spending my last moments with my daughter, you’re crazy.” Snow informed.

“And I, for one, have every intention of making that runt pay for putting my nephew’s life in jeopardy.” Nicholas added.

“Okay.” nodded Emma, “Let’s do it.”

Once the party made their way to their destination, Regina spotted Pandora’s Box perched on a log in the open. “Look.” she alerted as Snow was about to take it.

“Careful, Snow.” Nicholas warned, “Pan wouldn’t have just left it behind for no reason.”

“It’s David’s only way home. Without Gold, we’re stuck here.” Snow argued as a large vine grabbed her and pinned her to a tree. Not a second later, three more did the same to the others; except for Nicholas, he was held against a different tree.

“Are you still at it?” Pan asked making himself known, “Don’t you know? Peter Pan never fails.”

“Referring to one’s self in the third person isn’t a quality to be proud of.” Nicholas thought dryly.

“I didn’t expect you to find me. But then again, I shouldn’t be surprised. You three are mothers.” Pan said facing the women, “Quite tenacious about you offspring. Believe it or not, I understand that. But if you’re here looking to see Henry again, I have to tell you, there’s only one place you’ll be reunited: in death.”

As soon as he made his threat, everyone struggled to escape their bonds only to no avail. “Having trouble?” he asked mockingly, “Not surprised given where you are. You see, what’s hastening your demise is your regret.”

“What are you talking about?” Emma asked.

“This tree is the site of a very important event for me. I abandoned my boy here.”

“You have a son?” Regina asked.

“I’m older than I look.” he smirked.

“If you have a child, you must regret losing him, too.” said Emma.

“No, he doesn’t.” Nicholas replied, “This little runt doesn’t have the stomach to face the hardships of being a parent. He’s too weak.”

“I think we’ve heard enough from you, alchemist.” Pan growled as he caused the tree holding him to shake. From above, a cloud of green Pixie Dust slowly floated down towards Nicholas.

“Oh, cripes, this gonna hurt.” he said with dread as the dust covered him, and just like with Fairy Dust, Nicholas’s body began to deconstruct while he struggled to hold back his agonizing screams.

“Now as I was saying,” Pan resumed, “I don’t regret it. Quite the opposite, actually. See, I have him all boxed up so I don’t lose him again.”

“Rumplestiltskin is your son?” Regina asked.

“How is that possible?” Snow asked, “You’re-”

“Younger than him?” Pan cut off, “Not really. Just like you and your daughter.”

“You’re a fraud.” Regina insulted, “Your magic is weakened. You can’t even hurt us, let alone Rumplestiltskin.”

“You’re right.” Pan nodded, “Well, I think Flamel would beg to differ, but he’s a little preoccupied to agree at the moment. But that’s why I’m here. This tree will protect me until my power is restored. And then, well, then I get to have some real fun. And I won’t ever have to worry about my child again. Something else we will all soon have in common.”

“There has to be another way.” Emma said as they all struggled.

“No, you’re not going to get to me.” Pan denied, “See, this tree attacks the regret inside of anyone who comes here. And you? You’ve got plenty.”

“I regret not taking a better shot at you when I had a chance.” Emma replied.

“Well, that’s not all, is it, Savior? No. I have your son’s heart inside me. I can feel just how much you let him down time and time again.”

“Leave her alone.” Snow warned.

“Perhaps I should. After all, what chance did she have at being a good mother?” Pan asked facing Snow, “Look at the example you’ve set, abandoning her for twenty-eight years.”

“Are you finished?” Regina asked calmly.

“Last words from the queen. Perhaps a deathbed confession from the one who has the most regret of all.”

“Yeah, there’s one problem with that. I did cast a curse that devastated an entire population. I have tortured and murdered. I’ve done some terrible things. Hell, I am probably responsible for my brother becoming a slave. I should be overflowing with regret, but…I’m not. Because it got me my son.” Regina informed finally breaking free of her bonds, and tearing out Henry’s heart. With a wave of her hand, she cleared the dust off of her brother and picked up Pandora’s Box.

“It’s about time you did that.” Nicholas groaned as he regenerated in pain, “What were you doing, enjoying his monologue while I was in excruciating pain?”

“Oh, relax.” Regina waved off smirking, “Let’s go save Henry.”

Regina then transported them all to the Jolly Roger with everyone else already aboard. Heading over to the bow, Regina gently pushed her son’s heart back in while everyone looked at his body in concern.

“Henry?” Regina asked.

“Are we too late?” Emma asked. After a moment of silence, Nicholas gave it a try.

“Wake up!” he shouted startling everyone and causing Henry to jolt awake. Everyone looked at him in surprise. “It’s all in the delivery.” he said like it was normal. Henry then flung his arms around his mothers while gasping for breath.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Neal laughed, “Take it easy, buddy.”

“I’m sorry.” he apologized, “I-I wanted to save magic.”

“It’s okay.” Emma sighed, “It’s okay.”

“I- I wanted to be a hero.”

“There’s plenty of time for that.” David chuckled.

“And now it’s time to rest.” Snow nodded.

“Welcome back, young sir.” Hook said kindly, “Only the best for our guest of honor, don’t you think? Captain’s Quarters.”

“Come on.” Regina said, “I’ll tuck you in.”

**OUaT**

In Storybrooke, Regina quietly tucked her baby into his crib and smiled fondly at his sleeping form. It was the night of the day she tried to send him back out of fear upon learning who his birth mother was. And that woman was the very same infant she tried to kill before the curse took everyone away; Snow White and Prince Charming’s daughter, the Savior.

However, just as she was about to give her baby back in the office in Boston, she had a change of heart and took him back home with her; but, she did all of this without consulting her brother. As she went back downstairs, she felt the floor shift unnaturally as red lightning surged around her feet and dragged her into the den and flung her into a chair while the fireplace came to life with the sound of fingers snapping filled the air.

In her fear, Regina turned to see her brother, angrier than she had seen him in years, standing in the doorway glaring at her with a cigar in his hand. She knew she was in big trouble considering that Nicholas only smoked cigars when he was extremely angry.

“Comfy?” he asked softly, “I hope so. Because we are going to have a long talk tonight, sister dear.”

“You-you still have your alchemy?” Regina asked in fear.

“Oh, did I not tell you that before?” he asked, “Well, I guess that makes us even since you neglected to tell me that you were going to give my nephew back to the agency today out of paranoia.”

“Nicholas, please, you don’t understand.” Regina said, “Henry’s birth mother-”

“Is Snow and Charming’s daughter?” Nicholas asked in a frightful tone, “Oh, I know. I’ve known since this morning when I called Sydney when I couldn’t find you and Henry.”

“Okay, I should have told you. I was wrong not to.” she admitted, “But I changed my mind. I’m keeping Henry.”

“I don’t think you understand why I’m angry, sister dear.” Nicholas said puffing smoke from his cigar, “I am angry because you decided to take Henry away from the life we had planned for him because you got scared. That’s not being a good parent, you know. I want to make something perfectly clear, Regina. If you ever do anything like that again, I’ll show you exactly what my alchemy can do to you. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes. And I am sorry that I didn’t tell you, Nicholas. I let my fear get the better of me. But all of that will change.”

“Will it?” he asked.

“Yes. After Henry wakes up tomorrow, the three of us are going to take a trip to my vault.”

“Why?” he asked skeptically.

“Because you’re right, I can’t let my fears control me now that I am a mother. And I have just the thing to ensure I never make the same mistake again in my fault.” Regina explained.

“Alright.” Nicholas sighed, “But I will hold you to this. Make sure you don’t forget that.”

“I won’t.”

The next day, the family of three went to Regina’s vault after paying their respects to Henry’s namesake. After Nicholas pushed the coffin aside, they went downstairs where Regina began to brew a potion. Nicholas was bouncing Henry as Regina did her work and told him a story.

“Once upon a time, there was a queen and her brother, and she cast a glorious curse, that gave her everything she wanted, or so she thought. She despaired when she learned that her brother was right, revenge was not enough. She felt lonely, even with her brother at her side, keeping her from drowning in her sorrow. And so, she searched the land for a little boy to be their prince. And then she found him. And though they lived happily, it was not ever after. There was still an evil out there lurking. The queen was worried for her brother and prince’s safety. While she knew she could vanquish any threat to them, she also knew she couldn’t raise her prince worrying. No. She had to listen to her brother before it was too late. She needed to put her own troubles aside, and put her family first. And so, the queen procured an ancient potion of forgetting.”

As she said this, Henry began to cry.

“Oh, it’s alright.” Nicholas soothed.

“If the queen drinks the potion, she won’t forget her child. She’ll only forget her worries, her troubles; her fears. And with those gone, she, her brother, and their prince can indeed finally live happily ever after.” she said holding the goblet in her hand, “You sure you don’t want to do this?” she asked Nicholas.

“Pass.” he said, “Unlike you, I need to remember my troubles. It’s important that I do.”

“Fine. Cheers.” she nodded before downing the potion. In a whoosh of magic, Regina shed a few tears and took a deep breath as all of her worries faded away. Hearing her son cry and fuss once again, Regina turned and gently grabbed the baby and held him close with love.

“Hello, Henry.” she cooed, “What shall we do today?”

**OUaT**

On Hook’s bed, Regina smiled fondly as she stroked Henry’s hair and while Nicholas stood over them smirking. “Oh, we know that look.” Regina chuckled, “That’s five hours of Space Paranoids and too much pizza.”

“Pizza’s good.” Henry nodded. Regina chuckled as she covered Henry’s chest in magic. “It stings. What’s that for?”

“A spell, so no one can ever take your heart ever again.”

“Thanks, mom.” Henry said as Regina kissed his forehead.

“We’ll be home soon, my little prince.”

“Sleep tight, kiddo.” Nicholas said ruffling the boy’s hair. As the two siblings went up to the deck, they saw Neal release his father from the box.

“Bae?” Rumple asked.

“Papa.” Neal said hugging his father.

“Where’s Henry?”

“He’s safe. He’s safe.”

“I told you I wasn’t gonna hurt the boy.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I…why didn’t you tell me Pan was your father?” he asked.

“Because I didn’t want you to know that I was as bad a father as he was.” Gold admitted, “Because we’re both the same, me and him, because we both abandoned our sons.”

“No, you’re not the same. You came back for me, papa.” Neal corrected as he hugged his father again.

“He’s back.” Emma said to her parents.

“That means.”

“He can cure me.” David said happily.

“We can go home.” Snow nodded as they all hugged. Suddenly, Gold and Nicholas stiffened, sensing the presence of someone who shouldn’t be there.

“He’s here.” Nicholas alerted as Gold disappeared below deck. As soon as he and Regina got down, they saw Gold seal Pan away while Henry panted on his bed.

“It’s okay. I’m okay.” Henry reassured.

“Are you sure?” Regina asked.

“He’s a strong boy, Regina.” Rumple assured, “The two of you raised him well.”

“Thank you.” Nicholas said nodding to Gold for saving the boy.

Back on deck, everyone was in positon for the next phase in getting out of Neverland. Neal held the coconut in front of a mortar aimed at the main sail while everyone else was ready to fend off the shadow in case it got away.

“Ready, Regina?” Emma asked. Seeing her nod, Emma lit the fuse and Neal released the shadow precisely as the mortar fired. Regina then used her magic to bind the creature to the sail turning it black.

“Think it’ll fly?” Emma asked.

“It has no choice.” Nicholas replied.

“Then let’s get the hell out of Neverland.”

Not a moment later, the ship creaked and rose from the water and sailed high into the clouds.

“You know, when we first landed on this island, you said we’d all need to work together.” David said to his daughter.

“I was just trying anything.” she waved off.

“Well, to be honest, I didn’t think it was possible. That a hero, a villain, a pirate, an alchemist…that we could all be united, but we were because of the most important piece of the puzzle: a leader.”

“I’m just glad that we were all able to work together and get Henry back home. Get all of us home.” Emma replied. She then spotted Nicholas gazing into the night sky while smoking his pipe, lost in his thoughts.

“I better report this soon.” he thought, “Boss’ll kill me if I leave him and the others out of the loop.”

“I thought I might find you like this.” Emma teased as she joined the alchemist.

“Yeah, well, I couldn’t help but take in this view, you know?”

“I guess.” she said resting her head on his shoulder.

“Okay, after everything that’s gone down, let’s agree to disagree.” Neal said to Hook.

“Fine. Fair game for the both of us then once we get back to Storybrooke.” the pirate nodded, “But it won’t be that surprising when I win Emma’s heart.”

“In your dreams, man.” Neal waved off. It was then that the duo spotted Emma and Nicholas having their moment. Needless to say, they had pretty shocked expressions when they put the pieces together.

“Sorry, lads.” Tink chuckled, “But it looks like she’s not looking at either of ya.”

“She chose Flamel?!” they screamed in their minds.

“Hey, I’ll be back.” Nicholas said tucking his pipe away, “I got to hit the head.”

“Okay.” she nodded, “Don’t take too long.”

As he walked away, Regina decided to approach the Savior while looking out at the sky. “So what exactly are your intentions for my little brother?” she asked.

“Regina,” Emma sighed.

“It’s only fair that I ask.” she defended, “Someone’s got to look out for him.”

“Okay. But nothing’s really happened between us. Yet.” Emma admitted trying not to be embarrassed.

“Fine. But I want to make something very clear.” she warned, “If you hurt Nicholas in any way-”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. You’ll make my life miserable and use all of you power to do so.” Emma cut off.

“He’ll be devastated.” Regina corrected, “He’s already had his heart broken once and he’s been through enough for one life.”

“You don’t have to worry.” Emma reassured taking in the mayor’s words, “The last thing I want to do is hurt him. He means a lot to me, too.”

“Good.” Regina nodded, “Then we have nothing to worry about. Have fun hooking up with your great-step-uncle.”

“Wait,” Emma stuttered as Regina walked away, “What?”

“Well,” she chuckled, “Technically, seeing as I’m Mary Margaret’s step-mother, Nicholas is her step-uncle and therefor your great-step-uncle. You didn’t think I was going to accept this without planting at least some sort of seed in your head, did you?”

“Oh, that’s low.” Emma remarked while Regina laughed. Below deck, instead of being in the restroom like Nicholas said he would, he was hiding in the store room. He then pulled out a small seashell and held it against his head like a phone.

“This is Flamel reporting in, does anyone copy?” he asked.

“This is Africa, I copy.”

“Hey, boss.” Nicholas greeted feeling ashamed.

“Nicholas,” Africa replied feeling uncomfortable, “Before you give me some sort of speech as to why you’re sorry about the incident with Cora, I want you to know, none of us blame you or hold anything against you. We’re the ones wanting to apologize. She was your mother, and you were betrayed. None of hold anything against you. Water under the bridge?”

“Yeah,” Nicholas nodded feeling a great sense of relief, “Sure thing, boss.”

“Excellent. Now stop your weeping and tell me what the hell is going on.” Africa snapped.

“What the hell are you getting onto me like Skinner for, Quartermain?” Nicholas asked, “Geez, you’re still a complete grouch even after all these years. Anyway, we’re just now getting out of Neverland. Pan’s plan has failed and we’re returning to Storybrooke with Henry on the airborne Jolly Roger.”

“And Gold?” Quartermain asked.

“Alive.” Nicholas admitted, “But he seems to be more inclined to do some good for us considering we’re all part of the same family now.”

“Good to know. Anything else we need to know?”

“Yeah, we’ve got about two years left, give or take.” Nicholas said mysteriously.

“I see. Very well.” Quartermain sighed, “Get back here as soon as you can and meet up with us at headquarters. I want a full briefing on what happened and where we stand now concerning threats to the town.”

“Yes, sir, boss.” Nicholas nodded, “May the light and darkness forever be our guides.”

“May the light and darkness forever be our guides.” Quartermain repeated as Nicholas returned his shell to his pocket and returned above deck.


	27. The New Neverland

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

As the ship sailed through the air, everyone looked over the starboard side and saw the little sight of Storybrooke grow as they came closer and closer. Pretty soon, the ship landed just before the town port. Naturally, everyone in town saw the flying ship and a large crowd formed at port to welcome everyone back. Sure enough, they did just that as the heroes exited the pirate vessel; Grumpy proved to be the loudest.

“How’s it feel to finally be home?” Emma asked Henry.

“Better than I ever imagined.” Henry replied.

“I have to admit, I didn’t believe we were all gonna make it out of that place.” Emma said to the group around her and her loved ones.

“Well, we did.” David said while holding Snow who spotted the siblings being left out of the praise.

“And we owe a lot of it to them.” Snow said loudly, “Regina and Nicholas helped save us all.”

“So what about that shadow?” David asked Gold as the crowd slowly dispersed.

“Don’t worry. It’s trapped, just as it was in the candle.” Rumple replied, “The only person that can free it is safely in here.”

“Hey, Mom, Dad!” Henry called standing next to Felix, “What about Felix? He’s still free.”

“Henry’s right.” Regina nodded, “We can’t just let Felix walk away freely.”

“Oh, don’t worry.” David reassured, “We got plenty of cell space for this guy.”

“You’re safe now, Henry.” Emma assured as her father took the boy away. Later on, everyone joined Gold as he locked Pandora’s Box away in his shop.

“Once I seal the box in here, no one can break the spell but me.” Gold explained as he sealed it in a compartment in the floor.

“And you’re not gonna do that?” Henry asked.

“Believe me, I want Pan trapped just as much as you.”

“Don’t worry, Henry.” Emma said.

“He’s not getting out of there.” Neal added.

“We won’t let anything happen to you again.” Regina promised.

“Damn straight.” Nicholas muttered.

“Your mother’s right.” Gold nodded, “You needn’t worry. As long as I’m alive, that boy will never see the light of day.”

Later that evening, everyone was celebrating at Granny’s over the party returning home and their victory over Pan. As the music was playing and the crowd was laughing and clinking their mugs of beer and ale, Emma went over to the booth Henry was in and gave him his book.

As she did this, Nicholas smiled fondly at his unofficial girlfriend and nephew. Unfortunately, his smile went away as he caught a glimpse at a sight outside. It was a man wearing a navy blue turtleneck sweater with an overcoat and a navy blue stocking hat and slacks leaning against a long, white Rolls-Royce parked across from the diner; he nodded to Nicholas and jerked his head at the car.

With a heavy sigh, Nicholas downed his mug and snuck out of the party. As he did this, Neal approached Emma after she left Henry to himself.

“How’s he doing?” Neal asked.

“As good as can be expected.” Emma sighed.

“So, uh, Emma, can we…make some time to talk?” he asked nervously.

“Isn’t that what we’re doing right now?” Emma asked awkwardly.

“Yeah, I-I just thought maybe the two of us.”

“Are you trying to ask me on a date?” Emma asked.

“You know, when you put it like that-”

“Neal…I don’t…no. I-”

“Hey, listen.” he said gently, “Henry’s back. And he’s safe. We all are. And I know that you and Nicholas are pretty close, but just hear me out. I’ll make it easy for you. Tomorrow, I’m gonna be hungry around lunchtime. And so I’m gonna come here, I’m gonna sit in that booth, and you’re welcome to join me. And if not? I’ll quit bugging you.” he offered before joining Henry in his booth.

“Don’t say it.” Emma said as her parents approached her.

“Say what?” Snow asked.

“That I owe it to Neal to go on a date with him.”

“You don’t. You owe it to yourself.” Snow grinned.

“I can’t think about myself right now, not after what Henry just went through. Besides, I don’t want to go on a date with Neal any time soon.”

“Well, then who?” Snow asked trying not to laugh, “If you could pick anyone in town, who would you date?”

“I can’t believe my mother is asking me this.” Emma muttered, “Okay, if you want to know so badly, I’ll tell you. Nicholas. I’d choose him.”

“Nicholas?” David asked in shock as his wife’s mouth dropped.

“Nicholas Flamel?” Snow asked, “As in the alchemist who’s your great-step-uncle Nicholas Flamel? That Nicholas?”

“Yeah.” Emma said sheepishly.

“Well,” David said setting his mug on the counter, “It’s official. I’m gonna kill him.”

“Guys.” Emma pleaded trying not to laugh, “Come on.”

“Um, wh-when did Nicholas become an option?” Snow asked.

“Well, I’ve kinda had a crush on him for a while and after the whole thing at Echo Cave…I, uh, told him and he said he felt the same.”

“He did?” David asked.

“Well…more or less. He kinda kissed me instead of saying it.” Emma replied.

“Yep, I’m definitely gonna kill him.” David said nodding his head while controlling his anger, “Alright, where is he? Where’s that alchemist? I wanna have a little chat with him.”

“David, don’t. He’s-” Emma said turning to find Nicholas, “He was here a second ago.”

“Is that him there?” Snow asked seeing the alchemist having a heated conversation with a man outside.

“Yeah, what’s he doing out there?” Emma asked.

“Better question, who’s he talking to?” David asked as they watch Nicholas get in the back of the car before being driven off.

“More like, where the hell is he going?” Emma asked.

“I’m sorry to take you from the celebration so soon, sir.” the man apologized.

“Ah, it’s not your fault, Ishmael.” Nicholas waved off, “You’re just doing as your told.”

“The captain and the others will be happy to see you.”

“I’m sure. Although, something tells me it won’t be the reunion we were all hoping for.” Nicholas remarked.

“No, it won’t be. I don’t know all the details, but from what the captain told me, you’ll understand the situation fairly quick.” Ishmael informed. Roughly an hour and a half later, the car came to a stop outside the mansion in the woods. “We’ve arrived. Welcome back, sir.”

“Take care of yourself, Ishmael.” Nicholas said as he exited the car. As it drove off, Nicholas went up the stairs and went inside. Spotting the entrance to the council room, Nicholas walked over and entered the fireplace.

“Authorization Code required.” the computer’s voice said.

“Authorization Code: 6, 8, 3, 5, 9, Serpent, 4, 8, 1, 1, 12, Flask, 8, 9, 1.” Nicholas recited.

“Authorization Code accepted. Welcome, Agent Flamel.” the computer said as the elevator slowly went down. Once it stopped, Nicholas exited the fireplace, entered the conference room and found his old friends waiting for him in their respective seats.

“Hey, guys.” Nicholas greeted somberly, “Been awhile, hasn’t it?”

“Too long, mate.” Skinner said coming up to hug his old friend.

“Skinner.” Nicholas said hugging the invisible man back.

“Welcome back, old friend.” Nemo greeted shaking Nicholas’s hand before he was pulled into a hug.

“You have no idea how good it is to be back.” Nicholas chuckled before pulling Mina into hug and kissing her cheek, “Mina.”

“We’ve missed you.” she said kissing his cheek back.

“Hey, bud.” Sawyer said shaking Nicholas’s hand.

“Tom.” Nicholas nodded, “Where’s boss?”

As soon as he asked this, Quartermain walked past him and smacked him upside the head before taking his seat.

“Welcome back, Flamel. Take a seat.” he said gruffly.

“Sure thing, boss.” Nicholas sighed with a smirk, “So, I take it you guys didn’t just want me to stop by to catch up on Neverland only.”

“No, we didn’t.” Sawyer replied, “Honestly, none of us are concerned with Pan. Compared to some of the other yahoos we’ve dealt with, he wasn’t much of a threat.”

“Nicholas, remember, you will always have our support. Nothing will ever change that.” Mina reminded gently.

“What’s going on?” Nicholas asked seeing everyone’s ashamed looks.

“The truth is…the director is not happy with you, Nicholas.” Skinner informed.

“…Oh?” he asked, “Did he mention why?”

“Yes.” Quartermain nodded, “He caught wind of your involvement with your mother.”

“That part he didn’t exactly mind.” Mina clarified.

“It’s you attacking Snow White and Prince Charming and nearly killing her that he’s unhappy with.” Quartermain informed, “I understand why you did it, we all do, but if we hadn’t stepped in and stopped you…well, you’d be in a much worse situation than you are now.”

“I see. And what exactly has the director said concerning that matter, if I may ask?”

“He…expresses the rules to which we abide by.” Quartermain said gently.

“We are to give you a warning, Nicholas.” Nemo explained.

“Really?” he asked skeptically, “The director made you guys bring me here, when we haven’t seen each other in almost thirty years, just to give me a warning?”

“Trust us, mate. This is one you’ll want to remember.” Skinner urged, “The director said, ‘Tell Flamel this. If he endangers the lives of innocents again, I will personally come to Storybrooke and remind him of the consequences of actions I disapprove of.’ His exact words.”

“…Innocent?” Nicholas asked, his voice trembling in anger, “The director, our leader and the man who brought us all together to fight the injustice of the realms, sees the woman who tricked my sister into killing our mother as an innocent?”

“Given that Cora had killed that Johanna woman the day before…he, uh, considered that justifiable.” Sawyer said awkwardly.

“Just-justifiable?” Nicholas asked in anger, “The woman tricked my sister into killing our own mother after blaming us for crimes we didn’t commit due to the bad blood she pretended to move past. Snow blamed us the minute she learned of what happened and didn’t think for a second to give us a chance even after all the help I gave them back before the curse.”

“While all of that is true, the director is looking past this.” Quartermain explained, “He’s willing to forgive you this once, and given that the Promised Day has yet to come to pass, you’re being let off with a warning.”

“And he’s going to let them go without any consequences, isn’t he?” Nicholas asked running his hand over his face.

“Yeah, pretty much.” Sawyer nodded, “Sorry, buddy.”

“Ever the biased hypocrite, the director is.” Nicholas sighed, “Why I agreed to work for a man like him, I’ll never know. Is there anything else the director wants me to know?”

“No, that was it.” Skinner replied, “Although, he made it quite clear that this is your final warning.”

“Fine. In that case, this meeting is over.”

“You’re heading out already?” Sawyer asked.

“Yeah, everyone’s probably noticed I’m gone. Oh, Emma’s gonna kill me.”

“Emma?” Sawyer smirked, “Sheriff Swan, the beautiful blonde, Emma?”

“Dost mine ears deceive me?” Skinner teased, “Has our little alchemist begun dating the Savior?”

“Shut up, Skinner.” Nicholas grumbled.

“I’m not hearing a no~!”

“Alright, alright, all of you, shut up.” Nicholas grumbled while grabbing his coat, “I don’t need or want to hear any relationship advice from you guys. It’s bad enough I have to deal with two other guys going after her and my sister breathing down her neck.”

“Say hi to the missus for us, Nicky!” Skinner called as Nicholas left.

“Burn in hell, Skinner!” Nicholas shouted while flipping his friend off as he left.

“Oh, I did miss that lad.” Skinner laughed.

Seeing how late it was once he was outside, Nicholas sighed and deconstructed himself back to his room in his house. “Yeah, Emma’s gonna kill me.” he thought. The next morning as Nicholas was walking through town, he heard the sound of a woman screaming ring throughout town. As he tried to follow the source, he found himself catching up with Emma, David, Hook, and Tink.

“What the hell was that?” Emma asked.

“We were wondering the same thing.” Hook said.

“Ditto.” Nicholas nodded gaining everyone’s attention; namely Emma’s glare, “Uh, heheh, hey, Emma. Uh, about last night.”

“Save it.” she snapped, “Right now I’ve got more important things to deal with than your excuses. We’ll talk later.”

“There.” David said heading in the direction of the screaming. Following the source, everyone ran over to the church and saw Mother Superior running in fear from Pan’s shadow. Without warning, it swooped down and tore out her shadow leaving her dead on the pavement.

“She’s gone.” David informed after checking for a pulse.

“Why would the shadow kill her?” Tink asked.

“No idea, luv.” Hook replied, “But I do know the shadow only takes orders from one person.”

“Pan.” Emma said in worry. After they each made calls, Regina, Henry, Neal, and Snow arrived to see what happened.

“What the hell happened?” Regina asked.

“The shadow.” David answered, “It killed her.”

“Pan’s shadow?” Regina asked, “I trapped it on the sail.”

“Yeah, well, it got free.” Emma remarked.

“Hook, let’s go back to the ship and get the candle.” Neal suggested, “If it strikes again, we need to be able to capture it.”

“Pan’s behind this. I know it.” Emma said.

“He’s trapped in a box under the floor of Gold’s shop.” Regina reminded.

“Who else would be doing this?” Emma asked.

“I don’t know, maybe you can tell us, Nicholas.” Regina remarked while glaring at her brother.

“The hell does that mean?” he asked.

“Well, after your little disappearing act last night, one can only wonder what you were doing.” she snapped.

“I was dealing with other matters.” he replied.

“What other matters, mate?” Hook asked.

“Personal matters that aren’t anyone’s business but my own.” he retorted hotly, “Are we just gonna question me all day or are we gonna deal with the actual problem at hand?”

“So Pan can still hurt me?” Henry asked in fear.

“We don’t know that.” Regina coaxed.

“Well, we have to assume he’s still a threat.” Snow reminded.

“And that he’s after Henry.” Emma added.

“Then what am I doing here?” he asked.

“Henry’s right. He’s not safe out in the open.” David nodded.

“You’ll protect me, right?” Henry asked Regina.

“Well, yes, of course.” Regina said while hugging him.

“Even after everything we’ve faced, he’s never acted scared like this.” Nicholas thought in suspicion, “Something’s not right.”

“Go.” Emma said, “We’ll take care of the shadow.”

With the wind at their heels, Snow, David, Emma and Nicholas raced over to Gold’s shop only to see him lock it up with Belle.

“No, I’m afraid we’re closed.” he said before they had a chance, “Whatever crisis you’re dealing with, I’m done for the day.”

“Rumple.” Belle scolded.

“Pandora’s Box, give it to me.” Emma ordered.

“And why would I do that?” Gold asked.

“We need to open it.” Nicholas informed.

“And let Pan escape? What are you, crazy?” he asked.

“Somehow he’s controlling the shadow from inside the box. Henry’s life is in danger.” Snow explained.

“And you think letting Pan out will change that?” he asked.

“Yes, because we can stop him, finally and forever.” Emma replied.

“All due respect, Ms. Swan, we barely succeeded in apprehending him the first time. If I’ve learned one thing, it’s not to tempt fate.”

“I am not looking to apprehend him. Wouldn’t you be sure that he’s gone?” she asked.

“Well, what do you have in mind?” Gold asked.

The plan she had in mind was opening the box on the opposite of the town line, that way Pan could be released but he wouldn’t have any magic. “There’s no magic beyond the town line. If we release Pan outside Storybrooke, he’ll be powerless to fight back.” Gold explained as everyone approached the orange line.

“Thank you for reminding everyone of what we already know, Rumple.” Nicholas remarked dryly.

“I’m doing this.” Emma informed.

“I can cross the line and retain my memories.” Gold argued.

“It’s not about that. There’s no magic over there.” Emma reminded, “All due respect, the real world is my expertise. I’m gonna deal with Pan on my terms.”

“He is my father.”

“My hunch.” she countered, “If I fail, you’re more than welcome to pick up the pieces.”

“Emma, be careful.” Snow pleaded.

With a wave of his hand, Gold released Pan over the line in a cloud of red smoke. Emma had her gun coked and aimed at the boy as he scrambled to his feet on the pavement. Getting his bearings, Pan looked around and seemed afraid at the sight of Emma holding a gun at him.

“Mom?” he asked.

“What?” she asked.

“What are you waiting for?” Gold asked in hatred, “Shoot him.”

“Don’t! Please.” Pan begged, “I’m Henry. Pan, he-he switched our bodies.”

“You expect me to believe that?” Emma asked.

“Don’t listen to him. This is one of his tricks.” Gold seethed.

“No, it’s not!” Pan/Henry stressed, “He did it right before Mr. Gold captured me in the box. I swear.”

“Ah! Don’t come any closer.” Emma warned.

“Shoot him!” Gold snarled.

“Maybe he’s telling the truth.” Emma suggested, “Maybe that’s why I can’t shake this feeling something’s off about Henry.”

“Maybe that’s what he wants you to believe. If he steps over this line, we’re all dead.” Gold warned.

“Alright, if you are really Henry, prove it.” Emma ordered, “Tell me something only Henry would know.”

“I-I got trapped in the mines. I tried blowing up the well. I like hot cocoa with cinnamon. Nicholas smokes cigars when he’s angry and calls me bed-head every morning after I wake up.” he listed in panic.

“This proves nothing.” Gold hissed.

“He’s right, Emma.” Snow nodded, “Henry could’ve told Pan all of this in Neverland.”

“Pan might know facts, but life is made up of more than that. There are moments. He can’t possibly know all of them.” Emma said sternly, “The first time you and I connected. You remember that? Not met but connected.”

“Yeah.”

“Where was it?”

“In my castle, right after you came to Storybrooke.”

“And what did you tell me?”

“That I knew why you gave me up.”

“Why?”

“Because you wanted to give me my best chance.”

Hearing the right answer, Emma lowered her weapon and looked her son in the eyes. “Henry?”

“Mom.” he said happily as they hugged.

“It is Henry.” she said to everyone, “Promise you’re not gonna incinerate us when we step over the line?”

Seeing Gold nod, they crossed over and Henry immediately hugged the rest of his family. “I’m sorry I doubted you, Henry.” Gold apologized, “And I’m sorry I put you in this box in the first place.”

“It’s okay. I would have done the same thing.” Henry chuckled.

“If he’s all the way out here, where’s Pan?” David asked.

“Where do you think, genius?” Nicholas asked hotly as he tried to call his sister, “Dammit! She’s not picking up.”

“Where is she?” Snow asked.

“She went to take ‘Henry’ to the vault to keep him safe. No doubt Pan found something in there he’s used to his advantage against her. We need to get there, now.”

“Alright then, Gold, transport us there and we’ll finish this.” David ordered.

“No.” Nicholas denied, “He’ll sense the shift in magic and he’ll sense my alchemy if I deconstruct myself over there.”

“So what do we do? Go to the vault on foot?” Snow asked.

“Yep. And unfortunately, that’ll take a large chunk of time.” Nicholas pointed out, “Come on, let’s get moving.”

Like Nicholas said, it took quite a bit of time for everyone to reach the vault. Night had already fallen and Regina still didn’t respond to anyone’s calls.

“When we find Pan, remember, he’s still in my body. So if you have to throw a fireball or something, at least avoid the face.” Henry pleaded fearing what Gold might do.

“I’ll do my best.” he replied. As they reached the mausoleum, they saw Hook, Tink and Neal waiting for them.

“Is it really you?” Neal asked Henry as he ran up to hug him.

“Did you find the shadow?” David asked.

“Not yet.” Tink replied.

“But we’ll be ready for him when we do.” Hook said holding the coconut.

“It’s Pan we should be concerned about now.” Gold commented, “Why are we still up here?”

“It’s locked up tight.” Neal replied.

“Really?” Gold asked before trying to take away the barrier but to no avail.

“Told you.”

“Fair enough. This gonna take some time.”

Still feeling worried, Emma stepped back to collect herself, only to be interrupted by her parents. “It’s going to be okay, you know. Everything’s going to be okay.” Snow assured.

“No, it’s not.” Emma argued, “Even if Pan’s down there, I can’t use my gun. He’s in Henry’s body.”

“And we’ll get him out. We’ll save him.” David replied.

“Will we?” Emma asked.

“Yes, and because of you. You were right about Pan. Just like your mother was about Regina all those years ago. We’ll stop him. And then you can-”

“Live my moments?” she cut off, “Even though there’s still terrible things out there?”

“Exactly.” her parents nodded.

“You’re great parents, but…you’re wrong. I’m the Savior. I don’t have the luxury of having moments. It’s just not my life. Every time I think I’m gonna sit back and enjoy myself, I can’t because it’s never gonna stop.”

“I used to think the same way.” Snow provided.

“It’s different. My magic has a price. The price of being the Savior is…I don’t get a day off.”

“Which is why you have us to be there at your side when things get rough.” Nicholas reminded from behind, “Life’s not easy, that’s for damn sure, Emma. But even if it means spending each day fighting off psychopaths, count me in.”

“Thanks, Nicholas.” Emma said with a caring smile, “So are you finally gonna tell us where the hell you were yesterday?”

“Oh, look the door’s open.” he said pointing to the entrance, “Shall we?”

“Let’s” Gold hissed. As they walked in, Snow spotted Regina on the floor unconscious.

“Pan’s gone.” David informed.

“We’re clear down here!” Emma called to the others.

“And so are some of Regina’s supplies.” Nicholas added as he inspected an open box’s contents while Gold awoke his sister.

“What happened?” she asked.

“It’s Henry.” Emma informed, “Somehow, Pan switched bodies with him.”

“And I fell for it.”

“We all did.” Snow coaxed.

“Oh, I wanted to believe what he was saying so badly, I missed all the signs. I-I just wanted to believe that he still needed me to be his mother.” Regina said feeling like a fool.

“I still do.” Henry said.

“Henry?” she asked as he went over to give her a much needed hug.

“So what exactly did Pan come down here to get?” David asked before noticing Gold’s shocked expression, “What?”

“Please tell me you didn’t keep it down here.” he begged.

“Where else would I keep it?” Regina asked.

“Oh, cripes, no.” Nicholas gasped.

“What is it?” Emma asked, “What did Pan take?”

“The scroll containing the dark curse that brought us all here and created Storybrooke.” he gulped.

“Why would Pan want the dark curse? I already cast it.” Regina reminded.

“And I broke it.” Emma added.

“Well, that doesn’t mean he can’t cast it again.” Gold explained, “And this time, without your parents’ true love woven in, even you would be powerless to break it.”

“I don’t understand. We’re already in this land.” David said.

“What exactly would casting the curse in Storybrooke do now?” Snow asked.

“The same thing that happened to everyone before: everyone will forget who they are as time stands still; including Regina and I this time. Only this time, Pan will be the one in charge.”

“So that means…” Emma carried.

“That means, Pan’s gonna turn this place into the new Neverland.” Nicholas finished.


	28. Going Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

“Another curse?” Snow asked as they left the vault, “It’s happening again?”

“Gold, this curse, is it gonna work like the last one?” Emma asked.

“The last one was created to service the queen’s wishes. This will be done per Pan’s desire. I would count on something hellish.”

“The curse was built to be unstoppable. There’s nothing that can be done.” Regina added.

“Well, it is possible to stop it. By using the scroll itself. It can only be undone by the person who used the scroll. That’s you, Regina.” Gold explained.

“What do I have to do?”

“You must destroy the scroll. Both your curse and his shall be ended, but know this. There will be a price. A steep one.”

“What do you suggest?”

“Instead of going to him, bring him to us with a spell, one that will return Pan and Henry to their own bodies.”

“If I’m back in my own body, that means I’ll have the scroll. I-I can bring it to you guys.” Henry realized.

“Exactly right, Henry.” Gold nodded.

“Even you aren’t powerful enough to cast such a spell.”

“Well, given the proper tool, I could be.” he countered.

“The black fairy’s wand.” Tink suggested, “One of the most powerful fairies that ever existed. Well versed in dark magic. The blue fairy exiled her. But before she did, she took her wand.”

“Sounds like our deceased nun wasn’t very lenient towards others even then.” Nicholas remarked, “I take it she kept it hidden somewhere close to keep an eye on it.”

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s hit the convent.” David suggested.

“Can I come?” Tink asked, “I should pay my respects to Blue, after all.”

“Then it’s settled. The rest of us should go back to my shop and prepare Henry for the spell.” Gold said unaware that the shadow was listening on them and Pan had finished enacting the curse at the well.

In Gold’s shop, Henry was preparing himself for the next phase in the plan. “You doing okay, kiddo?” Nicholas asked.

“Yeah.” he nodded, “I’m just ready to be me again.”

“Not much longer now, Henry. Not much longer.” Gold calmly assured, “Once we have the wand, all will be as it should.”

About twenty minutes later, David and the others returned with the wand. “She’s back, the Blue Fairy. She gave us the wand.”

“Do we need anything else?” Emma asked.

“Only one more item.” Gold replied while taking the magic sealing cuff from his cabinet.

“What is that?” Snow asked.

“This is one of the only useful things I managed to pilfer from Greg and Tamara before they left for Neverland. It renders anyone with magic utterly powerless.”

“I haven’t forgotten about all of that, by the way.” Regina informed looking at Hook.

“Neither have I.” Nicholas added.

“Let me see your wrist, Henry. I wanna make sure that when my dear old dad awakes, that he’s weakened. This will block his powers.” Rumple explained.

“So what happens now?” Henry asked.

“I enact the spell, you fall into a deep sleep, and when you awake, you’re back in your own body.”

“And then you hang on to that scroll, and you come find us as fast as you can.” Regina added.

“When I gave my heart to Pan, I thought I was being a hero.” Henry scoffed, “I’m sorry.”

“No, you’re not the one that needs to be sorry.” David denied, “Pan does.”

“It’s time.” Gold informed as Henry laid down on the bed, “Keep your eye on the wand.”

In a matter of seconds, Pan’s body was zapped with energy and began to convulse and tremble as the souls were being swapped.

“What’s happening?” Emma asked in concern.

“Henry’s spirit is leaving Pan’s body.”

Once the body calmed down, Pan laid helplessly unconscious before them. “It worked.” Regina said happily.

“Let’s go find our son.” Emma said as everyone left the room.

“I wonder how many times she’s said that in the last few weeks.” Nicholas thought. As they hurried through town to find Henry, Nicholas took the lead, “I’ve got his scent. He’s nearby.”

“The tower?” Snow asked.

“Bingo.” he nodded as they ran over. As they reached it, they all saw Henry burst through the library and run over to them.

“It’s me! It’s me. It worked.” he said as his mothers crushed him a hug, “Mom, Mom, I just saw you guys. You guys just saw me.”

“But we didn’t see you.” Regina corrected as Henry handed them the scroll.

“Oh, he’s got it.” Emma breathed, “It’s up to you now.”

As Regina held the scroll, a flash of purple light came from it and made her collapse on the pavement.

“Regina!” Emma exclaimed.

“Sis?” Nicholas asked in concern, “Sis, are you alright?”

“Regina!” Emma shook, “Regina! Regina!”

Finally, Regina awoke with a loud gasp. “Sis, what happened? Are you okay?” Nicholas asked.

“Yes, I’m fine. It was just…”

“What is it?” Snow asked, “What happened when you touched it?”

“I saw what needed to be done.” she replied.

“Mom, are you gonna be okay?” Henry asked.

“The important this is, you will be.” she said with love before noticing the scroll was gone.

“No, he won’t.” Pan said approaching them all.

“He has the-” Hook tried to say only to be cut off by Pan freezing them all in place.

“Curse?” Pan asked with a grin, “That I do. Look at you all. A captive audience. I could play with you like a pack of dolls, couldn’t I? But I think I’ll start with these two.” he said approaching Belle and Neal.

“Hmm, you both look so adorable. Hard to tell which one to kill first.” he mused evilly, “No, it isn’t. You. You first.” he said pointing at Neal.

“Stay away from them.” Gold growled while shoving his father aside.

“Well, how about this?” Pan said in amusement, “The worm has teeth. What, you’re here to pwotect your wuved ones?”

“I’m not going to let you touch either one of them.”

“Oh, and I’d like to see that.”

“Oh, you will.” Gold promised, “Because I have a job to finish, and I have to do it, whatever it takes. No loopholes. And what needs to be done has a price; a price I’m finally willing to pay. I used the curse to find you, Bae, to tell you I made a mistake, to make sure you had a chance at happiness. And that happiness is possible. Just not with me. I accept that.”

“Pretty, pretty words.” Pan said in annoyance.

“I love you, Bae.” Gold whispered, “And I love you, Belle. You made me stronger.”

“Stronger?” Pan huffed pointing to the cuff on Gold’s wrist, “Yes. But still, no magic.”

“Oh, but I don’t need it. You see, you may have lost your shadow, but there’s one thing you’re forgetting.”

“And what’s that?”

“So have I. I sent it away with something to hide.”

Just then, Gold’s shadow swooped down and gave him his dagger before rejoining him as he held Pan against him in a tight lock.

“Ugh! What are you doing?!” Pan asked in fear.

“You see, the only way for you to die, is if we both die.” Gold explained as he struggled, “And now, now…I’m ready!”

Plunging the dagger through his father, Gold held on tight as Pan changed from a teenage boy to a middle aged man that resembled the dark one, trembling in pain.

“Hello, Papa.” Gold greeted.

“Rumple, please.” he begged, “You can stop this. Remove the dagger. We can start over. We can have a happy ending.”

“Ah, but I’m a villain.” Rumple reminded, “And villains don’t get happy endings.”

Twisting the dagger in, Gold plunged it where it also stabbed his own heart. As the light enveloped them, both father and son disappeared leaving only the curse scroll behind and everyone looking at the spot in shock and sorrow.

Belle was sobbing as she fell to the ground while Neal struggled to keep his composure. “No! Rumple…he’s-he’s gone.” Belle sobbed as Regina reached down to grab the scroll.

“Regina, are you okay?” Snow asked.

“…I’m fine.” she replied.

“I’m so sorry.” Emma said to Neal.

“My father did what he had to do. He saved us.” Neal said as his voice broke, “Regina, don’t let him die for nothing.”

The queen seemed to be in a daze as Neal spoke to her. She barely seemed aware of where she was.

“Regina?” Nicholas asked.

“What?” she asked finally snapping out of it.

“We’re here for a reason, luv. Pan?” Hook reminded.

“He’s dead.” she replied.

“His curse remains. Can you stop it? Or should we all start preparing our souls? Because mine’s gonna take some time” he joked.

“It’s here!” Leroy cried as he ran to them, “It’s here! The curse! It’s here! It’s coming! From all sides. There’s no escape.”

“It’s not too late. We can still stop it, right? Regina?” David asked.

“Yes. Yes.” she breathed.

“Wh-what’s the price?” Emma asked, “Gold said that there was a price. What is our price.”

“Regina?” Nicholas asked.

“It’s not our price.” she corrected, “It’s mine.”

“What are you talking about?” he asked.

“It’s what I felt when I first held it. I have to say goodbye to the thing I love most.”

“Henry?” Emma asked.

“I can never see him again. I have no choice. I have to undo what I started.” Regina explained.

“The curse that brought is to Storybrooke.” Snow said.

“That created Storybrooke.” Nicholas corrected, “It doesn’t belong here. Neither do any of us.”

“Breaking the curse destroys the town.” David said trying to let it sink in.

“It will wink out of existence as though it were never here. And everyone would go back to where they’re from, prevented from ever returning.” Regina said with dread.

“You’ll go back to the Enchanted Forest?” Emma asked.

“All of us. Except Henry.” Nicholas corrected, “He will stay here because he was born in this realm. Everyone that was born outside of Storybrooke will be returned to the realms they belong; including you and Neal. Henry will have to stay.”

“Alone?” Emma asked.

“No.” Regina denied, “You will take him, because you’re the Savior. You were created to break the curse. And once again, you can escape it.”

“…I-I don’t want to. We’ll both go back with everyone.” Emma argued.

“That’s not an option.” Regina replied over the thunderclaps, “I can’t be with him. If I don’t pay the price, none of this will work.”

“Emma, you have to go.” Snow said.

“I just found you.” she said.

“And now it’s time for you to leave us again. For your best chance, for his.”

“No.” Emma denied, “N-no, I-I…I’m not…done. I’m the Savior, right? I’m supposed to bring back all the happy endings. That’s what Henry always said.”

“Happy endings aren’t always what we think they will be.” Snow said with a sad smile, “Look around you. You’ve touched the lives of everyone here.”

“But we’re a family.”

“Yes, and we always will be. You gave us that.”

“You and Henry can be a family, and you can get your wish.” David said, “You can be like everyone else. You can be happy.”

“It’s time for you to believe in yourself, Emma. It’s time for you to have hope.” Snow urged.

“I’ve known you for some time,” Regina said, “And all I want was for you to get the hell out of my life so I can be with my brother and son. But, really, what I want is for Henry to be happy.”

“So do I.” Nicholas nodded trying to control his emotions, “We have no choice. You have to go, Emma.”

“…Okay.” she whispered.

The group and the dwarves headed over to the town line as quick as they could to say their final goodbyes as the curse came closer and closer. Emma and Henry hugged Snow and David in a tight embrace before Henry went over to Regina and Nicholas.

“This isn’t fair.” he said looking them in the eye, “It’s all my fault.”

“What do you mean?” Regina asked.

“If I had never gone to get Emma, if I just lived under the curse with you guys, none of this would’ve ever happened. I thought I was alone. I thought neither of you loved me. But I was wrong.

“Kiddo,” Nicholas whispered, “We were wrong, too.”

“It wasn’t your fault. It’s mine.” Regina said, “I cast a curse out of vengeance instead of listening to your uncle. And I’m…I’m a villain. You heard Mr. Gold. Villains don’t get happy endings.”

“Neither do monsters.” Nicholas added.

“You’re not a villain or a monster.” Henry argued as his voice broke before hugging them, “You’re my mom and uncle.”

After Henry broke from the hug to say goodbye to Neal, the two siblings approached Emma.

“Emma, there’s something I haven’t told you. Something the both of you need to know.” Regina said looking at the couple.

“What now?” Emma sighed.

“When the curse washes over us, it will send us all back. Nothing will be left behind…including your memories. It’s just what the curse does. Storybrooke will no longer exist. It won’t ever have existed. So these last years…will be gone from your and Henry’s memories. And we just go back to being stories again. You won’t even remember Nicholas.”

If it wasn’t broken enough already, Nicholas swore he felt what was left of his heart break upon hearing this.

“What will happen to us?” Emma asked.

“I don’t know.”

“That doesn’t sound much like a happy ending.”

“It’s not.” Nicholas sadly chuckled.

“But I can give you one.” Regina informed.

“You can preserve our memories?”

“No. I can…do what I did to everyone else in this town; give you new ones.”

“You cursed them, and they were miserable.” Emma countered.

“They didn’t have to be. My gift to you is good memories. A good life for you and Henry. You’ll have never given him up. You’ll have always been together.”

“You would do that?” Emma asked.

“When I stop Pan’s curse, and you cross that town line, you will have the life you always wanted.”

“But it won’t be real.”

“Your past won’t, but your future will.” Regina sighed, “There isn’t much time left. I’ll give you two a moment.”

Nicholas stared Emma in the eyes with nothing but sorrow and heartache. “I’m an idiot.” he admitted.

“Why?” she asked.

“For not realizing how I felt about you sooner and acting on those feelings.” he replied, “I was wrapped up in my thoughts and I didn’t do a damn thing until the last minute. Heh, guess I’m exactly boyfriend material, huh?”

“You would have been the best.” Emma said cupping his cheek before pulling him in for one last kiss. As they parted, they pressed their foreheads together and struggled not to get too emotional.

“You will be in my heart until the day I die.” Nicholas whispered as the curse came closer. With tears rolling down her face, Emma parted from the hug and got into her car with Henry. 

As the cloud came closer, Regina tore the scroll and turned the green smoke into the same shade of purple it was when Regina first cast it. As it enveloped them all, Emma drove over the line without a single memory of the previous two years. All she remembered was that her name was Emma Swan, she was a bails bondsperson, she lived in Boston with her elven year old son Henry and that she had been an orphan her whole life without knowing a single member of her family.

Or even opening her heart to another man since Neal abandoned her.

**Three Months Later**

In the ever busy city of Manhattan, New York, Emma Swan, wearing a beautiful tight, red dress walked into a fancy restaurant. The waiter spotted her and led her outside to a table that already had a well-dressed gentleman waiting.

“Uh, Emma?” he asked as she approached the table.

“Yep, that’s me.” she chuckled while taking her seat, “Sorry I’m late. Traffic in New York, right?”

“Yeah, believe me, I know.” he chuckled, “Don’t worry about it. We’ll just consider this being fashionably late.”

“Thanks. Uh, fair warning, I don’t usually do this sort of thing. My son thought it’d be a good idea for me to start dating again. And I just blew it telling you I have a son before even getting a glass of water. Good move, Emma.”

“Please, don’t worry about it.” he laughed, “Honestly, I don’t understand why that drives some people off. I happen to like kids. Hell, I helped raised my sister’s for eleven years.”

“Really?” Emma asked smirking.

“Yeah. But before we get any further into talking about relatives and kids, seeing as that’s more appropriate for a second date, let’s just start off with properly introducing ourselves.”

“Okay.” Emma laughed, “Uh, hi, my name is Emma Swan. What’s yours?”

“Pleased to meet you, Emma Swan.” he grinned, “My name is Nicholas Mills.”


	29. New York City Serenade

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

One year ago after the curse was destroyed, the massive purple cloud of magic flooded the Enchanted Forest and did its job in a matter of seconds. When it cleared, Aurora and Prince Phillip who were only wanting to enjoy a quiet morning together looked at the sight before them in astonishment. Dressed in the same clothes they wore nearly thirty years ago, Snow, David, the dwarves, Red, Hook, Neal, Granny, Belle, Regina and Nicholas stood before them with solemn looks on their faces.

“Snow, Nicholas…what happened?” Aurora asked.

“…We’re back.” Snow said feeling heartbroken. Seeing the looks on their faces, the happy couple offered to console them and hear what happened along with answering questions of their own.

“How long has it been since we left? Have the ogres been causing trouble?” Nicholas asked.

“No, they’ve been defeated.” Aurora replied, “We’re restoring our kingdom and our lives.”

“And congratulations.” Snow praised looking at Aurora’s pregnant stomach.

“Thank you.” she giggled.

“Why is she pregnant and I’m the one who’s sick?” Regina asked.

“We have much to celebrate.” Philip said, “And know that you and your friends are welcome in our kingdom. If you need anything, we’re at your service.”

“Thank you, but all we need is horses.” David replied, “We have our own kingdom, our own castle.”

“Which was destroyed in the curse.” Nicholas dryly reminded.

“Well-played by your sister, mate.” Hook remarked, “She laid waste to everything.”

“Not everything.” Aurora interjected, “Her castle still stands.”

“Of course it does. I protected it.” Regina commented.

“Well, technically, the castle doesn’t belong to her or Nicholas. It was Snow’s before they took it.” David reminded sourly.

“Lump me in with Snow’s misfortune one more time, Shepard. I freaking dare you.” Nicholas threatened with his hands sparking, “I am not in the mood to hear your gripping.”

“And to be fair, I married into it and I most certainly wasn’t going to let my brother be homeless.” Regina defended a bit more gently.

“That you did. And now we’re taking it back,” Snow informed.

“Not five minutes back and we’re already doing this again?” Nicholas asked as he was about to harden his shield.

“And you two are coming with us.” Snow finished.

“You can’t be serious.” Regina scoffed.

“Come again from the elementary teacher?” Nicholas asked.

“Guys, everyone out there is scared and confused. They need hope. What better way to do that than to return united?” Snow asked, “You’re coming with us. I know neither of you like it but you’ll learn to. For our good and for yours.”

“…Well, if it means I won’t have to break into my old room to steal my old research notes, fine.” Nicholas nonchalantly shrugged.

**OUaT**

In present time in New York, Emma was walking to the same table at the same restaurant where she had her first date with Nicholas. It had already been a little over nine months since that evening and she couldn’t be happier. Nicholas proved to be a wonderful boyfriend and showed nothing but love for not only her, but her son Henry as well. To her, it was strange how well he was able to bond with Henry at first, but not having to worry about her son disapproving of her relationship due to not liking the man was certainly a plus.

It took her sometime, but after five months, and nearly loosing Nicholas in an accident at his office (more details on that later), Emma was finally able to admit that she loved the man; although, he said it first. All in all, her relationship with Nicholas was the best she had ever had.

Little did she know, it was all built on a lie.

True, they did love each other, but Nicholas never made any effort in telling Emma about who they really were and what had happened in the previous years in Storybrooke. Why you may ask? He was under orders not to.

After the curse was completely broken and everyone returned to their home realms, Nicholas tried to get back into his old rut and join up with the L.O.E.G. again. For a brief time, that worked. That is until the League’s director contacted him and told him to return to the Land Without Magic to tragic down and kill a target. He did so, after a time of settling in and readying his plan, but afterwards, he decided to stay in order to find Emma and Henry.

The director never said anything about immediately returning.

Unfortunately, nothing lasts forever. Earlier today, he had received a call on his enchanted shell from Sawyer who had an important message. He said that somehow, Storybrooke had returned along with everyone in it and it was time for him to return with the one person capable of breaking curses: Emma.

Knowing what he had to do, Nicholas hardened his heart and put his skills to good use. With what resources he had, Nicholas made an alchemic elixir that would restore anyone’s memories. However, he couldn’t make enough for Henry, so Emma would be the only one who would be regaining her memories. Our dear alchemist was currently thinking this as he stared into space as his pipe hanged in his mouth.

“Hey, babe,” Emma greeted as she took her seat, “Sorry I’m late. Work was killer today. I-”

Finally noticing her boyfriend’s expression, Emma became concerned. “Nicholas? What’s the matter?”

“Hmm?” he asked snapping out of his daze, “Oh, I’m sorry. I-I-I was thinking about something. So work, huh? I’m guessing you caught the guy?”

“Well, you know me.” she chuckled.

“Yeah, if you hadn’t, you’d have canceled.” Nicholas grinned.

“And you know me too well.”

“Emma Swan always gets her man.” Nicholas said as their waiter brought them two glasses and a bottle of red wine.

“And apparently my drink. Thank you.” Emma said while Nicholas’s face scrunched up in disgust.

“My pleasure. If either of you need anything else, feel free to ask.” he said politely as he kept his eyes on her. As he walked away, Nicholas exhaled and waved his hand in front of his face.

“Gah!” he exclaimed.

“What’s with you?” she asked.

“You didn’t smell that?!” he asked, “Agh, the guy smelt like a chimp! I guess we know that this isn’t his only job now.”

“I think you’re overreacting a bit.” Emma remarked.

“Am I?! It was like standing next to the chimps at the zoo!”

“You and that sensitive nose of yours.” Emma said rolling her eyes, “I’m surprised you never act like this whenever you go to that cigar lounge of yours.”

“That’s because I enjoy the smell of tobacco.” he retorted, “And it’s the one place I can go to enjoy my pipe and a rich whiskey or scotch without people looking at me thinking I’m a fifties wannabe.”

“Well, given that you drive a car from the 50s doesn’t help either. But that’s just one of your qualities I’ve gotten used to.”

“I pull that kinda stuff off and you know it.” he laughed, “By the way, how did Henry’s volcano do at the science fair?”

“Thanks to your help, it was Pompeii all over again.” Emma said as they clinked their glasses together, “I think you’re being quite the influence for him.”

“It’s like I told him, girls like good looking guys, but they like them even more when they can prove just how smart they are. And Henry fits that bill quite well. I just wish you would have let us use real lava like we wanted.”

“Well, I doubt his teachers would have appreciated that.” Emma laughed as she opened her menu, “I’m starving, let’s eat.”

After they finished their meals, Nicholas couldn’t help but stare into Emma’s eyes. “What?” she asked only to not receive an answer, “What?”

“Nothing.” he replied with a sad smile as she laughed.

“Finish your food and stop staring at me, will you?” she laughed.

“Uh, Emma?” Nicholas asked taking her free hand, “When we first met here…did…”

“Yes?” she carried.

“Did I…seem familiar to you?”

“Oh,” Emma said expecting him to say something else, “Oh, uh, no. How could you? That was the first time we met.”

“Well…that’s not exactly true.” Nicholas gently explained, “We’ve, uh, actually met before.”

“What do you mean?” she skeptically asked, “Did we meet when we were kids and I forgot or something?”

“Not exactly. It-it’s complicated.” he stuttered as he reached for a small vial in his pocket.

“Oh, God, what’s happening?” Emma asked becoming panicked as she watched her boyfriend reach for something.

“Emma, hear me out. I-Emma?” he asked as he looked up to see her speed off from the table, “Emma, wait up!”

Trying to control her breathing, Emma walked down the sidewalk across the street breathing heavily. “Emma!” Nicholas called trying to catch up. As he did he saw a hooded figure pull the blonde into an alley. Running through traffic, Nicholas caught up to see his girlfriend struggle in the goon’s hold with a chloroform soaked cloth over her face while another guy tugged at her dress.

“Hey!” Nicholas shouted, “Get your filthy hands off her!”

“You gonna make us, fool?” one of them asked as he pulled out a gun, “You wanna get capped?!”

“Don’t make me repeat myself, you bastard.” he warned, “Let her go or die.”

“Go to hell!”

Emma looked watched her the blurred shape of her boyfriend get shot repeatedly in the chest. Tears filled her eyes over the loss of her lover and out of fear for what was going to happen to her before she passes out. But before Nicholas’s body hit the ground, his wounds healed themselves.

“Well, damn.” Nicholas sighed in annoyance, “This was my favorite vest. Guess you two are gonna have to die after all.”

With his hand raised, he transmuted the air around the thugs and caused them to choke and slowly die. As soon as they were dead, Nicholas made sure the coast was clear and deconstructed their bodies leaving nothing behind. After that, he went over and woke Emma up while using his alchemy to patch up the bullet holes.

“Emma?” he asked as she came to, “Are you alright?”

“Nicholas?” she slurred before becoming wide awake, “You-you were, you were shot.”

“No, no, I’m fine. See? They missed.” lied the alchemist.

“Wh-where did they go?”

“Hell.” he bluntly thought before saying, “They ran off after I broke their arms and beat them up.”

“You did?” she asked.

“I’m tougher than I look.” he shrugged as he helped her up, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Not the first time I’ve dealt with overly handsy guys.”

“Come on, let’s get you home.” Nicholas suggested, “By the way, when you ran off, did you think I was going to propose to you?”

“Uh…love you.” Emma said hurrying to Nicholas’s 1950 black, convertible BMW 507 while he chuckled. But the chuckling didn’t last, he quickly thought back to the little vial in his pocket.

“I can’t keep lying to her.” he thought, “She needs to know.”

**OUaT**

As the group reached the castle, after meeting up with Robin Hood and his Merry Men of all people along the way, they all noticed a trench of burnt ground surround the border of the castle’s perimeter.

“What happened?” Snow asked.

“That’s exactly what I’m about to find out.” Regina said. As she approached the burns, she gently reached out and touched a green, magical barrier. “A protection spell,” she announced, “The entire castle’s encircled by it.”

“Didn’t you do this?” David asked, “Undo it.”

“Well don’t you think if I could, I would be halfway home by now?” she asked, “No. Someone hijacked it.”

“Who? Who’s in there?” Snow asked.

“I don’t know, but I’m gonna find out whoever’s eating my porridge. Nobody sits in my chair. Nobody takes our castle.”

“That would have sounded much more serious if you hadn’t made those Goldilocks references, sis.” Nicholas dryly commented, “Best not to become too riled up. We’ve got a lot of people looking to us and they’re a bit scared. I say we get them to safety first.”

“They’ll be safe when whoever’s in there is dead.” Regina retorted.

“Rushing in there is a bad plan, Regina. You know that.” Snow reminded.

“I can offer safe harbor in Sherwood Forest.” Robin offered, “It’s not far. We can offer food, shelter, and a thick canopy no creature will spy you under.”

“Do you have weapons?” David asked.

“We’re lousy with them.”

“Hell, that sounds pretty damn good to me.” Nicholas chuckled.

“Fine. Lead the way. But we’re coming back. And whoever did this is going to suffer.” Regina warned.

“Regina, it’s our home. We’ll make it safe again.” Snow promised.

**OUaT**

The next day, Nicholas decided it was time to come clean and jog Emma’s memory. Thankfully, Henry was over at a friend’s place so he didn’t need to worry about him hearing the inevitable shouting Emma had instore for him. With a glass of water in his hand, Nicholas emptied the contents of the vial in it and let it sink for his plan to get her to regain her memories.

“Hey, Emma?” Nicholas called from the kitchen.

“Yeah?” she asked from her coach.

“I think something’s wrong with your pipes.” he lied.

“Think so?”

“Yeah, the water tastes funny to me.” he said walking over with the glass, “Try this, see if it tastes weird to you.”

“Okay.” she shrugged before drinking it all. In a second, her mind was overflown with nearly two years-worth of memories. Seeing her expression, Nicholas decided to test if it worked.

“Emma, what’s my name?”

“…Your name is Nicholas Flamel.” she whispered.

“Bingo.” he said taking the glass from her hand, “Welcome back, Sheriff.”

“…What the hell was in that water?” she bluntly asked.

“A little memory serum I whipped up. Didn’t expect it to work being mixed in with water, but an experiment does come with risks. Although, you actually may want to get your pipes checked ‘cause I did notice some gunk in it the other day.” Nicholas explained like it was a normal conversation.

“O-okay, can we ignore my pipes for a sec and establish how the hell you’re here?!”

“Well, if you feel like that’s more important that discussing the best way to avoid drinking water with too much iron in it, sure.” Nicholas joked as he took a seat.

“How are you here? I thought Regina said that there was no possible way for anyone to return after the curse was ended.”

“Well, one of my many abilities is being able to transport myself, and only myself, to any world of my choosing.” he replied.

“Why did you come?” she asked.

“Multiple reasons. One of which was because I wanted to see you and Henry and make sure you were alright. The others…well, we can talk about that later.” he said only to change his mind at the sight of Emma’s death glare, “Or now, we can talk about it now. I was informed that something dangerous was trying to track you down in this realm and I came over to take care of it. After I did, I decided to stay.”

“So us meeting on a blind date?” Emma asked.

“Hacked the site, found your profile and went from there.” Nicholas replied.

“The money you’ve been spending on all our dates, gifts and your car?”

“Made money from turning scrap metal into gold and used my alchemy to duplicate bills and change.”

“Those two thugs from last night?”

“Killed them, deconstructed their bodies and destroyed any remaining evidence.”

“The explosion at your office?”

“The office was a lie, I just went there to have a private place to do my research and continue my physical training, but the explosion actually happened because of the thing I was tracking down and the fight we had which caused the explosion.” he defended.

“So everything in this relationship has been a lie.” Emma stated, “You’ve been lying to me about everything.”

“Well, in my defense, you wouldn’t have believed me if I said, ‘Hey, Emma. You don’t remember me because my big sister, the Evil Queen, messed with your memories after the curse on a town called Storybrooke was destroyed, but just for the sake of reintroducing myself my name is Nicholas Flamel the Immortal Alchemist; would you like to see me chop off my arm and watch it grow back?’”

“…Okay, you got me there. But why didn’t you just return my memories in the first place?”

“I didn’t know how until yesterday.” he defended, “I had only found out about what happened to everyone that morning.”

“Wait, what happened?” she asked.

“Oh, right, I haven’t told you yet. Somehow Storybrooke is back along with everyone in it. Only problem is, no one remembers anything from the year they were in the Enchanted Forest and has no idea who cast the curse.”

“How did you find out about this?” Emma asked.

“With this.” Nicholas said revealing his shell.

“A shell?” she asked skeptically.

“An enchanted shell. It’s like a radio capable of sending messages even across realms.” he explained, “A friend of mine contacted me and told me what happened along with what I would need to make a serum with my alchemy to restore your memories. Unfortunately, I only had enough for you so Henry won’t be getting his back anytime soon.”

“So you have no idea who cast this new curse?”

“Well, I do have one.” he said as someone knocked on the door, “We’re we expecting anyone?”

“No.” Emma said getting up to answer it. When she did, a UPS guy was standing before her, “Uh, can I help you?”

“I smell chimps again.” Nicholas thought before he realized the situation.

“Yes, I have a delivery for a Ms. Emma Swan.” he said as Nicholas was preparing his alchemy.

“I didn’t order anything.” she said.

“Oh, well. The sender insists you take it.” he said growing impatient.

“Well, I’ll have to say no, goodbye.” Emma said before closing the door on him. However, the man pushed it back and started snarling at her like a wild animal with glowing red eyes. In a puff of smoke, he transformed into a winged monkey-like monster and tried to pounce on her; thankfully, Nicholas made a wall spring up from the floor which the monster ran into face first.

After he took it down, Nicholas grabbed the beast and said, “No pets allowed.”

After that, he slammed his elbow into its collar bone and threw it out the nearest open window where it disappeared in a puff of white smoke.

“So did you miss this part of the old job? I kinda did, to be honest.” he said to his girlfriend.

“We leave in the morning.” she decided.

“Alright!” Nicholas cheered, “We’re back, baby!”

The next morning, Nicholas waited for his girlfriend and nephew in his car. As he waited, he pulled out his shell and made contact with the League.

“This is Flamel reporting in, does anyone copy?” he asked.

“This is Sawyer, I copy.” Sawyer replied.

“Good news, tell the others the Savior has her memory back and that we’ll be back in Storybrooke tonight. I’ll report to the mansion after everyone’s asleep, last thing I need is to have a repeat of the last time they caught me wondering off.”

“Roger, I’ll tell boss right away.” Sawyer replied.

“Hmm, out.” Nicholas said ending the conversation as he saw Emma, now wearing her old red jacket, and Henry come outside. “Hey, kiddo. Ready for the road trip?”

“Are you kidding? No school and hanging out with you guys on a case? I can’t wait.” Henry said in excitement.

After a long day of driving, the two cars finally reached Storybrooke. Everything was as it was before the curse ended, all of the same shops, buildings and cars; nothing seemed out of the ordinary. But that was never the case when it came to Storybrooke.

“It’s really back.” Emma said as she and Nicholas got out of their cars, “I’m really back.”

“As quaint and homey as you remember?” Nicholas asked.

“As cursed as I remember.” she remarked, “What’s the plan?”

“Well, while I would like to keep an eye on you seeing as we have no idea just how much things have changed, it’s probably best to see how your parents and my sister are.”

“Okay.” she nodded, “I’ll call you when I can.”

“Right.” Nicholas said before pulling her in for a kiss.

“Uh, not that I’m complaining, but what was that for?” Emma asked with a chuckle.

“Just wanted to make sure I didn’t screw things up so much that I couldn’t do that anymore.” he replied.

“Nicholas,” Emma sighed, “While I’m still kinda pissed that you lied to me, nothing is going to change between us, okay? I love you.”

“I love you, too.” he said feeling the weight leave his shoulders.

After they went their separate ways, Nicholas pulled up to his house and knocked on the door. A few moments passed and Regina finally opened the door with a shocked expression on her face.

“…Hey, sis.” he said feeling a swarm of emotions inside.

“Nicholas?” she asked before wrapping her arms around him with a tear or two rolling down her face, “W-wh-where have you been? I’ve been looking for you all over town for days.”

“We may have to take this inside.” he said hesitantly, “A lot’s happened and you’re undoubtedly gonna want to punch me in the face.”

**OUaT**

Inside the castle in the Enchanted Forest, a flying monkey flew in to meet with its mistress. “Now I shall have my revenge.” she said as the beast screeched in question, “Of course I will. The queen may be evil and the alchemist may be immortal, but I’m wicked.”

Standing before a tall mirror, the green skinned Wicked Witch of the West smiled evilly at her reflection. “And wicked always wins.”


	30. Witch Hunt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

After Regina explained that there was no way to get into the castle, the group decided to accept Robin Hood’s offer and head to Sherwood Forest. As they did, Snow noticed Nicholas and his sister in deep thought as everyone walked past them.

“You two are thinking about Henry, aren’t you?” Snow asked feeling sorry for them.

“We’re always thinking about Henry.” Regina replied, “But we were also thinking there are tunnels that run under the castle. They may run beneath the spell.”

“Which means we can sneak an army inside.” David suggested.

“An army would be detected. Too risky and unnecessary.” Nicholas argued.

“So how do the tunnels help us?” Snow asked.

“Because it can get Nicholas and I inside. And if we can get inside, then I can lower the shield. Then you can send in your army.” Regina explained as a loud screeching filled the air. From above, a winged ape-like creature swooped down at the travelers.

“Incoming!” Neal shouted. As it charged at them, it headed straight for Robin’s four-year-old son.

“Papa!” he cried.

“Roland!” Robin shouted as Regina pulled him away.

“Not so fast.” Regina said calmly as she waved her hand and turned the creature into a cute stuffed monkey. As Robin rushed over to his son, Regina sweetly approached them, “See? Not so scary. Now you have a new toy.”

“Thank you.” Robin panted as his worrying went away.

**OUaT**

In Granny’s Inn, Emma, Nicholas, David, a very pregnant Snow, and Regina sat down to discuss what happened to everyone. That is after Regina gave her little brother a somewhat deserved punch to the nose. If it hadn’t been for his regeneration ability, he’d have a broken bloody nose thanks to her.

“So let me get this straight,” she said angrily, “You’ve spent the last year hooking up with Emma and being with my son after you up and left us behind in the Enchanted Forest?!”

“No…” Nicholas trailed not meeting her glare, “I’ve only been here for nine months.”

“I don’t understand, you said there was no way for us to get back after Storybrooke was destroyed.” David recalled, “How did Nicholas manage to get back?”

“I can transport myself to other realms whenever I want.” he nonchalantly replied, “It’s a gruesome, painful, and borderline horrifying procedure; trust me, you don’t ever want to see me do it.”

“Moving on,” Emma said, “What the hell happened? I mean, besides the obvious?”

“We don’t know.” Snow replied, “We watched you drive over the town line with Henry.”

“Who has no recollection of anyone or anything concerning this place, by the way.” Nicholas interjected.

“Regina cast her spell to take us all back to the Enchanted Forest. And then…everything went black.”

“And the next thing we remember is waking up in our beds like it was any other morning in Storybrooke.” David added.

“Except it clearly wasn’t.” Snow said pointing to her belly.

“Clearly a year passed.” Emma reassured, “I was in New York. I know it did.”

“And we don’t know where the hell we were. We don’t even know if we left Storybrooke.” David said.

“Oh, we did alright.” Nicholas informed, “As soon as we popped up there, Phillip and Aurora offered to take us in but we all came to an agreement that the best thing to do was stick together. Snow, you offered, well, more like ordered me and Regina to come live with you guys back at our castle. For about three months, everyone seemed to be settled back into their old lives and we were living in peace.”

“Then why did you leave?” Regina asked as curiosity replaced her anger.

“…I can’t answer that. At least not entirely.” he said softly.

“Did you want to see Emma and Henry so badly?” David asked.

“That was one of the reasons.” Nicholas nodded, “Look, all I can tell you guys is that I was told that something dangerous was going over to this realm and that they were going to look for Emma. I hunted it down, killed it, and decided to stay. It was my choice. I saw an opportunity, and I took it while I still could. I’m not ashamed of it, and I certainly don’t regret it enough to apologize.”

“No, we understand completely.” Snow said earning a baffled look from her husband, “Emma and Henry mean the world to you and they were right there in front of you. It’s only natural that you would want to stay. But how were you able to get Emma’s memory back?”

“This, uh…friend of mine contacted me and told me that everyone was back in Storybrooke and that Emma was needed to help you guys solve this new curse. In addition, he told me how to make an elixir with my alchemy using resources here in order to make Emma remember. Unfortunately, I only had enough of the stuff for her.”

“Who told you?” David asked.

“I can’t answer that.”

“How do you know them?” Snow asked.

“I can’t answer that.” Nicholas repeated.

“Are they going to help us?” Regina asked.

“I can’t answer that.” Nicholas said gritting his teeth.

“Does this have anything to do with when you disappeared before the curse ended?” Emma asked.

“I can’t answer that.” Nicholas said in frustration.

“What can you answer then, Nicholas?” she asked.

“…Only what I’ve been allowed to say.” he replied as Leroy and Happy entered the inn.

“What is it?” David asked.

“We lost another one.” Leroy informed, “We’re down to five now.”

“Four, actually.” Happy corrected, “Bashful’s not answering.”

“Wait, what’s going on?” Emma asked.

“Thank God you and Flamel are back, sister.” Leroy sighed.

“It’s not just our memories that are missing.” Snow informed, “Ever since we woke up, people have begun disappearing.”

“Whoever cursed us is picking us off one by one.”

“Who exactly is missing?” Emma asked.

“Aside from those dwarves, we’re not sure.” David replied, “There’s been a lot of confusion over the past few days. It’s been hard to keep track of everyone.”

“Wait. Neal, is he here?”

“Well, we haven’t found him yet.” Snow answered.

“So he might have been taken, too.”

“Smart money’s on yes.” Leroy bluntly remarked.

“Leroy!” Snow snapped.

“I’m sure he’ll turn up, Emma.” Nicholas reassured despite his inner displeasure towards the man, “He always does.”

“Some folks are starting to set up camp in the woods at the edge of town. Neal might be there.” David informed.

“Or he may not have gotten swept up in the curse at all.” Snow added.

“There’s only one way we’re gonna figure all this out.” Emma said rising from her seat, “We need to get your memories back.”

“How are we gonna do that?”

“By figuring out who took them in the first place.”

**OUaT**

“What the hell was that thing?” David asked.

“The same kind of monster that attacked us on our journey here.” Snow said.

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say it looked an awful lot like a monkey.” Grumpy remarked.

“A monkey with wings?” Nicholas asked.

“Yes, that’s exactly what it is.” Regina said putting the pieces together in her head.

“Okay, you’re acting like that’s normal.” Neal observed.

“Actually, it is.” Belle replied, “But not here. There’s only one land that has creatures like that. I’ve read about it. Oz.”

“Oz?” Snow asked skeptically, “That’s a real place?”

“The bookworm’s right. It’s quite real.” Regina explained, “And if our simian friend is any indication, then I think we know exactly who’s taking up residence in our castle. The Wicked Witch.”

“…Are we talking East or West?” Grumpy asked.

“Does it matter? Neither one sounds good.” Snow remarked.

“Well, one, you drop a house on. The other, you toss a bucket of water at.” he reminded.

“He does have a point.” Nicholas nodded.

“So, Regina, any idea what exactly we’re up against, besides green skin and a pointy hat?” David asked, “What did you do to her?”

“This time, nothing. Never met her.” she replied trying not to take offense to the accusation.

“Neither have I.” Nicholas added, “For once, this doesn’t involve a personal vendetta against us.”

“Shocking.” David commented, “Okay, then, Oz aside, we stick to the original plan: arm up, then attack; assuming you two can get the shield down.”

“O, ye of little faith,” Nicholas teased, “The last people you need to worry about is us.”

“I’m coming with you.” Snow decided.

“No, this is a siblings only job.” Regina denied.

“Well,” Snow scoffed, “It’s the Wicked Witch. She has flying monkeys, who knows what else.”

“We don’t care if the Lollipop Guild is protecting her. We can lower that shield on our own.”

“…Then we’ll be waiting for you on the other side.” she said seeing no point in arguing. And with that, the brother and sister made their way ahead.

**OUaT**

The following morning at Granny’s Diner, Henry sat with Nicholas and Emma in one of the booths as Ruby sat a cup of hot chocolate with cinnamon on the table.

“Here you go, Hen…young man.” she said catching her slip up.

“With cinnamon. How did you know?” he asked.

“Uh, lucky guess.” she lied, “You’ve got a…cinnamon kind of face.”

“Nice cover, Red.” Nicholas thought sarcastically as he unfolded his newspaper as David and Snow walked in.

“Oh. Henry, this is David and Mary Margaret.” Emma introduced.

“Are you helping my mom with the case?” he asked before whispering to his mother, “Or are they the ones who jumped bail?”

“Don’t ask those kind of questions, it’s rude.” Nicholas lectured as he tapped Henry on the head with his newspaper.

“Ah, no. They’re just…old friends.” Emma replied.

“Friends? From where?” Henry asked.

“Here.” Emma said.

“Phoenix.” Snow said trying not to cringe.

“Well, here and Phoenix.” Emma lied.

“Right.” Snow nodded, “We were cell mates.”

“Really?” Henry asked, “What were you in for?”

“…Banditry.” she replied. Hearing the answer caused Nicholas to suppress a groan while burying his head in his paper.

“I believe a more modern term for that would be petty theft, Mary Margaret.” Nicholas said through the pages.

“Even so, people make mistakes. The important thing is to find a way to keep moving on.” she said kindly.

“Did you know my dad?”

“Should we order? Let’s order.” David suggested with a light chuckle. Before anyone did anything else, the sound of glass breaking replaced the sound of conversation in the room. With her mouth agape and her eyes focused on Henry, Regina stood there in silence.

“Oh, damn.” Nicholas whispered.

“…Oh…I’m sorry. I-I didn’t mean to startle you.” she said remembering that Henry didn’t remember her.

“Oh, um, t-that’s okay.” Henry said looking back at his menu.

“Regina.” Nicholas said rising from his seat and taking her to the hall, “Sis we need to talk. Come on.”

“He looked right through me.” she whispered in heartache.

“Sis, I told you, he doesn’t remember you. I only had enough to make one dose for Emma.”

“Well, then make more, dammit!” Regina hissed trying to keep her voice down.

“I can’t do that.” he replied as he felt his phone buzz. Seeing that it was Sawyer again, he answered. “What is it?”

“Skinner was out doing patrol when he witnessed one of the new residents being abducted by some kinda monster at the Southwest town line. Boss wants you to go with Swan and the others who’ll be hearing about it any minute now.” he informed.

“Alright, I’ll get on it.” Nicholas sighed as he ended the call. Not a moment later, Emma came over and gave him the same information before heading out into the woods. When they arrived, they all saw that it was Robin Hood and his Merry Men.

“This-this is where Little John was taken.” Robin said pointing at the spot.

“I wouldn’t step over that line if I were you.” Emma warned.

“You think he was carried away because he attempted to cross that line?” he asked.

“Makes sense. The dwarves were out checking the line to see if anyone was coming or going when they disappeared.” David explained, “What exactly took Little John?”

“We didn’t get a good look; some manner of beast with wings.”

“Sounds a lot like the monster that attacked us in New York.” Nicholas commented to Emma, “Thought it smelled badly familiar.”

“We need to find Little John.” Robing stressed.

“It may lead us to everyone else who’s gone missing.” Emma speculated, “David, take him and the rest of his…”

“Merry Men.” Robin replied.

“Right, them, and run a search grid and see if you can find any sign of their missing guy.”

“What about you?” Nicholas asked.

“I’m not gonna find out who cast this curse by talking to people one by one.”

“What are you going to do?” David asked.

“I’m gonna talk to everybody.” Emma replied as she headed to her bug.

“I just realized something.” Nicholas said, “Has anyone seen Hook? He’d normally be tagging along in order to flirt with Emma by now.”

“His ship’s still at port so he might be here in town.” David shrugged. Later that day, Emma called for an emergency town meeting at town hall. While she did this, Nicholas took the chance to report back to the mansion. Once he finally made it to the conference room, he saw his fellow members waiting in their respective seats.

“So, does anyone want to tell me what the hell is going on?” he asked as he took his seat.

“Aside from what you’ve already heard from the Charmings, there’s not much to report.” Mina informed, “We were hoping that you would have some information that could prove useful.”

“For starters, you could tell us why the hell you were in New York when we popped back here.” Sawyer suggested.

“Alright. Not long after we returned to the Enchanted Forest, we decided to get back to work like we did in the old days.”

“So there was a threat waiting for us when we arrived?” Nemo asked.

“Unfortunately, yes. And this one had a certain skin condition.” Nicholas replied.

“And what exactly does that mean?” Skinner asked.

**OUaT**

Night fell not long after Regina and Nicholas made their way to the secret entrance. With a smirk and wave of her hands, Regina lifted the massive bolder which covered the entrance and tossed it aside. As she did, they both spotted Robin staring at the rock while holding a torch in his hand.

“No.” Regina said flatly.

“No what?” he asked.

“You’re not.”

“Not coming along? I do believe I am.” he countered, “I can help.”

“We didn’t ask for help.”

“Well, that doesn’t mean you won’t need it. That flying monkey back there wasn’t after my son. It was coming after you two.”

“Oh?” Nicholas asked, “What makes you think that?”

“The woods are my home. I’ve seen many a hunter stalk its prey, and that beast was coming for the two of you. Roland just happened to be standing in between.”

“And? What’s your point?” he asked.

“That’s the second time your sister has been attacked. The Wicked Witch wants either one of you or both of you dead.”

“If that’s the case, I would love to see her try to kill me.” Nicholas said with a smirk, “Quite frankly, you honestly think you can stop her if she tries to hurt us?”

“Maybe. Maybe not.” shrugged Robin, “But I have to try. You see, despite the fact that none of us likes it, I owe Her Majesty a debt.”

“Why is that?” Regina asked.

“Even though that winged beast wasn’t after Roland, he still could have hurt my son. You saved him.” he said sincerely.

“Hm. Who knew a thief had honor?” Regina asked feeling touched.

“Who knew an evil queen had a soft spot for children?” Robin playfully retorted.

“Just don’t get in our way.” Nicholas warned.

“Oh, I wouldn’t dream of it. Please, ladies first.” he insisted as they all went down the tunnel. “So where are we headed?”

“There’s a fire in the courtyard that powers her spell. As long as it burns, the shield will stay up.” Regina explained.

“Then we simply need to put it out.” Robin nodded.

“I simply need to put it out.” she corrected before taking the lead.

“Don’t take it personal.” Nicholas muttered, “Regina’s always been a bit of a control freak. Watch your step.”

Seeing the rigged spikes on the walls, Robin gave a remark, “Nice little surprise.”

“You’d be surprised if you saw what I originally had in mind for setting up this trap.” Nicholas commented as they snuck past the triggered tiles.

“It’s meant to keep people like you out.” Regina added.

“People like me?” Robin asked.

“Thieves.”

“Ah, yes. True.” he chuckled, “But we aren’t all bad, you know.”

“Not when you tell yourself you’re stealing from the rich to give to the poor.” she commented, “I may have done bad things in my life, but at least I own it.”

“I own my mistakes, too.” Robin defended, “I hope you didn’t let me come with you just so you can walk me into one of these traps. Roland’s already lost his mother. I would hate for him to lose his father, too.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen.” Nicholas reassured, “If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that growing up without your family sucks.”

“So, Roland’s mother,” Regina said wanting to avoid the topic of her brother’s past, “What happened to her?”

“After our boy was born, I…inadvertently put her in harm’s way during a job. It was my fault. Like I said, I own my mistakes.”

“Don’t we all?” Nicholas asked sadly thinking of his own.

“That’s not possible.” Regina said snapping Nicholas’s attention back.

“What’s wrong?” asked Robin.

“That door, it’s open.”

“Perhaps you left it unlocked.” he offered.

“I sealed it with blood magic. The only people who can open it are me and Nicholas.” she argued.

“Well, I sure as hell didn’t open it.” Nicholas defended.

“Clearly someone else can.” Robin pointed out as they entered the Regina’s heart room, “It appears the Wicked Witch is a formidable foe. What exactly was this place? Must have been important for you to seal it by blood.”

“A crypt. Isn’t that obvious?” Regina asked.

“Yes. What I meant was, who was it built for?”

“Our mother.” Nicholas replied sadly, “Like you, we’ve lost people we care about; more than either of us would like to admit.”

“Including a child?” Robin asked.

“What do you know about that?” Regina snapped.

“I saw the way you grabbed Roland back there. Clearly, you have the touch of being parents.”

“…We do.” Regina exhaled.

“He’s not with us on this trek. What happened to him?”

“He’s not dead, if that’s what you think. He’s…he’s just lost to us forever.”

“If the Wicked Witch is powerful enough to break blood magic, perhaps we should reconsider this plan.” Robin suggested.

“I don’t care how powerful this witch is. I have to go through with this plan.” Regina snapped as they made it to her old lounge, “Make yourself useful. Keep watch.”

As Robin looked around the room, he spotted the queen rummage through a box filled with magical ingredients. “What is that?” he asked.

“Nothing that concerns you.” she said not looking up as the archer readied his bow.

“I won’t ask you again. What is that?”

“You know, you just asked her again.” Nicholas dryly remarked as Regina noticed the drawn weapon.

“How dare you threaten me in my own castle?!” Regina snarled as she began to choke Robin.

“Just like old times.” Nicholas joked.

“Even if you choke the life out of me, this arrow will still leave my bow. And trust me, I never miss. Now what manner of dark potion are you making?” Robin demanded.

Seeing his sister still choking the man, Nicholas intervened. “That’s enough; release him, Regina!” he barked. Sure enough, she relented.

“A sleeping curse.” she answered.

“The kind you used on Snow White?” he asked.

“That spell came from Maleficent. I finally learned how to make one of my own.”

“This spell, this is why you wanted to come to the castle?”

“Ingredients like these are hard to come by; especially when you have Snow White breathing down your neck every second of the day.” Regina dryly replied.

“That was your plan?” Robin asked, “To use it on the Witch?”

“The Witch?” she asked, “I don’t care about her. I’ll leave Nicholas to deal with her.”

“Oh, lucky me.” he said sarcastically.

“Then who do you plan to use it on?” Robin asked.

“Don’t worry. No one you’ll miss.” she said as she dipped a needle into the vial, “No one anyone will miss.”

“No one but me.” Nicholas sadly muttered.

“…This is about your son, isn’t it? I can’t let you do this.” Robin argued.

“Then it’s a good thing you don’t have a say in the matter.” she said as she used her magic to keep him stuck to the floor.

“I know how you feel, Regina.” he reasoned.

“I doubt that.”

“When I lost my wife, I felt there was no reason to go on. But then I found one, my son.”

“That’s where you and I are different. I already lost Henry.”

“That doesn’t mean you don’t have a reason. Think of your brother!” he begged, “Nicholas, are you honestly going to let her go through with this?”

“If I had it my way, I’d be joining her, Locksley. But unfortunately, magic doesn’t do anything but cause me agonizing pain.” he replied, “You see, I didn’t just lose my nephew, I lost the woman I love, too.”

“So you’re just going to give up?!”

“This isn’t an end.” Regina retorted, “It’s an eternal middle. This curse can be broken by the only true love in my life. And the only reason I would even want to wake. My son.”

“And if you knew what was in store in the upcoming year, you’d want to be asleep, too.” Nicholas warned.

“Both of you, listen to me, this is a mistake.” Robin stressed.

“Don’t worry, I’ll keep my word.” Regina assured, “I’ll lower the protection spell so that Snow and Charming can be victorious. But then…then I go to sleep.”

“And I get back work.” Nicholas thought as they headed to the courtyard. As they approached the beam of green light shooting from the pyre, Regina effortlessly put it out in a matter of seconds.

“Are you sure about this, Regina?” Nicholas hesitantly asked as they sat on a stone bench.

“What’s left for me, Nicholas?” she asked, “Henry was all I had. Without him…my life is empty.”

“What about me? You still have me, don’t you?” he asked, “I’ve stood by you through it all. Do I not also have your love?”

With her heart feeling heavy, Regina rested her head on her beloved brother’s shoulders while choking on her words. “You have my love, Abba. But my life will always be empty without Henry. Who knows? Maybe one day he’ll find us and we can be a family again.”

“I don’t think we’ll ever be so lucky.” he whispered as he put his arm around her. Just as Regina was about to prick her finger, the two of them heard another voice from behind.

“You weren’t even going to say ‘hello’ first? That’s not exactly the welcome I was expecting. What does a witch have to do to get your attention?”

They both turned and saw the Wicked Witch in all her green and black glory glare at them before poofing the needle to her hand.

“What’s the matter? Has life got you down?” she taunted.

“None of your business.” Regina snapped as she and Nicholas rose to their feet on the defensive side.

“The two of you really don’t know who I am, do you?”

“Oh, we know exactly who you are; the Wicked Witch.” Nicholas replied with a confident smirk as they all slowly paced in a circle.

“Is that all?”

“We’re not that interested.” Regina said trying to take the needle only to see it poof away in green smoke.

“Please, allow me to introduce myself. You can call me Zelena.”

“That’s my dress.” Regina finally realized.

“Hm. I had to take it in a little at the hips, but looks better on me, don’t you think?” Zelena taunted.

“I think you never should have left Oz.” she retorted.

“You can have your castle back if you want it that badly. I was just trying it on for size. Besides, I’ve already seen everything worth seeing. Your closet, your gardens, those fancy scribbles all over the floors, your crypt.”

“Yes, how did you break the blood lock?” Nicholas asked, “I may not know much about magic, but I do know that no one can break that.”

“I didn’t break it.” Zelena replied.

“The door was open. No one’s that powerful.” Regina argued.

“Cora really never told either of you?” she asked.

“Told us what?” Nicholas asked.

“The truth about us. All three of us.”

“What are you talking about?” Regina chuckled, “And how do you know our mother?”

“The same way you and Nicholas do.” Zelena replied as she got close to their faces, “I’m your sister. Actually, half-sister, but details, details.”

“That’s not possible.” Regina denied, “You’re…green.”

“And you’re rude.” Zelena sneered, “Cora had me first, before she wormed her way into the dregs of royalty. You know I’m telling the truth. How else could I have broken the door to the crypt?”

“She has a point.” Nicholas thought as he ran through any possibilities for how this witch could be wrong or lying.

“Our mother gave me up and sent me away, but you two, she kept; more or less.” she continued with a smirk directed at Nicholas.

“Watch it, moss face.” he growled as his hand sparked with red lightning.

“It’s true isn’t it?” she asked, “She abandoned me, lost you, and gave Regina here everything.”

“Everything she wanted.” Regina countered, “If what you’re saying is true, then you were lucky to escape her.”

“Enough with the martyr complex, Regina.” Zelena said in annoyance, “Try growing up without a mother. Try living in Oz, knowing that no one thought you were good enough-not your mother and not the only man that all our paths crossed. Rumplestiltskin.”

“You knew Rumplestiltskin?” Regina asked becoming intrigued while Nicholas pulled out his pipe and struck a match.

“Well, did you think you were his only student?” Zelena asked.

“Let me guess, you’re mad because he chose me to cast his curse?” she asked.

“Judging by the look on her face, I’d say that’s a yes.” Nicholas mocked as he blew out smoke.

“Well, get over it.” Regina shot down, “It wasn’t everything it was cracked up to be.”

“Anything would have been better than the life I had.” Zelena hissed, “But despite my shortcomings, I made something of myself, dears. And I didn’t need Cora or Rumplestiltskin or some stone logged in my chest, either.”

“Ah, so you know about the Philosopher’s Stone?” Nicholas asked impressed, “In any case, it’s too bad that neither of them are around to see how well you’ve turned out. They’re both dead.”

“…That’s alright.” Zelena said trying to swallow the news, “The only ones I need alive are you two.”

“Really? Why is that?” Regina asked.

“Because I’m going to take everything away from you.”

“Too late.” they both replied.

“We’ve already lost everything that matters.” Regina informed.

“No, Regina, you and Nicholas haven’t lost anything yet.” Zelena denied.

“So you are going to kill us?” Nicholas asked with a scoff.

“No. That’s too easy. For me to get what I want, I need you to suffer.” she began to explain, “You see, what’s in store for me is all my dreams being realized. But for you two? Well…it’s a fate worse than death.”

“Go ahead.” Regina dared as she and Nicholas stood their ground, “Bring it, greenie.”

“Indeed I will.” Zelena softly threatened as she summoned a broom in her hand, “See you soon, sis. Brother dear.”

And with a wicked laugh, the newly discovered child of Cora flew off into the night. Not a moment later, Nicholas and Regina went back inside and freed Robin from the floor as they went over to their desks.

“You didn’t go through with it.” Robin stated.

“You were right.” Regina admitted, “The sleeping curse wasn’t the answer. As you said, I just needed to find something to live for; besides my brother, of course.

“And you found it?” Robin asked with a smile, “What?”

“The one thing I haven’t had in a very long time.” Regina said with a grin she hadn’t used since the last time she was in this realm, “Someone to destroy.”

**OUaT**

“And that’s what happened.” Nicholas said after he finished explaining.

“Let me get this straight,” Quartermain said, “You have another sister?”

“Yes.” Nicholas calmly nodded.

“And she’s the bloody Wicked Witch of the West?”

“Again, yes.”

“And she is undoubtedly the one who cast this curse?”

“Now that, I don’t know.” Nicholas replied, “Regina definitely wasn’t the one who cast it this time, though. No one she truly loved was there with her after I left. I can assure you. That position has only belonged to me and Henry ever since we came here the first time.”

“Do you think it might be possible that this Zelena woman could have cast this curse then?” Mina asked.

“I’m not sure. She didn’t exactly strike me as someone with a lot of love in her life.” he shrugged.

“If she did, you think she was desperate enough to throw it away over revenge?” Sawyer asked.

“Regina did.” Nicholas reminded, “She had to kill our own father in order to cast the curse. If Zelena did do it, I wouldn’t put it past her to go as far as killing the thing she loved most in order to get here and bring everyone else along for the ride.”

“I think a better question would be, why did she do it anyway?” Skinner asked, “I mean, why bother bringing us back just so she could get back at your sister?”

“I don’t know,” he shrugged, “Maybe she found out I came over here and cast the curse because she knew I would find out and come back? I highly doubt that it’s only Regina she’s holding a grudge against.”

“Which is surprising given your rather unpleasant childhood.” Nemo remarked, “Speaking of which, what was the reason behind your journey here?”

“Let’s just say that I’ve brought the number down to six from seven and leave it at that for now.” Nicholas hinted, “We’re looking at only about less than eight months left before the Promised Day comes. Fortunately, with Rumple gone, he’s only got me lined up as a sacrifice.”

“And he won’t be able to do anything unless he has five?” Quartermain asked.

“Nope, he needs me and four others that meet the criteria.”

“Well,” he sighed while stroking his beard, “I suppose that and the death of one of his ‘children’ is a good start in our counter attack. Either way, we need to focus on finding out if this witch did cast the curse and if she’s anywhere in town.”

“Hopefully, nothing has changed to make this harder than it should be.” Nicholas commented.

“How’s that?” Sawyer asked.

“If Zelena did cast this curse, then this may be a completely different Storybrooke than before; Robin Hood and his Merry Men are proof of that. The curse creates whatever the caster wants in accordance to whatever suits this realm and their desires. For all we know, this town could have a crap load of twists and surprises that can give her the advantage. Our best course of action right now is to surveillance the town and mark down any and all changes made compared to last time.”

“It would also be safe to inspect the manor in case the witch has found out about us and planted anything that shouldn’t belong here. We were only lucky that Regina never learned of our presence here, and I, for one, would like to keep it that way until the time comes.” Mina suggested.

“Agreed.” Quartermain nodded, “Skinner, you and Sawyer scope out the town for anything new and report back in twenty-four hours.”

“Right then.” Skinner nodded.

“Got it, boss.” Sawyer added.

“Nemo, have your best men stationed throughout town in disguise to keep an eye on things. I don’t want any loose ends.”

“It shall be done.” Nemo said with respect.

“Doctor,” he said to Mina, “I want you to try and recreate more of the serum we had Flamel make; we need at least someone to remember what the hell happened.”

“I’ll see what I can do.” she replied.

“What about me, boss?” Nicholas asked.

“Stick with Swan and the others. Only report to us if absolutely necessary. We nearly slipped up dangerously last year after the Cora and Neverland incidents and I do not want any more suspicion directed at any of us.” he ordered.

“Yeah,” Nicholas scoffed, “Last thing I need is the director breathing down my neck and blaming me because the current threat is another member of my family. I imagine he’s still pissed at me over last year and that I didn’t come back after I completed my mission in New York.”

“In your defense, he didn’t say to report back immediately, did he?” Sawyer asked.

“Nope.” Nicholas replied shaking his head as he checked his watch, “I better get going. It’s getting late and Emma’s probably done with trying to find our perp.”

“Very well,” Quartermain nodded as they all rose from their seats, “You all have your tasks, now get to it.”

After transporting himself back to the Chamings’ loft, Nicholas caught up with Emma and Regina standing behind the door to the loft.

“Maybe this isn’t a good idea.” Regina said to Emma.

“Is what not a good idea?” he asked.

“Where have you been all day?” Emma asked.

“I was making sure no one else was getting abducted by whatever the hell took Little John and making sure my inventions were still here.” he replied, “Again, what isn’t a good idea?”

“Emma thinks it would be best for me to be ‘introduced’ to Henry.” Regina replied.

“I don’t see any harm in it.” he shrugged, “I mean, as long as we’re here you might as well try to reconnect with him until we can find a way to get his memories back.”

“I don’t know…”

“Come on, what’s the harm?” Nicholas asked, “Here, I’ll introduce you to him and you go from there.”

“It’ll be fine.” Emma said as she opened the door. On the couch, Henry was busy concentrating on his video game, “Hey. How was your day?” she asked him.

“Good.” he replied putting the game away, “Storybrooke is a weird place, but cool. Did you know there’s a library inside a clock tower?”

“I do. I’ve been there before.” she replied, “Come here. There’s someone Nicholas and I want you to meet.”

“Henry, I would like to introduce you to Mayor Regina Mills, my sister.” Nicholas introduced, “I’ve told her a lot about you and she wanted to meet you.”

“Is something wrong?” he asked.

“No, no.” Regina assured gently, “No, nothing’s wrong. Like Nicholas said, he and you mother have told me a lot about you. I hear you like school and that you’re good at English.”

“Why’d they tell you all this?” Henry asked in confusion.

“Because they couldn’t be prouder of you. Uh, while you’re in town, I was thinking maybe I can give you a tour sometime you know, show you around. Maybe we can even stop for ice cream.” she offered.

“Yeah. I’d like that.” Henry smiled, “So, um, it was nice meeting you.”

As Regina was about to go in for a hug, Henry stuck out his hand for a handshake. Regina quickly changed her approach and shook before Henry went off to enjoy his game.

“How was that? You okay?” Emma asked.

“It was a start.” she replied. Just then, David barged in with a worried look on his face.

“We need to talk.” he said.

“Outside.” Emma replied as all five adults went to the hall.

“They’re being turned into flying monkeys?!” Snow whispered, “Do you think that’s what happened to the missing dwarves, too?”

“It would explain why you haven’t found any trace of them.” Nicholas speculated.

“And Neal?” Emma asked.

“No sign of him either.” David replied.

“The person who escaped our trap disappeared in a cloud of green smoke. And now there are flying monkeys in this town?” Regina asked, “I think we know exactly who cursed us.”

“The Wicked Witch of the West?” Emma asked thinking it was a joke. Seeing everyone’s expressions, she realized it wasn’t. “Seriously? She’s real, too?”

“Says the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming who’s also dating an immortal alchemist.” Nicholas remarked.

“I don’t get it. It’s not like we’re in Kansas. Why would the Wicked Witch of the West want to come to Storybrooke?” Emma asked.

In the outer part of town in a large field, a lone house new to Storybrooke could be spotted. Zelena, no longer green, walked from it to a storm cellar and opened the door with a wave of her hand while holding a tray of food in the other. As she approached a cage in the cellar, she looked at it with a taunting smile.

“Hungry?” she asked as she sat the tray down. As she did, a hand grabbed her wrist in anger. Through the wire, Rumplestiltskin, alive and looking crazed, glared and growled at her like an animal.

“You never should have brought me back.” he said. Zelena simply chuckled and kicked the tray to him.

“Eat up.” she said, “We’ve got work to do.”

As she left, Rumple picked up his food and inspected it curiously before he began to softly sing to himself. “You feed the madness, and it feeds on you. You feed the madness, and it feeds on you. You feed the madness, and it feeds on you.”

And then, for the first time in thirty years, he gave the same distinct insane giggle he used to back in the Enchanted Forest. Mad as all hell.


	31. Quiet Minds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

The next morning in the loft, everyone thought over their next plan of attack against the newest threat to Storybrooke.

“So now that we know who we’re dealing with, how do we find this Wicked Witch?” David asked.

“See if anyone in town’s noticed a woman with green skin?” Emma dryly joked.

“We’re cursed in Storybrooke. She’ll look like any one of us.” Regina reminded.

“Perhaps we should start somewhere we know she’s been?” Nicholas suggest, “Regina’s office, maybe?”

“I went over it with a fine-toothed comb, she left no trace.” she replied.

“But you were combing for magic. Maybe there’s physical evidence that you missed.” Emma pointed out.

“Good idea. We’ll track her.” said David.

“If you want to waste your time playing Nancy Drew, be my guest. But we can’t let Henry wander around alone with that witch and her flying monkeys out there.” Regina stressed.

“Especially when one of those flying monkeys could turn out to be his father.” Nicholas dryly remarked, “But Regina does have a point, someone does need to keep an eye on him in case anything does happen.”

“If you need anything, call me.” she said as she was about to leave.

“Just remember, he thinks we’re here because I’m on a case.” Emma reminded.

“Well, look who’s gotten good at lying. Picked that up from my brother, did you?” Regina teased.

“Just don’t let anyone slip up. As far as Henry knows, you’re just Madam Mayor and my boyfriend’s sister, nothing else.” Emma gently reminded.

“I’m well aware of how Henry sees me.” she retorted.

As they went their separate ways, Nicholas spotted Hook talking to a couple of people with a picture in his hand outside Regina’s office. “Is that Hook?” he asked.

“I’ll be damned, it is.” David sighed.

“Wonder what he’s up to.” Emma said.

“You guys head on up to the office and look for evidence. I’ll go have a talk with him.” Nicholas offered.

“Why you?” David asked.

“Because if you go, you’ll probably punch him and if Emma goes, he’ll probably just flirt with her.” he replied.

“Fair enough.” David nodded as they went inside.

“Ahoy, Cap’n.” Nicholas called to the pirate.

“Nicholas, mate, what are you doing here?” he asked.

“Better question, what are you doing here with a poorly drawn picture of what I assume is a guy?” Nicholas asked as he pointed at the paper.

“Oh, that.” he said, “When I awoke on my ship days ago, I found that I had an unexpected guest onboard.”

“And who might that be?”

“A…certain mermaid by the name of Ariel. If you recall, she assisted us back in Neverland by retrieving Pandora’s Box.” Hook replied.

“So what’s with the drawing?”

“Well, it turns out that the lady’s heart belongs to a Prince Eric that was here during the last curse and despite what most people think of me, I happen to be a gentleman and offered to help her find him.”

“You don’t sound exactly happy about it.” Nicholas pointed out.

“…Don’t know what you’re implying, mate.” Hook muttered.

“Hook, come on,” Nicholas sighed, “If you have feelings for her, just admit it. There’s no shame in a man falling in love.”

“True but I’m not in love, Flamel.” he retorted with an annoyed smile.

“Alright, fine. You’re not in love.” Nicholas relented with his hands up, “I take it you’ve heard the news about our newest threat?”

“No, who are we dealing with now?”

“Ever hear of the Wicked Witch of the West?” he asked.

“Green skin, dressed in black, hails from Oz?” Hook asked.

“That’s the one.” Nicholas nodded.

“Aye, I’ve heard of her. You think she’s the one who cursed us?”

“Maybe, regardless of that, she’s definitely behind the disappearances in town. It’s possible that this Eric guy has been taken, too. We could use an extra hand or hook to help us out. You in?”

“…I won’t have to follow all of the prince’s orders?” he asked.

“Not unless they’re extremely important.”

“And I’ll be able to look for Eric as I help?”

“You may actually come across him. The flying monkeys that are taking people are actually people transformed by the Witch’s magic.” Nicholas replied.

“…Alright. I’m in.” he nodded.

“Excellent,” Nicholas said shaking his hand, “Welcome back to the team, Hook.”

With the pirate officially back in business with the self-appointed leaders of the town, he and Nicholas went to meet with the others in the office. When they arrived, they saw Emma and David scoping everything in sight.

“Any luck?” Nicholas asked before sniffing the air.

“Not yet.” Emma replied.

“What’s he doing here?” David asked.

“Our humble alchemist was kind enough to offer me my old position with working you again, mate.” Hook replied.

“I thought you buried the hatchet with him after he saved your ass back in Neverland?” Nicholas asked as he inspected the ground.

“We did,” David replied, “All I asked was why is he here.”

“It’s alright, mate.” Hook waved off, “What exactly are we looking for?”

“The witch broke in last night and tore this place apart when we told everyone that Regina was trying to create a memory potion like what Nicholas used on me.” Emma replied, “Hopefully, she left something behind to indicate where she might be hiding.”

“And as luck would have it, she did.” Nicholas said as he dragged his finger over traces of red on the floor and licked it.

“Is that blood?” Emma asked.

“No,” Nicholas denied as he savored the taste, “It’s holly berry. There’s a lot of holly bushes out in the Northwest corner in the woods; not too far from the toll bridge.”

“Good. We can start there.” David nodded before pulling out his phone to read a text.

“Everything okay?” Emma asked.

“Mary Margaret needs me to come back to the loft. We’re getting a midwife, and she wants to meet the both of us.” he explained.

“A bit demanding, isn’t she?” Hook asked, “I meant the midwife.”

“It’s fine. Go.” Emma urged.

“No. We just got on track here.” David argued.

“And we’ve got it covered. She needs you.”

“Yeah, just meet us when you get down.” Nicholas nodded.

“Alright.” he reluctantly nodded.

As the day went on, Emma, Hook and Nicholas set off into the woods in search of the witch’s lair. Eventually, they made it through the woods, they spotted a lone little house in the middle of a field.

“A farmhouse.” sighed Emma, “You have to appreciate the irony.”

“Let’s check it out.” Nicholas suggested as he walked up the hill.

“There’s definitely someone living here. Looks empty right now, though.” Emma whispered as they snuck around the porch.

“Why are we whispering?” Hook asked.

“Because good hideouts always look empty. Trust me. I spent a lot of time tracking down people who don’t want to be found. I know about hiding out.” she explained.

“I also know that my nose never fails me, and there’s nobody here, Emma.” Nicholas whispered earning a look from his girlfriend. She then spotted an old storm cellar past the fence and headed over to it. With her gun pulled out, she was ready to open it until Hook stopped her.

“Who, wait, wait, wait. It’s one thing walking around a deserted farmhouse. It’s quite another descending into a one-way cellar with no way out.”

“Scared?” she teased.

“There’s a difference between fear and strategy.” he sighed, “We know she’s got flying monstrosities. Who knows what’s down there. If this witch is as powerful as we think, we could use some magical backup, unless you’ve been practicing in New York City?”

“What, my alchemy’s not good enough?” Nicholas asked.

“Okay, I’ll call Regina, have her drop Henry at Granny’s.” Emma sighed, “I’d like to see those flying monstrosities try to get past her crossbow.”

“And her lunch special.” the boys remarked as Emma noticed a missed call.

“It’s David.” she said before listening to the message.

“What is it?” Nicholas asked.

“He said he thinks he’s found the Wicked Witch and is following her where the trail starts.” she said, “Come on, we’re heading over there.”

“Never a dull moment.” Nicholas muttered as they headed back to the car. When they arrived with Regina to give them back up, they saw David on his knees panting.

“David, are you okay?” Emma asked as she ran to him.

“Yeah.” he nodded.

“Well, where is she?” Regina asked.

“It wasn’t her.” he said getting to his feet.

“Then who was it?” Hook asked, “You look whiter than a fresh sail.”

“Myself.” he said.

“Come again?” Nicholas asked.

“It’s the witch. She’s toying with us.” Regina informed.

“Did you guys find where she might be hiding?” David asked.

“A farmhouse and we think it’s hers.” Nicholas nodded.

“Let’s end this.” David spat, “Let’s send that witch back to Oz.”

“Was there any particular reason she would send a demon who looks like you?” Nicholas asked as they headed to the farmhouse.

“No idea. It was just there, wearing my face, harping on my deepest fears.” he said.

“It knew your deepest fears?” Regina asked coming to a stop.

“Yeah, things I never told anyone, not even Mary Margaret.” David nodded, “It wasn’t until I admitted them that I wasn’t able to defeat it by stabbing it with the hilt of my sword.”

“Where is it, your sword?”

“That’s the strange part. After I killed it, the hilt-it dissapeard.”

“Well, what’s that mean, then?” Hook asked.

“When we face our deepest fears, our true courage comes out. When you used the hilt of your sword to vanquish your fears, your courage transferred into it.” Regina explained.

“Then why’d it disappear?” David asked.

“It didn’t disappear. She took it.”

“Hang on. The Wicked Witch stole his courage?” Emma asked.

“Well, a symbol of it, at least. And symbols can be powerful totems.” Regina said with a worrisome look.

Once they returned to the farmhouse, the noticed the lock on the storm cellar had been broken. “That lock, it wasn’t busted before.” Emma pointed out before David opened the door.

“So far, so good.” Hook remarked.

“Everyone, stay alert. Come on.” Emma said with her gun ready as they went below.

“There’s definitely dark magic here. Can you feel it?” Regina asked.

“I don’t know. Maybe.” said Emma, “Whatever I feel, it’s not good. What would the Wicked Witch keep in a cage, monkeys?”

“No, not monkeys.” David whispered as he turned on the light. Once it came on, everyone paled at what was inside; a spinning wheel with straw all over the floor. “Now, how many people do we know who can spin straw into gold?”

“Rumplestiltskin.” Emma muttered.

The next morning after a long evening of searching, the Charmings, pirate, and Mills siblings gathered to discuss their next course of action at the diner.

“Is there any sign of our quarry?” Hook asked as Emma entered with Nicholas.

“We went all over that farmhouse and the land around it; nothing.” Emma huffed.

“Well, now that the sun’s up, we should hit every place Gold might go. His house, his shop, his cabin.” David listed.

“Yeah, ‘cause dead men love vacation homes.” Nicholas remarked.

“Can someone explain to me how this is possible?” Emma asked frantically, “We all saw Gold. He-”

“Disappeared into nothingness?” Snow asked, “I know.”

“I might have an inkling.” Nicholas mentioned, “When we went back to the Enchanted Forest, Neal was talking about the possibility of getting his father back.”

“What, how?” David asked.

“He didn’t know how. He just…missed his family. I warned him that he was playing in matters better left alone. But he clearly seemed desperate enough to find a way to return here. He believed that bringing his father back was the key.”

“Well, if that was his plan, then obviously something went wrong, because while Gold might be alive and kicking, Neal is-he’s-we don’t know what he is. We don’t even know if he made it back to Storybrooke.” Emma said in worry, “No one’s seen him since this new curse.”

“With all due respect,” interjected Regina, “We have bigger issues right now than who brought Gold back. The fact that he was in the Wicked Witch’s basement, for one. I want to know what the hell she was cooking up with him.”

“Well, the best way to find that out would be to ask Gold, right?” Snow asked.

“He could tell us who the witch is; maybe how to track her down.” David speculated.

“I’m gonna head back to that farmhouse. It’s possible this witch left behind some trace of potion or special ingredient.” Regina informed.

“Have at it. Just be careful.” Emma cautioned.

“Well, she’s the one who needs to be careful. She invaded my space. When I return the favor, I’m not pulling any punches.” retorted the mayor as she headed out.

“Don’t underestimate our sister, Regina. She is not to be taken lightly.” Nicholas thought as he watched his sibling leave.

As the day and the hunt for Gold went on, Hook was left with Belle to protect her while she searched for anything that could solve how the dark one was brought back to life. Afterwards, Emma went back to the inn to check on Henry and keep him away from danger by having him go fishing with the dwarves; although, he appeared to be growing suspicious to what was going on around him.

While Nicholas waited for his girlfriend, he felt that it was better for the talk to be between just mother and son, he received a call from Belle with urgent news. Neal had collapsed on the pawn shop’s floor. Evidently, Emma received the same message and bolted out of the inn and ran to her car and drove with Nicholas to the hospital.

“Neal, you’re here.” Emma said as she and Nicholas came into the room, “What happened?”

“I…don’t know.” he stuttered, “I-I remember seeing the yellow bug cross the town line, and next thing I know, I’m running around a forest back in Storybrooke, where, apparently, there’s been a whole lot going on.”

“Are you going to tell him, or shall I?” Hook asked Emma.

“Tell me what?” Neal asked looking at them.

“We believe your crusty skinned father is alive and kicking.” Nicholas said bluntly.

“He’s back?” he asked in shock, “I just watched him die. What do you mean he’s back?”

“Take it easy.” Emma said before noticing a strange symbol burned into the palm of his left hand, “What the hell is that?”

“No idea.” he said as Emma took a picture of it.

“Belle, can you do some more research?” she asked.

“Yeah, sure. Absolutely.” she nodded.

“Hey guys,” Neal said, “Can-can we have a minute?”

“Yeah, of course.” David nodded while Nicholas stiffened.

“Nicholas?” Hook asked seeing the alchemist’s expression, “Come on, mate.”

“Fine.” he muttered as they left.

“Nicholas, is everything alright?” David asked as they all went outside.

“Fine, everything’s fine.” he spat as he pulled out a cigar.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, mate, but don’t you only smoke those when you’re angry?” Hook asked.

“You’re not wrong, but I’m not angry.” Nicholas said as he struck a match, “I’m pissed.”

“Why?” Belle asked in concern.

“Why?” Nicholas asked hotly, “Well, let’s see. My girlfriend’s ex-lover and father of her child/my nephew has once again managed to pop back into her life with every intention of trying to win her back even though he most certainly doesn’t deserve her.”

“Don’t you think you’re being a bit paranoid?” David asked with a small smirk.

“Am I?!” he asked, “It was clear as day that he had every intention of trying to get back together with her the last time he showed up.”

“Yeah, and she chose you.” David retorted, “Between him, you and Hook, she chose you. And from what I’ve seen, she’s pretty happy.”

“Oh, that’s rich coming from you.” he spat through his cigar, “You and Mary Margaret were doing everything in your power to convince her to go back to Neal because you thought he was her true love. News flash, your highness, if that were the case, the son of a bitch wouldn’t have abandoned her because he was afraid of his past catching up to him.”

“We were just looking out for our daughter, Nicholas.” David said gently as he placed a hand on the alchemist’s shoulder. With an angry look on his face, Nicholas looked at the hand in rage and used his alchemy to send a shock through his shoulder to the prince’s hand.

“What was that for?!” he asked.

“For thinking you could get all chummy with me after all that’s happened.” Nicholas growled as he let out smoke, “I don’t know when you thought everything was okay between us, but let me tell you now that it isn’t. I want to make this quite clear, Nolan. We are not friends. Okay? You and your wife made that quite clear when you threw me under the bus, turned everyone in town against me and used me to escape my sister’s vendetta back in the Enchanted Forest.”

Hearing all the wrongdoings he and his wife had done made David become quite in guilt. After everything that happened in Neverland and now dealing with the witch, he had forgotten how mistreated Nicholas was in the previous year.

In his anger, Nicholas felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw he received a text from Skinner.

“I found Gold in the woods. Quartermain says to smell him out and bring him back.” it read.

“Hey,” Emma said coming out to meet with them, “Everything okay?”

“Never better.” Nicholas lied, “I think I might have caught a whiff of Gold’s scent. It’s coming from the woods.”

“Great, let’s head out there and find him.” she said.

After about an hour of searching, Emma and Nicholas discovered the pawn shop owner clutching his head in pain on the ground.

“Gold, you alright?” Emma asked as they approached him.

“No. No, no, no, not alright!” he groaned, “Not alright! It’s-I can’t quiet the voices.”

“We know that you were held captive by the witch. Do you know where she is?” Emma asked gently.

“Yeah.” he nodded through his painful panting, “She’s-aah! There’s no room! No room! There’s too many voices! Too many voices!”

“We got to get him out of here.” Nicholas said just before the sound of a monkey’s screeching filled the air. From above, a flying monkey tried to swoop down and take gold, but Nicholas was able to clip its wing with his claws and send it to the ground. As this happened, Gold made a break for it.

“Gold!” Emma shouted.

“He’s getting away!” Nicholas yelled as he extended his claws to strike the monkey, “I’ll hold it off! Go get him!”

As Emma left, Nicholas dropped his expression and glared at the monster before him. “No more holding back.” he growled.

He then pounced on the creature and brutally began to break its bones and pound his fists into it. As its shrieks of pain began to die down, Nicholas reared his hand back and slammed it into the beast’s chest deconstructing it into ashes.

“Disgusting creature.” he said in disgust before catching up with Emma. As he did, his phone began to buzz with a call from Mina. “What is it?” he asked while trying to find his girlfriend.

“I was able to analyze the symbol in that picture you sent us.” she said in her usual calm tone.

“And?” he asked coming to a stop, “What did you find?”

“It’s the symbol of the key of the dark one.” she said, “It’s said to be the key that opens the vault of the dark one and the only thing capable of bringing the dark one back to life; however, it comes with a price.”

“I don’t like where this is going.”

“You shouldn’t.” Mina said, “The rule is quite clear: a life for a life.”

“Equivalent exchange.” Nicholas whispered, “But that doesn’t make any sense. I saw Neal in the hospital and just saw Gold run off with Emma at his tail. If the price is what you say, one of them ought to be dead.”

“We thought that as well, until the thought of a certain friend of ours popped into my head.” Mina replied, “I believe you can put the pieces together from here.”

“Indeed I can.” he said as he hung up and ran towards the sound of Neal screaming. When he arrived, he saw Neal groaning in pain with Emma kneeling next to him.

“Neal, what did you do?” Emma asked in concern. She undoubtedly heard the same information Nicholas did from Belle. As he cried out in pain, his face seemed to shift between his own and Gold’s.

“Oh, cripes, he actually did it.” Nicholas whispered.

“I think-I think Gold is inside you.” Emma said, “I think that’s how you’re still alive.”

“I hear my father’s voice in my head. He’s in there. He’s in me.” Neal cried in pain.

“He said there was no room. He meant you.” Nicholas realized.

“I need you to help me, Emma. Use your magic. Separate me and my father.” he pleaded.

“Are you kidding? Then you’ll die.” Emma said.

“I know, but you need my dad more than me to figure out who the witch is, to save the town. You need to do this.”

“I’ve never done anything like that before; not that big.” she argued.

“Do it to save you and Henry. Do it. Please.” Neal begged in pain.

Taking his hands in hers, Emma focused her magic and split the father and son apart in a blast of magic. “Neal!” she cried crawling to his limp body, “Neal, are you okay?”

“What have you done?” Gold asked.

“It’s okay, papa. I told her to.” Neal weakly defended.

“But why?” he asked.

“So you can tell her who the witch is so you can defeat her.”

“…Zelena.” Rumple snarled.

“What?” Emma asked.

“Zelena.” Gold repeated through his gritting teeth.

“She’s the witch? What does she want?” she asked.

“What she doesn’t have.” Gold said in sadness as he looked at his dying child.

“There has to be some way you can save him, right?” she asked.

“It’s too late, Emma.” Nicholas said sadly. Looking at Neal’s state reminded him of the countless friends he’d lost over the years. One in particular came to mind who made a similar sacrifice.

“He-he’s right. I’m too far gone.” Neal said weakly.

“Just hang in there, please.” Emma begged as her voice broke, “You never even had a chance to see Henry-for him to remember you.”

“It’s okay. He doesn’t need to. He just needs to know that, in the end, I was a good father.” Neal said as he pulled out Emma’s old swan necklace, “I saved this for you to give to you again. Take it. Go find Tallahassee…even if it’s without me.”

“Neal.” Emma sobbed.

“Hey, I’ll be watching over you guys from somewhere. Besides,” he said looking and nodding at Nicholas, “I’m leaving you in good hands. Just promise me-promise me you’ll be happy.”

“I promise.” Emma sobbed, “I promise.”

“You have my word,” Nicholas said kneeling at the man’s side, “I will keep them safe. Your sacrifice will not be in vain.”

“No.” Gold argued, “No, no, no. I can fix this.”

“No, you can’t. You can’t.” Neal denied, “Thank you, papa, for showing me what it is to make a true sacrifice. It’s about saving the ones that you love. It’s my turn now.”

“No. I don’t want to let you go.” Gold sobbed.

“I need you to. Please. Let go.” Neal whispered.

“I love you, son.” he cried.

“I-I love you, papa.”

And with his final words, Neal Cassidy, the son of Rumplestiltskin, passed on from this life.

Emma cradled his body as her tears ran freely while Rumple held and kissed his hand and Nicholas bowed his head in respect.

Knowing who their enemy finally was, Emma and Nicholas went back to the loft in order to confront the Wicked Witch; who was acting as Snow and David’s new midwife. Nicholas kicked open the door with his claws ready and Emma with her gun drawn.

“Emma, Nicholas, what’s going on?” Snow asked in shock.

“Where’s Zelena?” Emma asked.

“In the bathroom. Why?” David asked as the couple took both doors.

With a nod, they kicked in the doors and found no one inside. “She had to know we were coming.” Nicholas said in anger.

“We need to get a protection spell around this apartment right away.” Emma nodded as she reached for her phone.

“Does anyone want to tell us what’s going on?” Snow asked.

“Just be glad you two are safe.” Nicholas said taking down his shield.

“Of course we’re safe. Why wouldn’t we be safe?” David asked.

“Your midwife’s the witch.” he informed.

“What?” Snow asked, “How do you know?”

“Gold told us.” Emma replied, “Neal brought him back before…”

“Before what, Emma?” David asked.

“What happened?” Snow asked.

“…Neal’s dead.” she said in sadness.

“Emma, I’m so sorry.” Snow said bringing her daughter in for a much needed hug.

Back in the woods, Gold sat in silence as he stared at his son’s corpse while Zelena approached him from behind. “Well, that was rather ill-timed.” she remarked, “Your son coming to the surface and staging that little escape. I can see he’ll no longer be a problem.”

“My son may be gone, but he gave his life so I could tell Flamel and the Savior who you really are, Zelena. And now it’s only a matter of time before they and the others find you…and kill you.” Gold spat in hatred, “Unless, of course, I manage it first.”

As he was about to attack, she simply waved his dagger in his face to stop him. “Please, you can’t hurt me, but you’re more than welcome to try. I do so enjoy watching futility wreck a man’s will.” Zelena taunted as she used the dagger to push him back, “There. Much better. Now that your head is no longer cluttered, everything’s working properly. And it’s so much more entertaining.”

“You may control me, but it’s over, Zelena. They know who you are. You’ll never get close to Snow White’s baby now, to any of them-to whatever your unholy desires are.”

“They may know who I am now, but it no longer matters, not when I have you, Rumplestiltskin. Not when I have your beautiful brain.” Zelena said pressing the dagger against his cheek tauntingly, “So be a good little dark one and get back in your cage.”

As he reluctantly walked off, Zelena decided to taunt him even more. “Oh, and there’s one more thing. Nicholas knew who I was the whole time. Turns out your son didn’t need to die after all if he just told everyone.”

For a moment, Gold stopped as he processed this information as his rage grew before continuing on his path to his cage.

**OUaT**

In the depths of Storybrooke, Nicholas’s lookalike sat in his throne and grinned arrogantly. To his side, a chess piece topped with a skull sat on the point of a pentagon on a piece of paper with another tipped over on another point. Reaching his pale finger over, he tipped the second piece straight up and returned it to its rightful spot.


	32. It's Not Easy Being Green (Or Immortal)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

Ten months ago in the Enchanted Forest, Nicholas was able to escape the castle and join up with his fellow members of the League in their old meeting spot, an underground tavern run by the League in secret.

“Well, doesn’t this bring back memories?” Nicholas asked as he joined his comrades at their old table, “Us together with ales and beers in our hands right before a mission. Ah, I missed this.”

“Well, don’t get too wrapped in nostalgia, Flamel.” Quartermain smirked, “Because you’re the only one going on a mission today.”

“Oh, really?” he asked grabbing a pint, “And what, none of you guys offered to come with me?”

“No, because this mission comes directly from the director himself.” Mina replied, “Oh, and it is certainly one that you will prefer taking on alone.”

“Why?” he asked.

“We’ve received word that one of them is trying to get back to The Land Without Magic.” Nemo answered, “Now that Rumplestiltskin is no more, your little friend will be searching for more candidates.”

“I see.” Nicholas nodded, “Do we know which of them he sent?”

“That would be a big N O.” Skinner replied, “We do know that he may be able to find potential candidates if he manages to find either Emma Swan or dear friend and fellow member, the Dragon.”

“Hopefully, Dragon will be able to lay low until things blow over.” Sawyer remarked, “But seeing as Swan doesn’t remember anything or know anything about us, she and your nephew might be in danger.”

“Not necessarily,” Nicholas argued, “If the Dwarf in the Flask does want Emma as a sacrifice, he’ll leave her alone. In any case, I better go over there. The last thing I need is for one of those things to get near Emma or Henry.”

“Excellent.” Quartermain nodded, “Oh, and you don’t need to be reminded this but the director wanted you to hear this anyway, if you see your target-”

“I know, boss, I know.” Nicholas waved off as he rose from his seat, “I’m to kill it without mercy or remorse. Trust me, it’s the only method of killing I know.”

“Don’t forget this.” Sawyer said tossing him a vial, “Save you some time from making your own portal.”

“Thanks, pal.” he nodded, “Don’t wait up on me.”

Once he exited the pub, Nicholas uncorked the vial and emptied its contents onto the ground. What was it, you ask? Why, the only thing capable of naturally creating a portal. A magic bean, of course.

“I wonder how angry the others would be if they found out about the dozens of beans we have?” Nicholas asked himself before jumping through the swirling vortex. A moment later, our dear alchemist landed in the middle of Queens with an excited grin on his face.

“Time to go to work.” he said in excitement.

As he made his way through the streets, a beautiful woman with black hair in a blood red dress with sleeve-gloves watched him with a wicked smirk.

**OUaT**

The day after Neal’s death, the Lost Boys, the Charmings, dwarves, and Millses gathered for the funeral and paid their respects. After the coffin was buried, everyone gathered for a wake back at the diner. As everyone was chatting, Zelena burst through the door with the dark one’s dagger in her hand.

“My condolences.” she said mockingly, “I’m so sorry I missed the funeral, but I could never pass up on a wake. Oh, did I miss the speeches? Shall I make one? I mean, I am, after all, responsible.”

Hearing this, Emma tried to take the witch on with her bare hands only to be stopped by her mother. “Emma, no. Too many people will get hurt.” Snow warned.

“Listen to your mother. She’s right.” Zelena taunted, “Anyone who tries to interfere with my plan is gonna have to deal with the dark one.”

“Don’t come any closer.” David warned as Zelena approached Snow.

“Don’t worry. I’m not here for your baby.” she assured, “Not today, anyway.”

“Then why are you here?” Regina asked.

“Now that my cover’s blown, I can finally pay a visit to my little brother and sister.” Zelena replied looking at Regina and Nicholas.

“Who the hell are you talking about?” Regina asked.

“Why, you and Nicholas, of course, Regina.” she replied.

“What?” Emma asked looking at her boyfriend.

“The only sibling I have is Nicholas.” Regina retorted trying to call the witch’s bluff.

“Cora lied to you, Regina. I’m your sister. Half, if either of you want to get technical.”

“Why should either of us believe anything you say?” she asked.

“Oh, well, you shouldn’t.” Zelena scoffed, “It’s a lot to swallow, which is why I’ve brought a gift to help.”

“I don’t want a gift from you.” Regina chuckled.

“Oh, but you shall have it. You see, my gift to you is this sad, sad day. Use it to dig into our past, Regina. You need to learn the truth, and you must believe it, and then meet me on Main Street tonight. Say…sundown?”

“And then what?” she asked.

“Then I’ll destroy you.” Zelena sneered.

“This isn’t the wild west.” Regina reminded.

“No, dear. It’s the wicked west. And I want everyone to be there to see the Evil Queen lose.” Zelena said with a wicked grin.

“I don’t lose.” Regina retorted with a confident grin.

“Neither do I.” Zelena replied, “One of us is about to make history. See you tonight, sis.”

“Well, this is, without a doubt, the most interesting wake I’ve ever been to.” Nicholas muttered bluntly before the town officials surrounded him and the mayor with questions.

“And you’re sure Cora never said anything about her?” David asked them.

“I think at least one of us would remember if our mother told us she had a love child with a scarecrow.” Regina dryly replied.

“It doesn’t matter if Zelena is your sister or not.” Emma reminded, “She wants you dead. Any idea why?”

“I’ve never even met her before today.” Regina stressed.

“Doesn’t mean you didn’t do something to piss her off.” Emma countered.

“Well, that’s not entirely true, sis.” Nicholas admitted sheepishly gaining everyone’s attention, “Both you and I met her when we arrived back in the Enchanted Forest.”

“What?” Regina asked hotly, “Why didn’t you say anything before?!”

“Because, I wasn’t exactly sure if Zelena was indeed here and behind this curse.” he replied wincing at her tone and everyone’s glares, “Now, at least I have one of those questions answered.”

From there, Nicholas explained what happened when he and Regina met their long lost sister.

“You knew all along that Zelena was the Wicked Witch?” Emma asked.

“After Neal sacrificed himself to tell us, you knew the whole time?” David asked.

“How could you?” Snow asked.

“Now, hold on,” Nicholas glared, “I may have known about Zelena being mine and Regina’s long lost sister, but I had no idea that you hired her to be your damn midwife! Hell, I didn’t even know for sure if she was here in Storybrooke!”

“First you disappear mysteriously and refuse to tell us, then you travel to New York and leave us behind, and now we find out that you’ve known about the witch all along.” Regina pointed out, “What else aren’t you telling us, Nicholas?”

“Let me make this quite clear, to all of you.” he said growing irritated, “My secrets are my business and mine alone. I some of what I’m not telling you are matters I’m not allowed to say, so can we just drop it for now and focus on making sure Zelena doesn’t throw this town into a singing midget and green skinned hellhole?”

“He’s right.” Emma nodded before glaring at him, “But we are going to have a long talk about this later.”

“Yes, dear.” Nicholas replied trying not to show his displeasure as everyone made their way out.

“Not to sound repetitive,” David said as the others went on ahead, “But why did you go to New York?”

“…I was hunting.” Nicholas replied.

**OUaT**

Nearly eight months ago in New York, Nicholas was walking through the busy streets of Manhattan at night. It was only three days before Christmas and snow covered the ground and fell from the sky. As he was walking down the streets, he was having a phone call with Emma.

“I don’t know how many times I have to tell you, don’t shake the presents!” he laughed.

“Come on!” Emma whined, “How else am I supposed to guess what you got me?”

“Gee, I don’t know. Maybe, wait until Christmas and find out when you open them?” he suggested.

“Where’s the fun in that?” she asked, “Henry’s pretty excited to see what you got him.”

“Well, he should.” Nicholas smirked, “I think he’ll have fun with a Laystationpa ourfa.”

“Just as long as you get to play it too, right?”

“I don’t know where you got that idea. Personally, I enjoy a good classic novel over a videogame. Saves money on the electricity bill, for one thing.” 

“Are you sure you have to work tonight?” Emma asked, “Henry’s at his friend’s place and I was hoping you and I could celebrate Christmas early this year.”

“Oh!” Nicholas groaned, “Babe, I want to, but I can’t! I’m needed at the office.”

“Fine,” she sighed, “But next time you and I are alone, we’re gonna make up for tonight.”

“And then some.” he chuckled, “Alright, I’m about to get in a dead zone. I’ll call you when I get off.”

“Okay. Bye.” Emma said as she hung up.

“Doh! I never thought I’d hate being undercover this much!” he groaned as he headed to his “office.”

Truth be told, Nicholas’s “office” was actually an abandoned building that was at one point used for secret Brooklyn mobster meetings; that is until Nicholas accidently interrupted one and ended up killing them all. Since then, his “office” as he told Emma was actually a place for him to work on his research and experiments while he waited for his target to show itself.

True, he did feel guilty about lying to Emma all the time, but he kept telling himself that what he was doing was for the good of those in danger. Besides that, Nicholas had no idea where in the realm his target was; or who it was for that matter and Dragon wasn’t able to help him either.

As he entered the rickety old elevator to the top floor, the woman who had been watching him ever since he arrived made her way into the building.

**OUaT**

Out in the woods, Nicholas managed to finally locate his sister after she went to find out if their mother had left any valid proof of Zelena being their sister. Sitting by herself on a log, he decided to join her and poke her brain.

“So this is where you ran off to.” he said as he sat next to her.

“I didn’t run off.” Regina defended, “I came out here to collect my thoughts.”

“Have you tried smoking? I find that it helps calm the nerves and relaxes my thoughts.” Nicholas suggested as he dug out his pipe and began to scrape out the ashes in it.

“I’ll leave that disgusting habit to you, thank you.” she replied dryly.

“Suit yourself.” he shrugged as he continued to scrape.

“How do you do it?” she asked out of the blue.

“Do what?”

“Manage to stay so calm in the face of danger.”

“Hmm, I didn’t expect to hear you sound so concerned about the big showdown tonight.” Nicholas mused.

“I’m not, I’m-”

“Save it, Regina.” he cut off, “There’s no shame in admitting you’re worried about a fight. It happens to the best of us.”

“Yeah, but not me.” she snapped before noticing another presence behind her. Looking behind, the two siblings spotted Robin Hood staring at them.

“Ah, sorry to interrupt.” he said sheepishly.

“Did the Charmings send you to give me a pep talk?” Regina asked, “Cause I clearly don’t do well with pep talks.”

“No, nothing of the sort.” Robin denied, “After Zelena’s threat, I decided to patrol the woods in case she decided to build the ranks of her simian army. How are you holding up?”

“I’m not a flying monkey, if that’s what you mean.” Regina playfully commented.

“What the hell?!” Nicholas exclaimed in his head, “Since when does Regina make playful banter?!”

“So, are you going to tell me what’s in that letter you’ve been staring at?” Robin asked.

“What letter?” Nicholas asked before seeing Robin hold it in his fingers.

“This one.” he replied as he noticed Regina’s shocked look, “I’m a pickpocket by trade. I spent many years learning how to rob from magicians.”

“You’re lucky I’m saving my strength for that witch.” Regina growled.

“I think, deep down, you actually want to talk about what’s in here.” Robin speculated.

“And what makes you think you know me so well?” she asked.

“Well, for one thing, you’d have charred him to a crisp by now if you didn’t.” Nicholas remarked as he finished cleaning his beloved pipe and began to smoke it, “Can’t argue with a man’s intuition, sis.”

“True.” she chuckled.

“So, can I read it?” Robin asked.

“I’m pretty curious as to what it says as well. I’ve seen you read this thing well over a thousand time over the years and not once have you ever told me what it has to say.” Nicholas added.

“…I’m not stopping either of you.” Regina answered. With her permission, Robin began to read aloud.

“Cora, dear, I finally got my hands on your firstborn. Never thought I’d find her, did you? Now I know why. She’s the most powerful sorceress I’ve ever encountered, even more powerful than you. Stunning in every way.”

“Seems like one hell of a compliment, if you ask me.” Nicholas speculated, “I take it that you’re seeing it in a different light this time around, however.”

“I’ve seen that letter a hundred time before. In my darkest moments, I’d go to it for comfort, for solace, for…a boost when I needed it, because I…because I always thought it was about me.”

“It’s about Zelena.” Robin sighed.

“Rumplestiltskin thinks she’s more powerful than I am.” Regina admitted.

“Why care what that imps thinks?” Robin asked.

“Because if the man who taught me everything I know about magic thinks she is stronger than I am…then there is no way I can win this fight.” Regina whispered in hopelessness before being smacked upside the head by Nicholas.

“Nicholas?!” Robin exclaimed.

“What was that for?” Regina asked rubbing the back of her head.

“An old friend of mine taught me a long time ago that sometimes, all a person needs to get their head out of their ass is a good smack to the head.” he calmly replied with a faint smirk, “How ‘bout it, sis? Feeling better?”

“…As a matter of fact, I do.” she said as an idea popped into her mind, “Zelena may know Rumple’s methods, but there’s one person’s whose she doesn’t know. And that is my advantage.”

“Now we’re talking.” Nicholas grinned wildly.

**OUaT**

As Nicholas was quickly looking back and forth between his notes and books as he continued to jot down whatever it was going through his mind. As he was doing this, his nose twitched as he caught a whiff of someone’s scent across the room bringing him to stop with what he was doing.

“Well, I spent the past several months in search of you, and here you are coming before me.” he said as he put away his notes and glasses.

“Who’s to say I haven’t been keeping my eye on you this whole time, Flamel?” the voice asked in a smooth and seductive tone. As she stepped into the light, the woman from before came into view as well as the distinct red tattoo on her chest. To an alchemist’s eyes, it was known as an Ouroborous symbol: a dragon encircling a pyramid and biting its tail.

“So he’s finally decided to come check up on me, has he?” Nicholas asked, “After all these years.”

“Originally, I was only sent here to keep an eye on the Savior and make sure she didn’t do anything stupid. But as soon as you arrived, I knew I had to make sure you stayed in line.”

“Well, you certainly made my job easier.” Nicholas chuckled, “Judging by the way you dress and the tone of your voice, you must be his lust.”

“Indeed,” she nodded, “I am Lust the Lascivious.”

“I’m sure you don’t need me to introduce myself, correct?”

“Believe me, I know plenty about you, Nicholas Flamel. Father has told all of us about you.” Lust replied.

“Father, huh?” Nicholas asked, “So he really does treat you like children then.”

“Of course he does.” Lust said finding his remark odd, “He created us and gave us all a purpose. Why shouldn’t we consider him our father?”

“Whatever floats your boat.” he waved off, “That being said, I hope you said your goodbyes before you left, because you won’t be leaving this place alive.”

“You sound so sure of yourself.” Lust observed with an arrogant smirk.

“Considering that you aren’t allowed to kill me, not that you can anyway, and that our Stones are quite different, yes, I am sure of that.” Nicholas explained, “Don’t forget, your Stone is incomplete.”

“Oh, I didn’t come here to fight. I merely came to see how powerful the Immortal Alchemist really is with my own eyes.” she replied.

“Too bad for you,” Nicholas said dryly as he reached for a glock in his desk, “Because I came to this realm to kill you. And I plan on doing just that.”

In an instant, he pulled out the gun and shot Lust dead on in her forehead. He then continued to fire the weapon until he emptied the magazine while watching her wounds heal after each bullet went through her. Once it was empty, he watched her wounds heal with a blank expression.

“Is that the best you can do?” Lust asked in her ever seductive voice.

“Not hardly. But I will admit, it felt pretty damn good to shoot at least some part of that bastard after all these years.” Nicholas replied while coating his arms in his shield.

“Ah, so you have the Ultimate Shield after all.” Lust observed, “I almost feel bad that my brother isn’t here. He would love to have the chance to fight against someone with his own ability.”

“Oh, don’t you worry, you’ll get the same chance.” he assured, “I just have to use this power first in order to use what comes next.”

“Such a shame that you were able to tell what it is I can do before I could even demonstrate.” Lust sighed with a pout, “Oh, well, in any case, we’ll be able to see who is better with the Ultimate Spear.”

As she said this, her gloves hands turned into longer razor sharp blade-like claws. In retaliation, Nicholas’s claws did the same.

“You fail to see the predicament that you’re in, Lust.” Nicholas pointed out, “While we can both use the same technique and regenerate, I’m the only one with a perfected Stone, alchemy, and all the other abilities your ‘siblings’ can use. In other words, you’re in over your head, toots.”

In an instant, both their claws extended across the room to strike their opponent rapidly; both sets only able to strike the other’s claws. As he defended himself, Nicholas kicked over his desk to provide cover while he reached for two revolvers and began to fire at the Homunculus.

Three bullets were able to pierce through her giving Nicholas the chance to resume his previous attack. However, Lust was able to regain her bearings and fend off the attacks as she closed in for close combat. Once she managed to get in close enough, she swept Nicholas off his feet and drove five of her spears into his chest causing him to cough up blood.

Thankfully, Nicholas was quickly able to destroy them with the use of his alchemy, allowing him to get away as Lust back off to regenerate. While he healed, Nicholas looked for more of his resources to aid him in this fight.

Now you’re probably wondering what resources he might have, yes? Well, if the guns he used previously were any indication, Nicholas decided when he set up his base to fill it with weapons if such an occasion like the one he was in were to ever happen. Amongst these, guns were not the only weapons at his disposal; he also had a few crates full of grenades lying around, as well.

Pulling pin after pin out with his teeth, Nicholas threw the explosives at his enemy until he ran out. Lust was still nowhere near death, but she was growing irritated by the constant explosions causing damage to her. Fire was spreading throughout the building and the roof and floor began to crumble from the blasts.

With the smoke to his advantage, Nicholas was able to charge at Lust with his claws and shadows with absolutely no mercy in any of his attacks. He told her he was going to kill her, and no matter how many times it took, he was going to hold true to his word. Unfortunately for him, Lust was still able to fend off several of his blows and land a few hits of her own where the pain was intense.

Hey, no one ever said a fight between monsters was going to be easy.

**OUaT**

Night fell on Storybrooke and that marked the time of the witch fight between the two sisters. Regina spent the day alone while she prepared herself and came to terms that Zelena was in fact her sister while Emma and the others, minus Nicholas, tried to even the odds for the mayor; unfortunately, every time they tried, it backfired. Now, everyone was gathered at Main Street to watch the anticipated fight.

“Any sign of Regina?” Emma asked.

“Not since the vault.” Snow replied, “If she doesn’t get here soon, that witch could take it out on all of us.”

“Let’s get everybody out of here before that happens.” David suggested, “Alright, listen up! We need you to get back to your homes.”

“No one’s going anywhere.” Zelena denied with Rumple at her side, “This show needs an audience.”

As she approached them, she saw Sneezy looking at her in fear. “Out of the way, munchkin.” she snapped.

“I’m a dwarf.” he corrected in fear.

“That’s even worse.” she insulted, “Where is she, hmm? Don’t tell me, she’s a coward. Well, this isn’t good…for any of you. If my sister’s not here in five minutes, I’m going to let the dark one off his leash.”

“He’s not killing anyone.” Emma denied stepping forward, “If you want to fight someone, Zelena, fight me.”

“Hmm, my little brother’s plaything?” she asked with a sneer, “I think not. Sorry, dear. I don’t dance with amateurs.”

“I’m not anyone’s plaything and I’m not an amateur. I’m the Savior.” Emma shot back.

“Hmm, appears someone’s got an inflated sense of self-worth.” Zelena remarked before having Gold send Emma flying, “Anybody else want to give it a go?”

“We do.” Regina said with Nicholas at her side.

“Oh, goodie. A little family reunion.” Zelena madly giggled, “I was beginning to think neither of you were going to show up. ‘Course, I was hoping to put Regina in her place, but I guess we can just call this killing two birds with one stone.”

“Oh, we couldn’t let our big sister off that easily.” Nicholas remarked.

“So the two of you have finally accepted me into the family?” Zelena asked.

“We’ve accepted that we shared a mother, yes.” Regina nodded, “But I still have one question. What the hell did I ever do to you?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Zelena asked, “You were born.”

As soon as she said this, Regina gave the witch a well-deserved punch to the face which drew blood on her lower lip. “I’ve been waiting to do that all day.”

“Nice shot.” Nicholas commented.

“Rumplestiltskin can’t save you this time. He should have chosen me.”

“That’s what this is all about?” Nicholas chuckled, “You’re jealously of Regina?”

“I think I’ve heard enough from you, little brother.” Zelena growled as she waved the dagger, “Why don’t you keep him out of my hair, dearie?”

“With pleasure.” Gold nodded in anger as he pushed Nicholas back, “I’ve been waiting decades for this.”

“Really?” Nicholas asked as he drew his sword, “Well, if you were wanting another ass-kicking that badly, I would’ve been happy to give it to you any time you wanted.”

“Shut up!” Rumple shouted as he summoned his own sword and began to clash with the alchemist while the two sisters fought. “You knew the entire time! You could have told them, but instead you let my son die.”

“Oh,” Nicholas realized, “So Zelena told you, did she? Hmm, how unfortunate. I was hoping to keep that little secret under wraps. Oh, well.”

“Oh, well?!” Rumple snarled as he tried to strike Nicholas only to have his attacks blocked and parried, “My son died because of her and you keeping her identity to yourself, and all you can say is oh, well?!”

“Considering that I never even liked Neal and only gained respect for him when he died, yeah, that’s all I have to say.” Nicholas dryly shrugged, “Besides, I’ve seen and caused enough death to where it doesn’t affect me like most people.”

“Enough!” Rumple shouted as they continued to fight.

“You still don’t realize what you had.” Zelena said as she fought Regina, “You never did. You got everything I ever wanted, and you didn’t even deserve it! But I’m gonna take it all from you!”

As Regina tried to throw a fireball, Zelena extinguished it with an angry flick of her wrist before picking her up by the throat with her magic. “You can’t beat me, little sis. Everything Rumplestiltskin taught you, he taught me, too. But I was the better student.”

And with that, Zelena flung her sister into the air and through the face of the clock tower. In the streets, Rumple continued to try and fight back against the smiling alchemist who seemed to be having more fun than anyone that evening.

“Tell me, Rumple,” Nicholas said as he easily fended off the imp’s attacks, “How did it feel to watch your son die knowing it was your fault? How did it feel to know that because of your father and your curse, your son was taken away from those he loved and became so desperate that he brought you back to life?”

“Shut up!” the dark one snarled.

“Ooh, I bet it felt pretty terrible, didn’t it?” he taunted as he kicked Rumple in the gut, “The very thing you used to get to him ended up being the very tool leading to his death. It’s such a pity.”

“I said shut up, Flamel!” Rumple shouted only to be kicked to the ground.

“You know, I find it even more pitiful that you think that you can beat me now when I was able to beat you to the ground not once, not twice, but five times when I was just a teenager.” Nicholas said in taunt, “Hmm, maybe pitiful isn’t the right word. More like pathetic, really.”

As he said this, he stabbed the angry wizard in the gut who slashed his sword across his face. As their wounds healed, Nicholas sighed while shaking his head. “We’ll be at this all night.” he sighed as he continued with his attacks.

In the clock tower, Zelena loomed over Regina as she laid on the ground and broken glass. “Well, what are you waiting for?” Regina asked, “Kill me.”

“I never said I wanted to kill you. I said I wanted to destroy you.” Zelena corrected in anger, “And to do that, I need your heart.”

With a hard thrust, the witch plunged her hand into Regina’s chest. However, as soon as she did, she found nothing inside. “Where is it?!” she asked in anger.

“Our mother taught me one thing: never bring your heart to a witch fight.” Regina smirked as she shoved her sister back, “Something you’d know if she hadn’t abandon you.”

“You haven’t won, Regina. I will get your heart! I will get everything you ever had!” Zelena cried as she summoned her flying broomstick.

“Not today.” Regina denied as her sister flew off. As soon as she did, Emma, her parents and Nicholas showed up in the elevator.

“You alright?” Emma called.

“I’m still alive, aren’t I?” Regina asked, “What happened to Gold?”

“He poofed away as soon as Zelena took off.” Nicholas replied, “Honestly, I don’t know why you guys are so afraid of him; he sucks at fighting.”

“Said the immortal alchemist whose wounds instantly heal.” Regina retorted, “I found out something interesting. As it turns out, Zelena wanted my heart. It’s a good thing I wasn’t stupid enough to bring it with me.”

“Any idea why she wants it?” David asked.

“Well, she got your courage and wants my heart. Those are ingredients.” Regina explained.

“For what? A curse?” Emma asked.

“We’re already in Storybrooke. We’ve already lost our memories. What else could she do to us?” Snow asked.

**OUaT**

The fight between Nicholas and Lust seemed to be going nowhere fast. Every time one of them was wounded, they would heal in an instant. Not to mention, the crumbling building they were in wasn’t proving to be an ideal battlefield.

“What’s the matter, Lusty?” Nicholas asked as he panted and regenerated, “Can’t keep up?”

“I should be the one asking you that, Flamel.” Lust retorted while she too panted and regenerated, “It’s too bad that neither of us will be able to end this little dance of our tonight. I’d rather not get anymore ash on this dress than I already have.”

“Hate to tell you this, even though I really don’t, but I don’t plan on letting you leave this place alive.” Nicholas informed as he discretely put on his flame alchemy gloves. Once he had them on, he quickly let loose his flames on the lady Homunculus.

As soon as the blast of fire engulfed her, Lust glared at Nicholas in pain, rage, and hatred. “Where in the hell did you get those?!” she snarled.

“Oh, these old things?” Nicholas asked with a mad grin, “I’ve had them since I made them when I was just seventeen. Now, I’ll admit, I could have used these on you any time I wanted during out fight. But to be honest, I was having too much fun. You have no idea how boring it is to fight someone who goes down so easily as mortals do.”

“So you were just toying with me all along?!” Lust shouted as Nicholas silenced her with more flames.

“Exactly.” he replied looking terrifying as the flames danced in his madness filled eyes, “It’s like I told you, you’re in over your head, toots.”

And with that, Nicholas unleashed the fires of hell on the woman. Snap after snap, her cries of agony and pain filled the air while Nicholas smiled wickedly at his handiwork. In one final act of rage, Lust screamed at the top of her lungs and tried to drive her spear through Nicholas’s head. But just before it could reach his skin, he gave one final snap with a blank cold look that stopped Lust once and for all.

“You killed me.” Lust said as her body slowly began to become ash, “I hate losing. But there are worse ways to die than at the hands of a man like you. I love how cold and focused your eyes are. I look forward to the day when those eyes will be widened with agony. It’s coming. It’s coming.”

As she gave her final words, Lust disintegrated until her Philosopher’s Stone was left and even it broke away and faded into nothingness.

“Not if I have any say in the matter.” Nicholas said as he glared at the spot, “Merry Christmas, you filthy animal.”

Becoming aware of his surroundings, Nicholas jumped through the nearest window and fell outside into the dirt. Once he got to his feet, he ran over to a nearby oil drum filled with C4 and tipped it over in front the entrance.

“No lose ends.” he muttered before kicking the drum into the fiery building and shot it with his gun causing a massive explosion bringing the building down. As it came crumbling to the ground, Nicholas sighed and walked away as he repaired the tears in his clothes via alchemy.

Later that evening, he returned to Emma’s apartment where he found his frantic girlfriend with bloodshot eyes and tear streaks on her face.

“Emma, what’s wrong? What happened?” Nicholas asked in concern. Hearing the sound of his voice, Emma swiftly turned around and looked at him before running into his arms.

“Nicky!” she cried as she plowed into him. Normally, Nicholas would cringe and correct her given that he hatted being called Nick, Nicky, Nick-man, Nicko, etc., but he decided to let it slide given the situation.

“Hun, what’s wrong?” he asked.

“I saw the fire and the smoke and explosion from your office from all the way here.” she said trying to control herself, “I’ve been trying to get ahold of you all night and when you didn’t answer I-I thought-”

“Shh,” he soothed holding her close and kissing her head, “It’s alright. I’m okay, I got out just in time. I’m okay, Emma; I promise.”

“Don’t ever scare me like that again!” she sobbed into his chest, “I don’t want to lose you.”

“You won’t.” he chuckled holding her tightly, “I love you.”

Hearing him say that for the first time in their relationship sent happiness throughout Emma’s heart as she pressed herself closer to him. “I love you, too.” she whispered into his chest.

**OUaT**

In the present time in Storybrooke, Nicholas stared out into the night sky looking at the stars in thought. He didn’t even need to pull out his pipe, all he wanted to do was try and think of what lied ahead for him and those he cared about.

In his mind, he could only think about fixing the mistake he had made so many years ago and what he would have to do to make things right.


	33. The Jolly Roger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, LXG or Pirates of the Caribbean

Eleven months ago in the Enchanted Forest, Nicholas decided to set out on personal business after finally escaping the walls of the castle. Dressed in his traveling clothes, a red hooded coat over black slacks and a black tunic, he made his way over to the loudest tavern located in the village via rooftop.

As he lurked in the shadows, he saw a sight that nearly made him laugh, Captain Hook being held at dagger point by a young, beautiful girl.

“Well, now,” Nicholas mused with a smirk, “There’s something you don’t see every day. This will certainly make my mission even more interesting.”

**OUaT**

Back in Storybrooke at the loft, Emma and David were fussing over putting together the baby’s crib while Snow watched. “Alright, it says take screw E with washers D through bar C using wrench F, which is…not provided.” Emma read aloud.

“Why don’t we just call Marco? He’s really good at this sort of thing.” Snow suggested.

“No!” Emma and David protested.

“Should we even be doing this?” she asked, “Ever since the showdown between Regina and the Wicked Witch, we haven’t seen Zelena of Gold at all. Shouldn’t we be focusing on her next move?”

“We are. We just can’t stop living.” Emma reminded.

“And this crib is a statement.” David pointed out as Nicholas and Regina entered, “We are not going to lose another baby.”

“And, thanks to me, you won’t.” Regina informed, “I’m finished.”

“So? Did it work?” David asked, “Were you able to put up a new protection spell?”

“One that can’t be undone by blood magic, which means Zelena won’t be able to put her hands on that baby.”

“Any idea why she would want to?” Snow asked as she sighed in relief.

“The number of spells involving baby parts would surprise you.” Regina replied with a bit of dark humor, “That greenie is clearly one twisted witch. But as long as we’re in here, we’re safe.”

“That’s useless.” said Emma, “I think we need to stop playing defense and start taking the fight to her.”

“While I agree with you, Emma, none of you are really capable of taking Zelena on.” Nicholas reminded, “She has some pretty powerful magic, in case you’ve already forgotten.”

“I have magic, too. You’ve seen me use it. I just can’t always control it.” Emma retorted, “But if we team up, if Regina taught me-”

“Now, why does this feel so familiar?” she asked sarcastically.

“I’m ready this time.” Emma said strongly.

“Okay.” Regina chuckled, “But if we do this, we do this my way. This isnt drinking stale coffee at a stakeout or whatever you did as a bail bondsperson. This is a way of life. You have to fully commit to it.”

“Not a problem.” Emma replied meeting Regina’s gaze.

“Meet me at my vault in one hour.” she said as she left.

“While you guys are doing that, I’ll be taking a look around town; I wanna see if my other dear sister has left anything that might be dangerous.” Nicholas informed, “Last thing we need is anything dangerous laying around for the townsfolk.”

**OUaT**

Smirking at the pirate’s predicament below him, Nicholas couldn’t help but resist the urge to laugh. It wasn’t every day that a person was able to witness a cutthroat pirate get his ass handed to him by a lovely young lady. As he snickered, he heard Hook speak.

“Not to add insult to injury, but would you mind catching me up on your particular grievance?”

“You kidnapped Prince Eric, and you’re gonna return him to me. Now on your feet!” Ariel ordered.

“Kidnapping a prince does sound like something I would do but I’m afraid you’ve got the wrong pirate.” Hook groaned before turning the tables and holding the knife at her throat, “Or should I say the wrong pirate has you?”

“Go ahead, kill me. But I still know you’re lying. One of Eric’s men escaped, so I know the ship that took him was yours: The Jolly Roger.”

“…The Jolly Roger?” Hook asked, “Are you certain? Answer me!”

“You really didn’t take him.” Ariel realized looking into his eyes.

“What else do you know about who’s captaining my ship? Did that man tell you anything else?!” Hook demanded.

“Only that he was able to escape with a weapon that he stole from the armory: the dagger that’s against my throat.” she informed somewhat fearful.

“You may want to listen to her, my friend.” Nicholas said from the roof before jumping down before them, “She’s not the only one who’s heard rumors regarding your ship.”

“Why the bloody hell am I not surprised that ought of all the people I know, you have graced me with your presence, Flamel?” Hook asked still fuming, “But a better question, what do you know about my ship?”

“Oh, not much.” Nicholas replied tauntingly, “Just that it’s been said that another infamous vessel is docked next to it not far from hear and it’s captained by someone you would know.”

“Enough games, alchemist.” Hook snapped, “I want answers; now.”

“Fair enough.” Nicholas grinned, “The Jolly Roger has been reported being next to a Man O’ War as red as blood with sails painted in the ashes from her cannons’ blast and crewed by the damned and unfortunate souls who come across her captain. The vessel believed to be the ferry of the dead itself sailing the waters of this realm: The Queen Anne’s Revenge.”

Hearing the name, both Ariel and Hook stiffened and shuddered in fear fully knowing who was in possession of the Roger.

“Blackbeard.” Hook exhaled.

The following morning, the trio with the addition of Mr. Smee made their way through the woods to their destination. Although, Ariel didn’t enjoy it the journey much and made a point to let the others know.

“Trudge, trudge, trudge.” she complained, “If you ask me, there’s nothing more boring than land travel. I’ll take my tail in the ocean any day.”

“That’s one thing we can agree on; minus the tail, of course.” Hook nodded, “You won’t be bored for much longer. Our destination is just past this rise.”

“Then it won’t be long until I’m reunited.” Ariel smiled before realizing her cloak was snagged on a branch.

“Here. Allow me.” Hook offered before tearing his namesake through it.

“You’ve ripped it!” she snapped.

“…It’s a cloak.” he dryly retorted.

“It’s Eric’s cloak.” she corrected, “And he’s had it since before we met. He left it with me while he was away to keep him close, and now you have ruined it!”

“If mending a cloak is our biggest obstacle, we’re in fine shape.” Hook groaned, “Nicholas, would you mind, mate?”

“Not at all.” he replied as he grabbed the tear and mended it in an instant, “There, good as new.”

“Th-thank you.” she said still in shock at the demonstration of alchemy.

“You realize you might not find this prince of yours or even survive?” Hook asked.

“I will.” Ariel shot back.

“Didn’t you see the fear Blackbeard’s name struck into my crew?” he asked, “You don’t become a pirate captain through mercy. If I were you, I would prepare myself for the worst.”

“Why?” she asked, “What are you saying? That you would kill Eric if you had him?”

“You don’t believe that?”

“Well, honestly, I was a little surprised to hear that you might be responsible for Eric’s kidnapping, after the stories I’ve heard.”

“What stories?” Hook snapped.

“Well, the ones of you helping reunite Snow White and her family in Neverland. Some people say that you’re a hero.”

“…Don’t believe every story you hear.” Hook said looking away. As he did, he felt Ariel’s hand on his arm in an attempt to comfort him.

“Being good is nothing to be ashamed of. People change. Look at me. I have legs, and I fell in love with a human. I don’t think anyone saw that coming.” she coaxed.

“You may have changed I haven’t. I’m a pirate, and I always will be.” Hook said before pressing on.

“A person doesn’t choose to change whenever he wants, Hook.” Nicholas thought, “He does it whenever his heart tells him to.”

Night eventually fell and the group reached the port where they not only spotted the Jolly Roger, but the Revenge as well. It was exactly as Nicholas described, red as blood yet stained with cannon fire ash; the Roger was the size of a dingy compared to the massive Man O’ War and its crew struck fear into Smee’s soul. Some appeared to be ordinary pirates, but others were pale, covered in tattoos and looked as though the shadow of death loomed over them.

“Up close, she’s even more beautiful than I remember.” Hook said staring at his vessel, “Don’t worry, my dear, you’ll soon be back in my loving arms.”

“You do realize you’re talking to a boat, right?” Nicholas asked as they all hid behind barrels.

“Why does some of Blackbeard’s crew look funny?” Ariel asked.

“They’re zombies.” Nicholas informed not taking his eyes off them.

“Zombies?” she asked.

“The undead.” he nodded, “Blackbeard resurrects his best officers whenever they’re killed in battle in order to maintain his able body crew. He believes it’s bad luck to lose crew members; at least the good ones.”

“And as our luck would have it, he’s left them in charge of our ship.” Smee pointed out, “And the Revenge seems to be blocking our way as well. How are we going to get on board, Captain? Blackbeard’s crew outnumbers us.”

“I’ll show you.” he said making his way to the nearest living pirate and knocked him out, “Stand at attention, mates! Now boarding the ship, the rightful captain of the Jolly Roger.”

“I guess that’s our cue.” Nicholas said as they joined Hook.

“Now, if the coward who tried stealing her from me would kindly show his face, I’ll give him the punishment he deserves.”

From behind the helm of the Revenge, the doors of the captain’s quarters swung open and let loose more smoke than Nicholas did whenever he smoked his cigars. Slowly coming out of the darkness drinking a bottle of rum and dressed in black with a large sword at his side, Blackbeard stared down at Hook with a disappointed expression.

“Gentlemen,” he sighed with a shake of his head before throwing the bottle at Hook’s feet, “I be placed in a bewilderment. There I were, resting, and upon a sudden, I hear an ungodly rile on deck.”

As he spoke, he traced his fingers on the hilt of his sword causing the Revenge to creak and moan in compliance, “Sailors abandoning their posts without orders, without leave. Unwanted men before the mast, taking my new ship for themselves.”

Ropes began to move and pull by themselves as he continued to trace his weapon. His crew smirked knowing what was about to happen while Smee and Ariel looked around in fear while Nicholas looked intrigued and Hook stared at Blackbeard in anger.

“What be that, first mate?” Blackbeard asked.

“Blasphemy, Captain.” one of the zombies replied.

“Again?” he asked.

“Blasphemy.”

“Aye,” he growled as he unsheathed his sword and the ropes acted like snakes around the group, “Blasphemy. And what fate befalls blasphemers? Now we know the answer to that, do we not?”

“Aye!” his crew shouted.

“C-Captain?” Smee fearfully stuttered.

“Blasphemers HANG!!!” Blackbeard shouted with a thrust of his sword. Suddenly, the sails unfurled with the wind gusting through them and the ropes began to pounce at the party and trap them like flies in a spider’s web.

“Killian Jones.” Blackbeard nodded as he lowed Hook to eye level.

“Edward Teach.” he spat, “I trust you know why I’m here?”

“Aye,” nodded the older pirate, “You want your ship back. By all means, please, take it.” he taunted before releasing and dropping him to the ground, “If you can.”

“With pleasure.” Hook snarled as he got to his feet and swung his sword at Teach. The fight clearly showed that Hook’s swordplay was on par with Blackbeard. It even carried across the plank connecting the two ships and continued on the Jolly Roger’s deck.

“I was afraid you weren’t going to show up.” Blackbeard taunted as he knocked Hook back, “Word is that Captain Hook has gone soft.”

“The only thing soft,” Hook spat as he sliced Teach’s arm and kicked him down, “Will be your guts spilling out on this deck! I’d never give up the Jolly Roger without a fight.”

As they fought, Nicholas managed to use his alchemy to cut the ropes holding him, Smee and Ariel. As soon as he landed on deck, he had his shadows at the ready to keep the crew and zombies away.

Back at the fight, Hook continued to cross blades with his fellow pirate with no end in sight. “So you think you know this ship?” he asked.

“Oh, every inch of it, I assure you.” Teach taunted.

“If that was the case,” Hook said before swinging his sword at his feet, “You’d know not to step there!”

As he stepped away, Blackbeard trapped his foot in a loose plank thus rendering him at Hook’s mercy, “Oh, I’ve been meaning to fix that.” he mocked.

“Finish it.” Blackbeard spat.

“Fancy a shave, do we?” Hook taunted, “Well, I’d be happy to oblige, but I have a bargain I need to uphold. Now then, Captain Teach, where are you keeping Prince Eric?”

Hearing the demand caused the older pirate to laugh as he spotted Ariel come over, “So that’s what this was about? A rescue mission for some wench? They were right about you, Hook. You have gone soft.”

“I can either make this painful or quite painful.” Hook threatened, “Now answer!”

“Hmm,” he smirked, “Check the belly of the nearest shark.”

“He’s dead?” Ariel asked as her heart began to break.

“Aye, my child.” he taunted, “His blood left a most vibrant color of red in the waves. His usefulness proved to be insignificant after his kingdom refused to pay for his ransom; thanks to his order.”

“No.” she denied as tears fell, “No, no, no, no.”

Hook saw this and immediately embraced her to give her comfort. Seeing the chance, Blackbeard freed himself and used his sword to aim the Revenge’s cannons at the Roger. “Now then,” he said pointing his weapon at them, “I can either make this painful or quite painful. You have a choice to make, Captain. Either surrender the ship, or you and your friends will follow her to the depths.”

“I choose a third option: parlay.” he replied causing Teach to lower his weapon, “As vile as you may be, Teach, you’re still a pirate and must honor our code.”

“Very well,” he nodded sheathing his enchanted blade, “What are your terms, Captain?”

“I bested you in fair combat. Unless you want to throw away your honor, you will abide by my terms.” Hook spat, “You will return my ship to me and leave this port without harming us, my ship or anyone innocent here until either of our ships has left. Am I clear?”

“…Aye, I shall abide by these terms.” he nodded as he returned to his proper vessel allowing the others to breath easily.

“I’m sorry, love.” Hook said to Ariel.

“I just wish I could have said goodbye.” she said as her voice shook.

“…I know this is sudden,” Hook gently said, “But if you would like, I could offer you a position on my crew. I’ve been searching for a proper Quartermaster for quite some time.”

“You would do that?” she asked through her tears.

“Aye.” he nodded, “I know what it’s like to lose the person you love. This ship was able to help me through times of trouble and heartache; if you should say yes, I believe she can do the same for you.”

“Yes.” she nodded pulling him into a warm hug which he returned, “Thank you.”

“Well, aside from being strung up and caught like a fly in a crazy ass spider-web, I think this went rather well.” Nicholas commented to himself.

Later that night after Hook and Ariel sailed away on the Jolly Roger, Nicholas stayed behind and waited at the dock where he watched his friends leave. Soon afterwards, he spotted the Queen Anne’s Revenge come back and drop anchor before him.

“If you have had enough of waiting, Master Flamel, you are more than welcome aboard my ship.” Blackbeard called from portside.

“Thank you, Captain.” he grinned as he boarded the mighty vessel.

“I trust that our plan went accordingly?” Blackbeard asked as the ship sailed away from the port.

“Oh, yes,” Nicholas nodded, “Hook has returned to the sea with a chance of new hope and love, and we have what we wanted. Don’t we?”

“Indeed we do.” another voice said from behind the alchemist. Turning around, he saw that it belonged to Robin Hood. “I must say, I was a bit unsure of helping Hook like that, but it just goes to show you really can’t judge a person at first glance.”

“He may be a pirate, but Killian does have honor.” Nicholas nodded, “Now then, back to business. Is he here?”

“Aye, just take a look at the nest.” Blackbeard said pointing above at the ship’s crow’s nest. Craning their necks, they could see a scared, sweating man dressed in what was once royal clothes tied to the mast with little to nothing under his feet.

“You hid the prince in plain sight.” Nicholas observed, “Nicely done, old friend. I like it.”

“I was inspired by the methods we normally use in our line of work.” he waved off with a grin.

“He has no idea why he’s here, does he?” Robin asked smiling at Eric’s expression.

“He’ll find out soon enough.” Blackbeard replied, “I believe we’ve waited long enough and sailed our far enough. What say you, lads?”

“I think you’re right.” Nicholas nodded, “Let’s show him what happens when someone catches the League’s attention.”

After the zombies brought the prince down, he was brought before the three Gentlemen on his knees. “Do you know why you’re here, your highness?” Nicholas asked.

“I-I-I assume yo-you wish to trade me for my kingdom’s riches?” Eric asked nervously.

“You mean, the riches you stole in order to flaunt away on pleasurable company as you and your men sailed on your ‘expedition?’” Blackbeard asked as the prince’s eyes widened in shock, “The taxes you collected from your people in their best and worst times in order to satisfy your desires and keep them under wraps.”

“Along with paying off their employers and taking them with you to sell off to the highest bidder.” Robin added while Nicholas glared at him while smoking his cigar.

“That alone was enough to grab our attention, you filthy pig.” he spat.

“And the last thing we want to hear is any of your pathetic excuses.” Robin informed as Eric tried to compose himself, “I feel bad for that mermaid girl. You know, she actually thought you loved her? You should have seen her face when Teach told her you were dead.”

“Listen,” he said, “If you let me go, I can give you anything, or any girl you want. Just name me your preferred features and I can easily get you three-no, four of each.”

“Is he trying to buy us off?” Nicholas asked his comrades.

“Aye, that he is.” Teach nodded resisting the urge to run him through with his sword, “Apparently, he believes that we need money and slave trading to get into bed with beautiful women like he does.”

“Oh, dear,” Nicholas muttered shaking his head in disappointment, “That right there has put you in an even worse predicament, Eric. But, there is a way for you to escape your fate.”

“There is?” he asked in hope.

“Aye,” Teach replied, “You see, I like to give my prisoners a fair chance at freedom. If you can escape, you may live. But if you fail,”

“Then you die.” Nicholas growled as his cigar flared.

Given his chance, Eric put all of his strength in rowing away in the boat he was given. He had managed to put in a great distance from the Revenge; or so he thought. At the bow of the ship, Nicholas, Robin and Teach stared out at the boat with cold expressions.

“At the ready.” Blackbeard said calmly.

With an arrogant and triumphant laugh, Eric thought he was going to get away. Only he was far off from that.

“Fire.” Teach said with a wave of his hand. In an instant, two cannons beneath the ship’s figurehead let loose a fiery inferno that managed to reach Eric just before he escaped its reach and began to roast him alive. After a few moments, the fire stopped and everyone watched the boat become engulfed in flames.

“Again!” he roared before watching the flames take the boat without mercy.

“I love this job.” Nicholas madly whispered as he let loose smoke from his mouth. 

“For the glory of the League, gentlemen.” Robin said gazing out at the flames.

“For the glory of the League.” they nodded.


	34. Bleeding Through a Curious Thing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

The next day, Zelena decided to pay her younger sister a visit while Rumple made off with her heart. Given that Regina hadn’t been killed yet, she was more concerned than ever not knowing what it was exactly Zelena’s plans for it were. That night, she decided to call over the Charmings, Hook, Emma and Nicholas to witness what she had in store for seeking answers.

Nicholas and Hook tried to ignore Snow and David’s argument over the name for their baby but were having a hard time considering how annoying they were. As he resisted the urge to bang his head against the table, Regina came in with a pot of tea.

“Sorry to keep you waiting. I was making this special tea.” Regina said as she poured it into each of the goblets in front of everyone. As soon as David’s was poured, he tried to take a drink only to be stopped by the mayor. “No! Don’t drink it. It’s a deadly poison for summoning the dark vortex.”

“I prefer Earl Grey.” he remarked as he put back the glass.

“Damn,” Nicholas muttered as Emma elbowed him, “So close.”

“I’m sorry, what are we summoning?” Hook asked.

“Zelena came by this morning while the dark one was stealing my heart; she was here gloating.” Regina informed, “She said that my weakness was that I don’t know enough about her past, so I’ve decided to summon someone who does. We have to talk to my mother.”

“Well,” Nicholas bluntly thought, “I most certainly have mixed feelings about this.”

“It’s a fairly simple ritual but not often performed.”

“If it’s easy to talk to the dead, why not do it more?” Emma asked.

“Well, because to do it, you need the murder weapon and…the murderer.” she replied indicating to the candle and Snow. Nicholas gave a quick snap of his fingers and lit both sides of the candle.

“What do we need to do?” Emma asked.

“Focus on Cora.” Regina replied as everyone held hands.

“Welcoming thoughts.” Hook sighed.

“Whatever you got.” Nicholas shrugged.

As they sat in silence, the wind began to pick up and howl around them. In a matter of seconds, a vortex opened above them and sucked in the air around them. “Holy crap, it worked.” Nicholas blurted.

“Cora?” Regina called, “Mother, can you hear us? Cora, give us a sign.”

But no answer came.

“Do not ignore me now, Mother.” she said dryly, “Please. You owe Nicholas and me this.”

All of a sudden, the table shook and startled everyone as the portal closed; except Hook. “Sorry, love.” he apologized, “That was me. I crossed my legs and bumped the table.”

“Nice going, pirate.” Nicholas said dryly while his sister blew out the candle, “Should we try it again?”

“No. There’s no point.” she sighed, “It worked. The portal opened, but nothing came from it. She doesn’t want to talk to us. Guess whatever secrets lie in her past, she wants to keep buried there.”

“Like mother like son.” Nicholas thought as everyone rose from their seats.

“Maybe Belle will have more luck. There has to be something that can help us.” said David.

“Right.” Emma agreed, “My magic gets more powerful every day. By the time this all goes down, I’ll be ready.”

“Make sure you are.” Regina said looking downcast.

“Come on, let’s go.” Emma said reading the room.

“You know what? Go ahead.” Snow spoke up, “I’m gonna stay and talk to Regina and Nicholas. I’ll help clean up.”

“Neither of us are in the mood for a heart-to-heart; especially from you of all people.” Nicholas flatly informed as the others left.

“I’m not sure that’s physically possible for either of you right now.” she retorted dryly. Surprisingly, this managed to get a light chuckle from the siblings.

“You can help with the tea cups.” Regina offered. Unbeknownst to any of them as they entered the den, the entrance before the front door disappeared in a shroud of magic. In the kitchen, Snow finally decided to say something.

“I want to apologize to you; both of you. For Cora, for-”

“Murdering her?” Regina asked.

“Right.” Snow nodded, “And for betraying you, Nicholas.”

“Do you, now?” he asked with his back turned.

“Yeah.” She nodded, “I don’t take either lightly. I think about them every day.”

“…So do we.” Regina replied, “And when I think about it, I remember that she did kill your mother. So I’ll admit that it’s complicated.”

“I have something I want to ask you.” Nicholas said as he threw down the towel in his hands, “Were we ever actually friends? Or was I just a tool you used to escape her? And I want the truth.”

Snow looked at the counter in shame before giving him the answer that was long overdue. “…At first…yes, I used you to get away from Regina.” she confessed, “I was scared, and alone and I had just lost everything; I didn’t know who I could trust. But when you saved Red from those hunters and allowed us to escape…I realized that you weren’t like your sister. But as time went on, I became arrogant and self-absorbed, only thinking about how I was going to take back what was mine. And when we came back from the Enchanted Forest and Emma tried to give Regina another chance…I got scared.”

“And why’s that?” Nicholas calmly asked.

“Because no matter how many times I kept giving you chance after chance after chance, you always used them to try and find a way to ruin what I had.” she replied looking at Regina, “I was afraid that it was going to happen all over again, and last time, I lost so much more.”

“And what did that have to do with not trusting me?”

“I knew you had no say in the matter,” Snow continued not looking him in the eye, “But from the moment I saw you after Emma broke the curse, I could just hear this voice in my head saying, ‘He failed you. He did nothing to stop her. He’s the reason you lost your daughter.’”

Nicholas resisted the urge to throw the nearest knife at her, but he wanted to know where the ex-princess was going with her explanation. “I didn’t want to think of you like that. I really didn’t, but I just couldn’t help but blame you. Even after everything you had done before, I couldn’t help but resent you for not stopping the curse.”

“Hmm,” he hummed looking at the ground, “I understand that more than you know. Every time I saw…Mary Margaret, I felt so guilty. Even more so for what I did to Emma in not acting against Regina casting the curse. Because I didn’t do anything, I condemned her to a life away from her family; and I know exactly how painful a life like that is. You had every right to resent me, Snow.”

“But that doesn’t excuse the fact that I purposely tried to turn everyone against you.” she argued, “I let loose my anger at you and took it too far. I wanted both of you to know what it felt like to be in my shoes…to lose everything. I let my hatred control me…and in the end I threw away our real friendship. I am so sorry, Nicholas.”

“…In all honesty…I should be used to it by now.” he confessed looking distraught, “I should be used to my ‘friends’ betraying me.”

As he said this, the sound of eerie squeaking came from upstairs. “What was that?” Snow asked.

“I have no idea.” Regina replied.

“Let me guess, we’re going to go upstairs and check it out without having a single idea what it is, aren’t we?” Nicholas dryly asked as the two women headed upstairs. Once they made it to the hall, they approached the door that has the squeaking behind it.

“It’s in there.” Regina said as she reached to open it, “There isn’t anything in this room, it’s-”

As soon as she grabbed the doorknob, the door flew off its hinges and reveled a hooded specter turning a spinning wheel hauntingly. Noticing the trio, the specter turned around and showed that it was a much younger Cora.

“Mother?” Nicholas asked.

“T-this can’t be. The spell opened a limited portal for talking.” Regina stressed.

“Well, this just proves that even in death, Mother still plays by her own rules.” Nicholas dryly sweatdropped.

“It’s me.” said Snow, “I killed Cora. She sensed my presence and found a way to bleed through into our world.”

“Since when are you an expert on paranormal crap like this?” Nicholas bluntly asked just before Cora lunged at the pregnant woman.

“Watch out!” Regina cried as she got in the way, “Back down, Mother. You will answer my questions. Now, tell me. What did you do to Zelena?”

Instead of answering, Cora just threw her daughter aside and tried to get Snow. Thankfully, Nicholas stepped in with his gloved hands ready to snap.

“Never thought I’d be doing this again.” he bluntly thought. Before either could make a move, Regina used her magic to poof them downstairs to the den. But as soon as they were about to breathe, Cora burst through the wall in an attempt to grab Snow only to be held back by Regina’s magic.

“I don’t know how much longer I can hold her off.” Regina warned.

“Cora, I’m sorry. Please forgive me!” Snow pleaded.

“Save your breath.” Nicholas dismissed, “Your mother was nothing like ours. She only understands power and weakness.”

“But if she wants to kill you, she’s gonna have to go through us!” Regina spat earning a confused look from Snow, “This isn’t about you. This is about her and us.”

“It’s time for answers, Mother.” Nicholas demanded as Cora broke free, “What did you do to Zelena?!”

But Cora just smacked her children aside and dove into Snow’s body, enveloping her in magic as she entered a trance. With Cora’s soul inside her, she was able to see everything Cora wanted to show her. From her being tricked by a liar, to carrying his baby and being abandoned by him to meeting and falling in love with her father to having everything taken from her by her mother out of petty, selfish reasons and wanting to be married to her father instead and eventually giving up Zelena.

“Hold on.” Regina said getting to her feet, “I won’t let you go.”

Pulling the ghost out, Regina re-summoned the portal and pushed Cora back in. The only issue left was trying to bring Mary Margaret back from the trance Cora had her in. And for some random reason, Emma, Hook, Belle and David barged in as soon as Cora was gone. 

Impeccable timing, right?

“What the hell was that?!” Emma exclaimed.

“Cora.” Regina replied, “Is she okay?”

“Mary Margaret, can you hear me?” David asked.

“Cora,” Snow weakly moaned, “Not what we thought. She’s trying to communicate.”

“She was?” Nicholas asked, “What’d she say?”

“Leopold, my…mother…my mother.”

“Shh. Mary Margaret, relax.” David soothed.

“She’s not making sense. We need to call a doctor.” Emma recommended.

“If she knows something that could help us-”

“Regina, it’s gonna have to wait.” David cut off.

“It can’t wait!” she and Nicholas snapped.

“If we want to stop Zelena, we have to know what the hell she’s doing and why!” Nicholas yelled.

“I can help with half of that.” Belle offered, “She’s planning on going back…back in time.”

“Are you certain?” Regina asked, “No one’s ever been able to cast a spell to go back in time.”

“Well, clearly, she thinks she can succeed. I mean, brains, courage, a resilient heart; those ingredients are in every time-travel spell I’ve found.” Belle replied.

“But why go back in time?” David asked, “I mean, we have no idea what she’s trying to accomplish.”

“I do.” Snow informed as she came to, “She-she didn’t-she didn’t want to give up Zelena. She was forced to by-by my mother, Princess Eva. She told a secret…just like I did.”

“Wait. I thought our family were the good guys.” Emma argued.

“Life is too messy for it to ever be that simple.” Nicholas remarked.

“You’re saying if it wasn’t for Snow’s mother, Cora would have kept Zelena?” David asked.

“She would have been tutored by Rumplestiltskin.” Belle added.

“All if it weren’t for this Princess Eva?” Hook asked.

“So that means…”

“Zelena’s going back to kill my mother.” Snow finished.

“You’ll have never been born.” Regina gasped.

“I’m guessing this is where your help ends.”

“Hon, think this through.” said Nicholas, “It also means that you’ll never have been born, and neither will Henry, and neither will Regina or I.”

“It’s a good thing no one has ever succeeded with this time-travel nonsense.” Hook commented.

“The baby.” David realized, “That’s what’s missing. That’s why none have succeeded. Somehow, some way, our baby is the key. Zelena went to a lot of effort to get close to our unborn child. That’s what she’s after.”

“What is she going to do with it?” Snow asked.

“It doesn’t matter. She’s not gonna get it. We’re gonna stop her. Since our baby’s not born, she’s stuck, and we have what we need: time.” David reminded.

“Just not very much of it.”

Later on while the siblings were cleaning up their mother’s mess, Snow once again decided to step in to have another conversation. “Need a hand?” she asked.

“Shouldn’t you be on bed rest?” Regina asked.

“Dr. Whale just left. He cleared me and the baby. Apparently, the human body has a surprising tolerance for ghost possession.” Snow informed, “And he told me I have a tough placenta, which somehow came out creepy.”

“Everything that guys says comes out creepy.” Nicholas remarked.

“Do either of you want to talk about it?” she asked.

“What’s there to talk about?” Regina asked, “You officially have a less-damaging relationship with our mother than we do. And you killed her.”

“Well, at least we know, you and me, our history, it’s more complicated than we thought.”

“I know how much you looked up to Eva. I’m sorry you had to learn she had such darkness in her past.” Regina consoled.

“That wasn’t the woman I knew. It makes me wonder what happened that changed her. I suppose I’ll never know.”

“Something tells me that she never changed,” Nicholas thought, “Only kept her act until the end.”

“Well, we can never know our past completely. If we had, I probably wouldn’t have spent so much time trying to kill you.” Regina added with a smirk.

“Well, we would’ve found something to fight about.” Snow argued with a smile of her own, “I mean, I was such a brat.”

“Your mother’s child.” Nicholas joked.

“I think we’ve wasted our last day being haunted by the past.” said Snow.

“Now we can focus on being haunted by our impending lack of a future/past.” he dryly remarked.

“Zelena isn’t going to win, not with all of us united against her.” Snow argued.

“Hope isn’t easy when I know she holds my heart.” Regina retorted.

“Which you’ll get back, stronger than ever. That’s what it means to be the most resilient.”

“That could be another one of her tricks, too.”

“Regina, I’ve seen what life has thrown at you. And you still fight against the darkness every single day. Sooner or later, your heart will find its way to happiness.”

“That doesn’t feel possible.” Regina lightly chuckled.

“I disagree.” Nicholas countered, “Sis, I know you better than anyone, and you feel things deeply; with or without your heart.”

The next morning, everyone decided to meet in the inn’s living room to further discuss their next plan of attack against Zelena.

“There’s one thing about all of this that I don’t understand.” Emma said, “Regina.”

“I’m the point of this.” she reminded, “So she can take my life for herself.”

“Yes. But why bring you back to Storybrooke? Why bring any of us?”

“Well, no one’s ever succeeded at traveling through time. Perhaps something from this world makes it possible.” Nicholas offered as he smoked.

“But what’s almost as troubling is that she was able to cast the curse to bring us all here in the first place.” Regina added.

“Why is that?” Emma asked.

“To do it, you have to give up the thing you love most. From what I gather, Zelena doesn’t love much.” Regina explained, “Nicholas, was there anything you know that might help us on this?”

“Um, no. Sorry, I-I left way before anyone even brought up anything involving another curse. I’m as in the dark about how you guys managed to get here as the next guy.” he replied before thinking, “Not even the League knows how it happened.”

“Zelena’s smart, strategic. Perhaps we discovered something in the missing year to stop her.” David suggested.

“And then the only way to stop us from interfering was to bring us back here and wipe our memories.” Hook continued, “So if we get out memories back, we might already know how to defeat the bloody witch.”

“We just need to break this curse.” David nodded.

“Well, thank goodness we have a savior.” Snow praised.

“I would love to, but there’s one problem. Last time, all it took was me believing in magic and kissing Henry. Since I’ve been back, I’ve done both and nothing.” Emma replied.

“It’s the belief.” Regina realized, “Henry, he needs to believe. In this new life, he doesn’t. We have to get him to believe again.”

“So, what? We put on a magic show?” Emma asked.

“How did you believe?” Regina asked. 

“The storybook.” she replied.

“That’s what started Henry on his original path and what got you to believe; it’s the key. In him believing, in him remembering…remembering everything.”

“That’s not necessarily a gift. He’s been through a lot of tough stuff.” Emma argued.

“And some good stuff.” both Nicholas and Regina shot back.

“Either way, it’s our bet.” Regina stressed.

“She’s right.” Snow softly said to Emma.

“I know.” she nodded, “Let’s find it.”

“Gold’s was a dead end.” David informed as he put away his phone, “That was Belle. No book in the shop.”

“Regina, you said the last place you saw it was in Henry’s room?” Snow asked.

“Yes, but it’s not there. It was swept away by the last curse.”

“A book can’t just disappear.” David remarked.

“That’s what you have to say?” Nicholas asked flatly, “After all the crap we’ve been through, you draw the line at a book randomly disappearing?”

“But it can just appear.” Snow said before David could give his retort, “The first curse. It just showed up in my closest when I needed it or more accurately, when Henry needed it.”

“What do you mean?” Emma asked.

“He was going through a rough time. He was realizing he had been given up. He didn’t feel like he had a real family.”

“He did.” Regina scoffed.

“That may be, but, Regina, he wasn’t feeling that way with you, Nicholas or with anyone. He needed to believe in happy endings again. That’s what the book gave him.” Snow explained.

“Well, he needs to believe again.” Regina stressed, “In fact, I think we all do. What do you say we go check your closet?”

With their plan ready, everyone headed out through the diner while Emma stopped to tell Henry she was heading out. “Hey, kid. I got to run. I got to check on a lead. You okay to stay here longer?” she asked before kissing his head and leaving him with Leroy, “Call you later.”

After they exited the diner, Henry came out after his mother. “Where are you really going?” he asked.

“I told you. I’m following a lead.” she repeated shocked at his attitude.

“What lead?” he asked with a glare.

“It’s my job. It’s complicated.”

“Is this about the person who killed my dad?”

“…Yes.” she admitted.

“Then tell me.” he snapped.

“I-it would be just easier once it’s all solved, Henry.”

“You’ve been lying to me ever since we got here. I deserve to know everything.” Henry demanded.

“No, you don’t!” Emma snapped, “I’m you mother, and I know best! So you’re just gonna have to deal with this for now, okay? Understood?”

“I actually found that kinda hot.” Nicholas thought in surprise.

“Yeah, I-I think I do.” Henry replied as Emma was about to leave, “Wait. I-I need your keys. I left mine in the room, and if I’m gonna be a prisoner, I’d like to have my GameBoy.”

Emma did so and followed the others back to the loft unaware that Henry fell into his old habit of running off when he wasn’t supposed to. Once they arrived, they found themselves “enjoying” themselves as they dug through all of Snow’s clothes and shoes.

“Why do women always keep their shoes boxes?” David asked.

“Because after true love, there is nothing more powerful than footwear and it must be protected.” Snow informed from the closet.

“Any sign of the book?” Nicholas asked.

“No, I don’t think it’s here.” David replied.

“You don’t know that.” Snow called.

“Maybe it’s in this thing.” Emma said as she brought out a wooden box. When she opened it, all she found were clothes, “It’s not in here.

“Hang on. Let me check.” Snow said before miraculously pulling the book out.

“I don’t understand.” Emma said in shock.

“Can I see that?” Regina asked, “I know there are chapters on Oz in here. I want to know whose heart Zelena crushed to enact this curse. Because if there’s something she loved, that’s her weakness.”

After the others left, it was just Emma and her mother sitting on the bed. “Did you really not see it in there?” Snow asked.

“You think I’m lying?” Emma asked.

“No, of course not. It’s just…Emma, what’s going on?” she asked, “You have been so anxious since we left Granny’s.”

“Nothing.”

“No, it’s not nothing. You yelled at Henry. That’s not like you.”

“None of this is like me, at least it never used to be.” Emma retorted.

“What are you talking about?” Snow asked in concern.

“I am talking about wicked witches and time-traveling holy wars. I’d forgotten what it was like here.” Emma said in distaste, “I don’t want that for Henry.”

“So you’re taking him back to New York after this is all over with, aren’t you?” Snow asked softly, “Your father said you’re thinking about it.”

“Yeah, I am.”

“And that is why you looked relieved when we couldn’t find the book. You don’t want his memories back.”

“If getting his memories back is the only wat to break the curse, then that’s what we’re gonna do. But I don’t want it to be any harder on him than it has to be. Our life in New York was really good.”

“I’m sure it was, but it wasn’t home.” Snow argued feeling sad at the thought.

“It was for us.”

“Well, that’s because you forgot about us.” she shot back causing her daughter to stop talking, “Have you told Nicholas?”

“…No.” Emma whispered.

“Why not? Don’t you think he deserves to know you three are going back?”

“No, because…I…I don’t know if I want him to come with us.” Emma admitted.

“Why?” Snow asked in shock, “I thought things were going great between you two.”

“Yeah, even though all he’s ever done since this relationship started is lie to me.” Emma snapped, “He’s refused to tell me where he was before Gold killed Pan, he’s refused to say why he came to New York and he keeps trying to change the subject every time I bring any of those up. How can I trust him if he can’t even answer a few questions and lie to me?”

“Emma,” Snow said gently taking her hand, “I have known Nicholas a long time and while he has a lot of secrets, he cares about you so much. It’s who he is. To be honest, he’s always been like that. Even when he first came to live in the castle he would bury himself in his research and at often times disappear for even months on end. But just because he has secrets doesn’t mean he isn’t the man that has shown you nothing but friendship and love since you came here.”

“…Let’s go get Henry.” was all Emma said before leaving the loft. As everyone waited for Emma to come back with Henry in the diner, they noticed her alone when she came back down. “He’s gone.”

“What do you mean he’s gone?” Regina asked.

“I mean he’s not in the room, he’s not in the parlor, and my keys are gone-my car keys.” she replied.

“Figures. Even with his memories gone, the kid still runs off when told otherwise.” Nicholas remarked.

“Give me something of his. I’ll try a locator spell.” Regina said.

“I’m way ahead of you. I’ve got GPS on his phone.” Emma said checking her phone, “He’s at the docks.”

At the docks, Henry was trying to find a boat for him to sail to New York with. As the snow covered everything in sight, Henry failed to notice Sawyer behind him.

“A bit chilly to head out in the water, eh?” he asked startling the boy.

“Who are you?” Henry asked.

“Name’s Tom. I’m a friend of Nicholas.” he introduced, “From what I hear, you and Killian have been having some fun sailing since you arrived. Think you’re ready to do it on your own?”

“I just want to leave.” Henry replied.

“Why’s that?”

“It’s complicated. My mom and Nicholas keep lying to me about what’s going on here.” he said at his wits end, “Neither of them will tell me about who kill my dad and they just keep dumping me with their friends. I deserve to know the truth!”

“Yeah, you probably do.” Sawyer nodded taking a seat on the nearest bench, “Thing about those two, though, I think they’re just looking out for ya.”

“I know.” Henry huffed as he joined him, “But he was still my dad. I should know who it was that killed him now that I can’t even get to know him.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it.” Sawyer said as he noticed something flying in the sky while reaching for his revolver, “Something tells me, you’ll know soon enough.”

As it came closer, the flying monkey let out a terrifying screech. Henry heard this and looked up in fear.

“Kid, get in the boathouse; now.” Sawyer said pulling out his weapons.

“What is that thing?” Henry asked as he scrambled inside. Within seconds, more monkeys came after them and flew into the building.

“Whatever happens, don’t look back. Keep running.” Sawyer advised as Henry was immobilized by fear, “Henry, go!”

With the skill that earned him a spot in the League, Sawyer easily shot down the apes causing them to disintegrate into ash. As Henry tried to get away, he tripped over a pile of rope and fell to the ground. A monkey then tried to go in for the kill, but Emma and the others came in and made quick work of the rest; Emma with her gun, Nicholas with his gloves, David with his sword, Robin with his crossbow, and Regina with her fireballs. 

“Henry! Are you okay?” Emma asked as she helped him up.

“Yeah, what were those things?!” he asked frantically before noticing David’s weapon, “Why does he have a sword?”

“It’s all gonna make sense in a minute. I promise.” Emma soothed.

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m sorry I was keeping things from you. You were right. You deserve to know the truth.” Emma said holding the book in her hands.

“About fairytales?” he asked skeptically, “I don’t understand.”

“Do you trust me?”

“Yes, of course I do.” he nodded.

“Then I need you to believe.”

“Believe in what?”

“Believe in magic.”

“From a book?!”

“It’s more than just a book.” Emma gently said, “Do you believe in me?”

“…Yes.”

“Then take it.”

With reluctance, he did and as soon as his fingers touched the cover, all of his true memories came flooding through his mind. Looking at everyone with familiar eyes, Henry exhaled.

“Mom?” he asked looking at Regina and Nicholas, “Uncle!”

With their Henry back, the siblings hurried over and pulled him into an embrace they’ve waited over a year for.

“Do it, Emma.” Regina urged, “Break the curse.”

Before she could place her lips on his head, Henry vanished and reappeared across the room in Zelena’s arms. “I’m so sorry to interrupt. Now, who wants to say goodbye first?”

“Who are you?!” Henry asked.

“You can call me Auntie Zelena.” she joked.

“Enough of this.” Regina growled before being tossed aside by her sister.

“Guys, I have the shot.” Sawyer muttered to his fellow members.

“Don’t, she has the boy!” Nicholas belayed quietly before speaking up, “Let him go. He has nothing to do with this.”

“Maybe.” Zelena shrugged, “But I was getting tired of waiting for you lot to cough up that baby. So then I thought, ‘Why not amuse myself by getting rid of my little siblings’ brat’?”

“Mom!” Henry choked. Seeing her son in distress, Emma focused all of her magic to shine a burning, white light on Zelena which caused her to let Henry go.

“No!” Zelena cried, “Enjoy this moment together, ‘cause you don’t have many left!”

“Now!” Nicholas shouted as he, Sawyer and Robin fired their attacks. But before they could reach, the witch transported herself away in a puff of green smoke. Once she was gone, Henry rushed over to his other unconscious mother.

“Mom. Mom! Mom, please, wake up!” Henry pleaded before she finally came to.

“Henry.” Regina whispered before rising to her feet and pulling him into another tight hug, “I will never let you go away again. I promise. I love you, Henry.”

When she pressed her lips against her son’s forehead, a wave of magic engulfed the town and allowed everyone to remember what exactly happened to them in the previous year.

“It wasn’t me. It was you.” Emma realized, “Mary Margaret, David, Hook, did it work? Do you remember the missing year?”

“Aye. Everything.” Hook nodded before looking at Nicholas, “Mate, when this is all over, I’m buying you all the beer you can drink.”

“I take it that you and Ariel are happy then?” he asked with a knowing smirk.

“Hell yes.” chuckled the pirate.

“How did Zelena cast the curse?” Emma asked her parents.

“She didn’t, Emma. We did.” Snow replied.

“You cursed yourselves?” Emma asked.

“Zelena’s weakness is light magic. I mean, it’s clear now, more than ever, you are the only one who can defeat her.”

“That’s why we paid the price of Regina’s curse, to find you.” David nodded.

“The price of the curse is the heart of the thing you love most. If one of you cast it, how are you both still here?”

“I was the one who cast the curse.” Snow informed, “After Zelena added a forgetting potion, I asked Regina to split my heart so that your father could live. And it worked.”

“Okay, just when I thought things couldn’t get any more confusing.” Emma muttered, “Speaking of which, who was that guy with Henry? Do you know him?”

“Um, no.” Snow replied, “I’ve never seen him before. Not even in town.”

“Hey!” David shouted as he spotted Sawyer trying to make a break for it. As he ran, Regina narrowed her eyes and flicked her hand.

“Not so fast.” she said willing a rope to wrap around his ankle as he tried to jump over a fallen boat. But as soon as it wrapped around him, he quickly turned in midair and pulled out a hunting knife cutting the rope with ease before sliding to a stop.

“Alright, pal, who the hell are you?” Emma asked as she and the others readied their weapons. From behind the others, Robin and Nicholas nodded at him giving him the all clear.

Without saying a word, Sawyer reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small sparkling piece of coal and crushed it in his hand. Once it was rendered to dust, he threw it at his feet and became enveloped in a cloud of black smoke before disappearing like Zelena just minutes before.

“Okay,” David sighed, “That was random.”

Later that day, Emma decided to take Henry to visit Neal’s grave with her parents. As they did, Nicholas gave them space to pay their respects with Robin at his side.

“This is not good, Robin.” he muttered, “We’ve risked exposure.”

“I know.” the archer nodded, “Sawyer made the right call in keeping an eye on Henry, but he lingered too long after Zelena left. The director will not be pleased.”

“Oh, come on.” Nicholas groaned, “When is he ever pleased with anyone from my branch?”

“Fair point, I’ll admit.” Robin shrugged, “He does seem to dislike your team more than any other branch. Ever since what happened to Henry and Edward, he’s really been looking for reasons to punish you and the others.”

“Have you heard anything about them?” he asked in concern, “Anything at all?”

“Sorry, old friend. They’re right where they’ve been since they left.”

“I hate that they keep blaming themselves for what happened.” Nicholas sighed, “We were all to blame for what happened.”

“I’m sure one day they’ll come around.” Robin assured patting his back. Just then, they heard a faint outcry from Snow as she clutched her swollen stomach.

“Contact the others and ready your men. This needs to go accordingly.” Nicholas calmly ordered.

“You think it will work?” Robin asked in doubt.

“We will succeed.” Nicholas nodded, “For the glory of the League.”

“Hmm.” Robin nodded, “For the glory of the League.”


	35. There's No Place Like Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

As Snow was being brought into the hospital, Zelena loomed over Rumple as he spun his gold in his cage. Once she saw that it had piled up in a lump, she had him stop.

“That’s enough. You said it yourself. Spinning clears your mind.”

With a wave of her hand, the lump molded together and took on the appearance of a brain made out of solid gold. “Or should I say your brain?” she asked as she put it away with the other ingredients, “There’s just one more ingredient to collect.”

While David was giving his support to his wife, Emma and Regina were readying a protection spell through the hall and around the room. “You really think this protection spell will be enough to hold off Zelena?”

“It depends if your brand of magic is stronger than hers.” Regina replied, “If it is, no one wielding dark magic will be able to get in here.”

“That doesn’t sound like a vote of confidence.” Emma pointed out.

“It isn’t. But we’re out of options.”

As they made their preparations, everyone could hear Leroy shout from outside, “Incoming!”

At the front desk, Robin, his best archers, and Hook had their bows and sword aimed at the front door where they saw Zelena and Rumple approach. “Aim true for Little John!” he shouted before Zelena effortlessly rendered them all unconscious. Up next was surprisingly Belle of all people.

“Oh, didn’t you learn your lesson the last time?” Zelena asked as she held the dagger, “This is more powerful than your true love.”

“I refuse to believe that.”

“Belle, go.” Rumple pleaded.

“Listen to him, dear.”

“No. You’ve put him through enough pain!” Belle shouted.

“And I’m not nearly done!” Zelena snarled back before rendering her unconscious in Rumple’s arms, “Your taste in women has really gone downhill. Leave her, dearie. Chop-chop!”

Up next to fend off against the witch and her pet were her younger siblings. “Take another step, and we roast you alive.” Regina threatened.

“Please.” Zelena sneered before waving Regina against the wall knocking her out while Nicholas kept his footing and covered his body in his shield. Rumple then threw a ball of raw magic at him but watched as it just bounced off the Ultimate Shield.

“That’s not gonna work this time, imp.” Nicholas growled with his voice sounding metallic.

“Keep him occupied.” Zelena ordered in a bored tone as she walked past him.

“Let’s end this.” Nicholas growled.

“With pleasure, slave.” Gold snarled as he summoned a sword and continued where they left off. 

In the other room, Snow had just given birth to a healthy baby boy. For a brief moment, the family was happy, but Zelena ruined the moment by barging in. “What a charming family.” she mocked as she froze David as he tried to ready his sword, “A shame that I have to break it up.”

Before Snow could even blink, her newborn vanished from her arms and reappeared in Zelena’s. “No. No, no, no, no-”

But as she tried to get to the baby, Zelena froze her like her husband. Gently rocking the baby, the witch softly spoke to him. “So pure and so innocent. And now…mine.”

In a puff of smoke, both vanished with Gold following. When Nicholas could no longer smell him, he took down his shield and helped his sister up. As he did, they spotted David storm out of the room with an angry expression and his sword held in a tight grip.

“Where are you going?” Nicholas asked. 

“To get my son back.” he replied hotly.

“You’re gonna get yourself killed.” Regina warned, “David, think about this.”

“What’s there to think about?” he snapped.

“What’s going on here?” Emma asked.

“Zelena took your brother.”

“We’re all still here, we haven’t failed yet.” Hook reminded.

“He’s right. Come on.” David nodded.

In an old barn on the outskirts of town, Zelena gently placed the baby in his basket as the other items were placed in specific spots pointing in different directions, north, south, east and west.

“There’s nothing more innocent than a newborn babe. And you, my sweet, are the most innocent of all: the product of the truest love.” Zelena explained before turning to talk to Rumple, “See, once I change the past, you and I shall meet under different circumstances. And, Rumple, you will choose me. And I will be enough.”

“No, you won’t.” he disagreed, “And no matter where you go in time, I will find a way to kill you.”

But Zelena just chuckled as she finally cast the spell she had been striving for for so many years. Each of the ingredients became enveloped in magic and funneled into the center of the circle opening the portal.

“Don’t worry, dearie. Once all this is over, you won’t remember a thing.”

“It isn’t over yet, sister dear.” Nicholas denied as he and the others approached the barn.

“And who’s gonna stop me?” Zelena asked before summoning the magic sealing cuff on Emma rendering her magic gone, “The Savior seems to be out.”

“Get the baby.” Nicholas whispered to David, “We’ve got your back.”

“And I’ve got your heart.” Robin said to Regina.

“Zelena, stop now. We’re not gonna let you succeed.” Regina declared.

“Rid me of those pests.” she chuckled while knocking David, Hook and Regina against the wall.

“Oh, this gonna be fun.” Nicholas smirked as he shielded his arms while Robin readied his crossbow.

“Get the dagger. Then the dark on will be on your side.” Gold reminded.

“Easier said than done.” Emma remarked.

“Do as I say, or I will destroy you both. I have no choice.” he said as he pushed them back.

“Came for another beating, sis?” Zelena asked.

“No. I came here for some jewelry.” Regina corrected before being tossed aside again.

“Beautiful one,” Zelena called to one of her monkeys, “If you will?”

It then swooped down and sliced David’s arm as Robin went over to give him support. “Remember, these creatures are our friends.” he reminded the prince.

“Tell them that!” Nicholas shouted as he fought against Gold.

“Unfortunately, that’s not an option for me.” he remarked as he fought.

“Yeah, and I’m sure you would give me such treatment otherwise.” Nicholas dryly said in sarcasm before turning to slam a jump-back kick to the dark one’s stomach, “Can’t say I would though.”

Zelena then slammed everyone against the wall before picking Regina and Nicholas up by their throats with her magic. “Only light magic can harm me and Emma’s is out right now.” she hissed in spite, “Besides, you’re as dark as they come. It was your destiny to be this way. And it will also be your undoing!”

“Don’t tell me what I can be!” Regina spat.

“I don’t believe in destiny.” Nicholas choked.

“I tried to be good once, but it wasn’t in the cards. This is who I am, and it’s who you are!” Zelena snarled.

“You’re wrong, sis.” Regina denied. Next thing anyone knew or expected, her hands shined in a bright, magical light.

“What are you doing?” Zelena asked.

“Changing.” she grinned before blasting her sister with light magic and knocking the dagger out of her hand.

“How?!” she asked in shock.

“I make my own destiny.” Regina smirked as she ripped the pendant off removing Zelena’s magic and closing the portal. In a last ditch effort, the monkey tried to finish off David, but just before he could take off its head, it returned to its human form.

“Little John, you’re back!” Robin cheered as he helped his friend up. As this happened, David went to check on his son.

“David, the baby. Is he okay?” Emma asked.

“Yeah.” he nodded in relief and happiness, “He can handle anything. Just like his big sister.”

“Well, big sis, looks like you failed.” Nicholas mocked as he and Regina stood over Zelena.

“You’re not going anywhere.” Regina chuckled.

“I beg to differ.” Gold growled as he pulled Zelena over to him across the ground, “I’m gonna make you pay for everything you’ve done to me.”

“What are you waiting for?” Zelena asked while Regina picked up the dagger, “Just do it!”

“With pleasure.” he hissed.

“No!” Regina ordered waving the knife, “Enough. This ends now.”

“After everything this witch has done you’re gonna protect her?” Rumple asked.

“Good magic stopped her. And good magic doesn’t exact vengeance.”

“She killed my son!” he shouted.

“Funny, I thought you were blaming me for that.” Nicholas dryly commented, “Besides, the three of us don’t exactly have the cleanest of hands, now, do we?”

“He’s right.” Regina agreed, “How many lives have we taken trying to get what we want?”

“You can’t be serious.”

“We are.” she replied, “Heroes don’t kill.”

“So now you’re a hero?” Zelena sneered.

“Today, I am.” Regina smirked in triumph.

After successfully taking the witch down, Emma had her locked up in the station and left her to wallow in her failure. While everyone else went back to the hospital, the siblings were finally able to have a moment alone.

“Why?” Zelena asked behind the bars, “Why not just kill me and put me out of my misery?”

“Because we know why you did what you did.” Regina replied while Nicholas sat on the couch next to the cell and cleaned his pipe, “Our mother ruined you, too.”

“We have what you could call a ‘family-trait.’ We both know what it’s like not to have the life you wanted…the life you feel you deserve.” Nicholas explained trying to push back his painful memories.

“Oh, boo-hoo. Regina had to be queen.” Zelena sneered before grabbing Nicholas by the collar and holding him against the cell looking into his eyes, “Do you have any idea what it’s like to go through your life thinking and hearing everyone say that you’re worthless and that you don’t even exist?!”

Hearing her words sent a twinge through Nicholas’s soul. He looked directly into his sister’s eyes with his own widened in shock.

“To be spat at and treated worse than dirt instead of feeling kindness and love like all the other children! To know that no matter how hard you tried, they would never see you any differently! Do you have any idea what that feel like?!” she cried as tears formed in her eyes.

Regina looked at them wondering what was going through their minds. Despite having a rough life herself, she never had it as bad as they did. Nicholas, however, looked in Zelena’s eyes and saw not only his traumatic life, but her own as well.

He slowly nodded his head and softly said, “As a matter of fact, I do.”

As soon as he said this, Zelena’s glared softened as she saw there was no lie in his eyes. He really did know what all that pain felt like; he went through it too. Her expression became unreadable, but it was clear that she was no longer angry at her youngest sibling. She then let go of his shirt and kept her eyes on him as he stood by his other sister.

“I was a lot like you, not long ago.” Regina said breaking the silence, “I wanted to kill someone who wronged me, and I failed. Had I killed Snow White, I wouldn’t be in this world. I wouldn’t be with these people, and I wouldn’t have my son, Henry. I won’t kill you, Zelena. Instead, I’m gonna give you what I got. I’m gonna give you a second chance.”

“What if I don’t want it?” Zelena asked.

“Well, that would be a mistake, sister dear.” she replied clutching the pendant, “Take it. Use it. Evil isn’t born. It’s made. But so is good. If I were you, I’d consider creating a new destiny. Because if you don’t, I’ll be right there to take your heart and crush it. Now if you’ll excuse me, I should put this somewhere safe.”

And that place was none other than one of the heart boxes Cora left in Regina’s vault. Not long after they left, Zelena heard someone come back in while she had her back turned.

“I didn’t expect to see you two back so soon.” she said in irritation.

“Oh, there’s just one of me, dearie, and I don’t think you expected me at all.” Rumple growled.

“What are you doing here?” Zelena asked with a scoff.

“What do you think?” he asked.

“You can’t kill me, Rumple. I saw Regina take your dagger.”

“She gave it to Belle.”

“And she wants me dead.” Zelena stated.

“No, of course not.” Gold denied.

“Well, then, you’ll have to do what she wishes. If she has the dagger, you have no choice.”

“Yes.” he nodded, “If she has the dagger. But she doesn’t.”

Seeing him pull it out from behind caused Zelena to rise to her feet in fear. “She only thinks she does. You see, um, my father taught me something, the only useful thing he passed on. A bit of sleight of hand called ‘Follow the Lady.’ Belle has a fake. This, however, is quite real.”

In an instant, he was inside the cell with a murderous look in his eye. “Wait. Wait!” Zelena pleaded in fear, “I’m powerless now. R-Regina’s got my pendant. My magic’s gone. I can’t hurt anyone! I can’t. Why?”

“Because I promised my son his death would be avenged. And Rumplestiltskin never breaks a deal.” he snarled before jamming the dagger into Zelena and turned her body into porcelain. When he ripped it out, she shattered into fragments before disintegrating into nothing.

In the vault, the box holding the pendant glowed green and began to emit green smoke which traveled across town to the barn and activated the time portal. Surprisingly, nobody realized this happened.

The next, the Charmings decided to throw a potluck at Granny’s in celebration for the birth of their son where they would announce his name to the entire town. Everyone was laughing and toasting to the end of Zelena’s plan as music filled the background. In their usual booth, Snow sat cradling her precious child while Henry read to him the story of how his parents met.

“Really? I can’t hear the kid’s name yet but I have to hear this story again?” Emma asked with a smirk.

“Well, my son should know where he comes from.” David replied.

“You sure you want the first thing he knows to be that his parents fell in love during an armed robbery?” Nicholas joked.

“I wasn’t armed.” Snow defended.

“Except with a rock.” Ruby reminded.

“I still have the scar.” David added.

“Which healed.” Snow said before cooing at the baby, “But that’s just how we met, it’s not how we fell in love.”

“Yeah, that was a bit more complicated.” David nodded turning the page, “See? There were black knights when I saved your mother’s life.”

“Oh, and the attack on the troll bridge when I saved his.” Snow grinned turning the next page.”

“But it wasn’t until I saw my mother’s ring on her finger that I knew in my heart there was no other woman I would ever love.”

“I wish you had told me then. We would have saved so much time.” Snow said with love.

“Well, how could I?” he asked, “I had to get to my wedding.”

“Sorry. Have I missed something?” Hook asked with his arm around Ariel, “You were previously betrothed, mate?”

“To Kathryn.” Ruby nodded, “Though, she was Princess Abigail back then.”

“King Midas’ daughter? The man who can turn anything into gold? Why would you leave that opportunity?” Hook asked.

“Hey!” Snow said.

“Killy!” Ariel admonished smacking his chest.

“Well, what can I say? My heart was destined for another.” David replied.

“You just had to find her first.” Ruby grinned, “She ran away and was living on a farm.”

“Oh, it sounded like such a peaceful life at the time, leave everyone and everything behind.” Snow said in nostalgia.

“Hold on!” Nicholas exclaimed, “Are we all just going to ignore that Hook was called ‘Killy’ in public and not make fun of him?!”

Everyone just gave the alchemist awkward glances as the music was the only thing that filled the air.

“…Okay.” David carried hoping to change the subject, “Now that Nicholas has had his little Chandler Bing moment, back to the actual topic. Whose line is it?”

“Uh, mine, I think.” Hook remarked before clearing his throat, “Right, I remember. Like mother, like daughter.”

“Hook.” Emma snapped.

“What is he talking about?” Henry asked.

“Uh, should we read more stories?” David suggested.

“Actually, I’d like to know what Killy is talking about.” Nicholas disagreed.

“So would I.” Regina nodded.

“It’s nothing.” Emma waved off.

“Are you planning on going back to New York with my brother and son?” Regina asked.

“Why would we go back to New York?” Henry asked.

“We’re not.” Nicholas replied, “Right, honey?”

“Actually, it’s complicated.” Emma said not looking anyone in the eye.

“Why would we leave? This is our home.” Henry said.

“Henry, this isn’t the time or place.” Emma lectured.

“I think it is.” Regina argued.

“No, it’s not.” Emma snapped.

“How about 30 seconds from now outside?” Nicholas asked narrowing his eyes. Emma just sighed and stepped outside with Nicholas following her, “So is there something you would like to discuss?”

“Not really.” she sighed.

“Hmm, too bad.” he flatly said, “Talk.”

“Fine. Life in New York was good. Okay? There weren’t any flying monkeys, wicked witches or fairytale characters going around causing trouble.”

“That’s what this is about?” Nicholas asked with his arms crossed, “You’re against staying here because you think Storybrooke is dangerous; and you’re comparing it to New York of all places?!”

“There weren’t any evil teenagers out there who wanted to kidnap my son!” she retorted.

“He’s in middle school! That’s all he was surrounded by!”

“Well, excuse me for thinking the real world is a better place for me to raise Henry!”

“This is the real world, Emma!” Nicholas shot back, “Just because for some crazy reason everyone in this town is considered a fictional character to everyone past the town line doesn’t mean that this is some kind of fake place. I don’t know where the hell Walt Disney came up with all this, but we are real people and our lives had a lot of crap!”

“Nicholas-”

“I am not done!” he snapped shutting her up, “The world out there is a hell of a lot more dangerous place than Storybrooke and it’s filled with more ‘villains’ than here, too. You just don’t want to stay here because you’re afraid that you’ll finally open up to your parents.”

“And what about you, huh?” she asked hotly, “You wanna stay here surrounded by all the people you said ‘betrayed’ you?”

“I’m trying to move past that and forgive them!” he countered, “This place is my home. My sister and all my friends are here, your family is here, and all of that can be said for Henry on all accounts! You need to make a choice, Em. It’s either Storybrooke with me and Henry or New York by yourself.”

“You can’t be serious.” Emma deadpanned.

“Considering how I’m actually Henry’s legal guardian and the records documenting that are back with the new curse, I am.” he replied before heading back inside, “Let me know when you’ve made your decision.”

“So how’d it go?” Robin asked when Nicholas came back. Nicholas’s response was pointing a finger pistol to his head and pretending to shoot himself, “Wonderful.”

“She’ll come around.” Ariel assured, “Hopefully.”

“Ariel, Emma Swan is one of the most stubborn women in all the realms.” Nicholas bluntly remarked, “It will take A LOT to change her mind. But there’s no other I’d rather be in love with. Uh, no offense, Ruby.”

“None taken.” she shrugged, “I’ve moved on.”

“Congrats and ouch.” he said dryly.

“Killy, why don’t you go talk to her?” Ariel suggested, “You’re good at this sort of thing.”

“Alright.” Hook nodded before leaving the diner.

“Wait.” Henry stopped holding out the book, “Take this. It might help her remember where she belongs.”

“It’s gonna be alright.” David assured the two boys, “She’s just stubborn like her…uh, like all of our family.”

“What the hell is that?” Nicholas asked seeing a beam of light shoot into the sky while Gold and Belle entered the diner.

“That is a problem.” Gold informed, “That light is from Zelena’s time portal. It’s open.”

“Ugh,” Nicholas groaned in frustration, “It’s just one thing after ANOTHER!”

Leaving the party, everyone but Henry and Snow went over to the station thinking they would find Zelena. But thanks to Gold, they found an empty cell instead.

“She’s gone.” David pointed out.

“No. She was here when Nicholas and I left her here.” Regina argued.

“But if she escaped, that would explain the portal.” Belle pointed out.

“That shouldn’t have happened since we took her pendant, she powerless without it.” Nicholas reminded, “She shouldn’t have been able to escape. I sealed the door with my alchemy, she’d need a welding torch and laser cutter to get halfway through. Unless a certain midget with a vendetta against her did something.”

“Well, I’m sorry to disappoint, but no.” Rumple lied, “Even if I wanted to, Belle has my dagger. She would certainly curb any homicidal tendencies.”

“It’s true.” she nodded.

“Well, if she escaped, let’s find out how.” David suggested checking the old security system.

“Wonderful.” Gold muttered. As the tape replayed, he discreetly waved his hand and altered the video just before he came up.

“You know, when you guys remade this place, you could have brought it out of the 80s.” Nicholas said to David dryly.

“Ah, shut up, Flamel.” he muttered as he smacked the T.V., “Okay, here we go.”

On the screen, everyone saw Zelena commit suicide and die the same way Gold killed her, only without him actually being there.

“She killed herself?” Nicholas asked as he felt a pain through his stomach.

“It would seem her great escape was of a more permanent nature.” Gold remarked, “I won’t ask for an apology.”

“Don’t expect one.” Nicholas snapped still looking at the T.V.

“She must have had just enough residual magic to do herself in. And when she did, when she was gone, the magic in her pendant had no tether. It was set free her last wish fulfilled.”

“So, how do we unfulfill it?” Robin asked.

“Excellent question. But until we figure it out, no one should go near it.” Gold advised, “A trip to the past could have catastrophic repercussions.”

“Good idea.” Nicholas nodded, “David, you might want to call your daughter and let her know.”

“Okay. But why don’t you call her?” he asked.

“I am not talking to her until she gives me an answer.” the alchemist huffed.

Later when night finally fell, Nicholas was sitting at the counter drinking probably his 23rd mug of beer (one of the many perks of his Stone made where he couldn’t get drunk) with a sour look on his face.

“Hit me again, Granny.” he said holding up the empty mug. As he waited for his drink, Emma suddenly barged into the diner and ran straight into her parents’ arms.

“You never answered your cell, we were worried.” David said still surprised.

“I’m fine. I’m home.” she said.

“Do you mean that you’re not leaving?” Snow asked.

“No, I’m not going anywhere.” Emma said gaining both Henry and Nicholas’s attention.

“We’re staying in Storybrooke?” Henry happily asked.

“Yeah, kid. This is where we belong.” Emma nodded hugging him, “This is where our family is. “Mom…Dad, I missed you.”

As the family was in the happiest hug they ever had, Nicholas looked at them in fondness. It was moments like this that reminded him what he was fighting for and why he was making the sacrifices he was to protect these people.

“Got one for me?” he asked with a smirk.

“Nicky.” Emma said still smiling throwing her arms around him and kissing his face repeatedly.

“Nicky?” David chuckled earning a glare.

“Don’t poke the snake, Nolan.” he warned.

“Don’t you mean bear?” Henry asked.

“Not with my tattoo I don’t.” he replied, “The only person who can call me that is your mother. Uh, the blonde that’s kissing me not the brunette.”

As they all sat around the newly altered book (thanks to Hook and Emma’s interference in the past) and laughed at how much of a change they made.

“Wait. You’re Princess Leia?” Snow asked.

“Nice alias.” Henry laughed.

“I was in a pinch.” Emma defended smiling.

“Well, there you go. You’re officially one of us.” David smirked.

“A fairytale princess at last.” Snow said smiling even wider than before.

“Yep, you’re not just the ugly duckling anymore, Em.” Nicholas grinned kissing her temple.

“What?” she asked causing her family to resist the urge to laugh.

“Well, think about it.” he chuckled, “You spent your life trying to find your family because you know you didn’t belong anywhere else, you felt lonely throughout your childhood, and to top it all off, your last name is Swan.”

“He’s got a point, Emma.” David laughed. Emma could only blush harder than the color of her favorite jacket while Nicholas held her close.

“Boop.” he teased tapping her nose and kissing her head.

“…I have nothing to say to that.” Emma said trying to keep up her happy mood, “Changing the subject, as my first princess-y request, I would like to know the name of the baby.”

“Right, that.” David nodded looking at his wife, “Ready?”

“Yep.” she nodded.

“Excuse me, if I could have everyone’s attention for just a moment.” David said to everyone, “This coronation ceremony is something we’ve looked forward to for a long time. The arrival of our new son has been the cause of great joy for our family. And we hope you can share in it as we name him for a hero. Someone who saved every one of us. Who we loved and he loved back.”

“People of Storybrooke, it is our great joy to introduce you to our son, Prince Neal.” Snow introduced. Everyone, including Nicholas, applauded for the happy couple and in respect to the man they lost.

“It’s so nice to meet you, Neal.” Emma said shaking his cute little hand. As the party went on, Nicholas couldn’t help but stare at the woman Emma and Hook brought back from the past. He knew he had seen her before but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t place her face.

“You know,” Emma said to Nicholas, “I never once saw you back in the past. What were you doing around then, babe?”

“Hmm, well…” Nicholas carried as he recollected what happened.

**OUaT**

“Die, you sons of bitches!!!” Nicholas cried as he slashed his sword at an army of orcs at the summit of Mount Doom in Middle Earth while the other League members did the same with the armies of Rohan and Gondor around them.

**OUaT**

“You know, I can’t remember.” he lied while looking at the woman, “Honey, who is that you brought back with you?”

“Oh, uh, somebody your sister planned to kill back in the past.” she replied, “Why?”

“I know I have seen her before but I can’t remember when or where.” he said shaking his finger at her.

“Maybe you attended her execution. Who knows?” Emma shrugged while Regina, Robin and Roland came in and took a booth. When this happened, the woman spotted Regina and reacted in fear; and even did the same when she spotted Nicholas as well.

“It’s the Evil Queen and her brother.” she said in fear.

“It’s okay.” Emma assured, “They’re different now. Regina is not the same person anymore. You’ll see. Just stay here.”

“This is driving me nuts.” Nicholas thought, “Where have I seen this woman?”

“Regina, there’s something you should know. I brought someone back from the past. This woman, and she still thinks of you as…”

“Evil.” she finished.

“I’m gonna bring her over. I already told her that it’s okay, but it’s a little delicate. And I feel like if she met you, she’ll see-”

“I understand.” she nodded.

“I’ll bring her over.” Emma said hoping it would go well. When she brought her over, she went back over to Nicholas who was still trying to remember her.

“So have you remembered her yet?” she asked leaning against him.

“It’s getting there.” he replied, “I still can’t believe that my sister is dating Robin Hood of Loxley of all people.”

“Yeah, just when I thought this place couldn’t get any-”

“I remember her.” Nicholas said with a look of absolute panic of his face, “Oh, dear God I don’t believe in, I remember her.”

“You don’t sound like this is a good thing.” she pointed out.

“Oh, it is not.” he said shaking his head, “It is very much not a good thing. Of all the people you could have brought back, that is the worst person imaginable.”

“She brought back the mole. She brought back the mole. She brought back the freaking mole!” he screamed in his mind.

“Marian?” they heard Robin ask looking at the woman.

“Oh, damn.” Emma cursed putting the pieces together.

“Marian?” he asked rising out of the booth.

“Robin?” she asked.

“I thought you were dead.” he said in shock before hugging her tightly, “I thought I’d never see you again.”

“And I you.” she said happily.

“Mama?” Roland asked cutely while Regina’s heart and world began to shatter.

“Roland?” Marian gasped holding him close, “Oh, my baby!”

“You.” Regina whispered on the verge of tears glaring at Emma, “You did this.”

“I just wanted to save her life.” Emma said feeling nothing but guilt.

“You’re just like your mother,” she spat, “Never thinking of consequences.”

“Regina, she couldn’t have possibly known.” Nicholas defended.

“Of course she couldn’t.” she growled, “Well, you just better hope to hell you didn’t bring anything else back.”

At the barn in the center of the circle, a golden urn laid in the dirt from where the portal closed. The lid suddenly popped off and released a cold blue liquid from inside. As it left the urn, it moved on its own and slowly gathered itself while taking on the form of a human. 

When it finally came together, a young, beautiful girl with blonde hair dressed in a blue dress removed her gloves and destroyed the urn with a blast of icy magic. With her prison gone, she walked out of the barn and made her way into Storybrooke.

Little did anyone know, winter was coming along with her.


	36. White Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

After Regina’s outburst, she stormed out of the diner to try and compose herself; though it was obvious she was failing. Naturally, both Nicholas and Emma went outside to try and give her their support.

“Regina,” Emma said.

“Not now, Swan.” she dismissed feeling broken.

“I’m sorry. When I brought Marian back, I didn’t know who she was. I didn’t intend to cause you pain.” she defended.

“Well, your intentions really don’t matter.” Regina retorted, “Because once again, I’ve felt the brunt of heroism. Always the villain even when I’m not.”

“What was I supposed to do?” Emma asked.

“You should’ve let that mole die!” Nicholas thought in panic.

“Well, you were dumb enough to travel through time. Maybe you should have left things well enough alone.” Regina snapped.

“I am not gonna apologize for saving someone’s life.”

“She was supposed to die anyway. What did it matter?” she asked.

“What mattered was she was a person. And whatever she did, she didn’t deserve to die.” Emma argued.

“Well, maybe she did.” she snapped.

“Well, you would know. I saved her from you.”

“The woman who did that, that was the person I was, not the person I am.” she said in anger, “I worked very hard to build a future; a future that’s now gone.”

“Sis, you don’t know that.” Nicholas argued feeling sorry for her.

“Well, I know it’s complicated enough that his dead wife is back.” she snapped.

“Regina, for that I am sorry.” Emma apologized, “If there’s anything I can do to help-”

“Swan, the more you try to help the worse my life becomes.” Regina cut off.

“Marian,” Robin said coming out with his wife, “Please, meet her. She’s not at all what you think.”

“What the hell is he doing?” Nicholas thought being weary around Marian.

“Regina, I-I want you to meet Marian.” he awkwardly introduced, “I-I want us to talk about this.”

“Wait, were you two…are you two together?” Marian asked.

“Marian, please.” Robin sighed.

“You and the Evil Queen?” she asked in spite, “Did you let her near my son? Do you know what she’s done? The terror that she’s inflicted?”

“Is everything okay?” Snow asked as she, David and the baby came out to see what was going on.

“Well, no one’s been incinerated yet, so that’s a good sign.” David commented.

“Regina, you alright?” Snow asked.

“What?” Marian asked in confusion as Henry, Hook and Ariel joined them, “What is wrong with you people? W-why are you talking to her? Don’t you know who she is?”

“Mom, what’s going on?” Henry asked.

“She’s a monster.” Marian spat pointing.

“Watch it, maid.” Nicholas growled with his hands sparking in electricity. As he did, Regina had enough and decided to leave, “Regina, wait.”

“Mate, don’t.” Hook warned, “You of all people know no good has ever come of pushing that woman. Give her space.”

“Yeah, but it’s what she does in that space I’m worried about.” David remarked.

“You don’t think she’ll become evil again.” Henry said seeing their expressions, “She can’t. She’s come too far.”

“No one is turning evil. I’ll handle this. Okay?” Nicholas asked, “Whatever happens, she’s my sister and I’ll take care of it.”

The next day, Nicholas decided to join Emma and the others as they took baby Neal out for a morning stroll. Unfortunately, he was distracted by trying to get ahold of his sister.

“She’s still not answering?” Henry asked.

“Nope.” he sighed, “When your mother doesn’t want to talk, kiddo, it means she really doesn’t want to talk. Even with me.”

As he said this, he received a video text from Skinner. Letting the others go on ahead, he pressed play and became paler than a ghost when he saw the footage with widened eyes. The video was showing Belle and Gold dancing in the ball room inside the League’s mansion.

“…What. The. Hell?!” he screamed in his head before texting The Invisible Man back, “WHAT THE HELL ARE THEY DOING THERE?!?!?!”

“I have no idea!” Skinner cried, “I was just minding me business enjoying some private time in the mansion when suddenly the happy newlyweds barged in and began dancing!”

“Do the others know?!” Nicholas asked.

“No! No, no, no! Do not tell anyone that I allowed the bloody dark one into our base under my watch! Quartermain will kill me!”

“Oh, this is terrible!” Nicholas exclaimed still texting, “And I thought what happened last night was bad for us!”

“What happened last night?!” Skinner asked.

“Well, Zelena killed herself for starters and her dormant magic activated the portal. Then Emma and Hook somehow got sucked in and went back in time and brought back the worst person imaginable with them!”

“I know I’m going to regret asking, but who?”

“Robin’s dead wife, Marian!” Nicholas texted in panic, “They brought back the mole!”

“WHAT?!” Skinner texted.

“Yeah, the woman who nearly ruined us by exposing the League to the public is back. And she’s already seen me!”

“It gets worse.” Skinner replied.

“How could it be worse?” Nicholas asked.

“I think-I think…Rumple may have spotted the hat box.” he answered causing Nicholas to become even more pale.

“…Yep,” he sighed, “The director is, without a doubt, going to kill us all if he finds out about this. Is there anything else anyone wants to add to the crap pile that is today?!”

“We’re under attack!” Leroy cried as he and Sleepy ran through the streets, “We’re under attack!”

“Oh, I can’t win today!” Nicholas thought before running up to the others.

“Okay, Leroy, what is it?” Emma asked.

“We were just driving home, and something blasted us with magic. The whole van’s iced over. We woke up in a meat locker.” Leroy explained in panic, “Who’s got that kind of magic?”

“Hmm,” Nicholas thought, “I haven’t heard of anyone with that kind of magic since I was a kid.”

“Maybe the person who made that.” Emma said pointing at a trail of ice. Following the trail, Emma and Nicholas entered a garbage lot only to find no one behind the gate. Suddenly, snow began to swirl and quickly formed a giant living snowman.

“Alright, that’s a new one.” Emma remarked.

“I think I’ve seen something like this before.” Nicholas informed looking at the monster.

“We don’t want to pick a fight.” Emma said to it. Unfortunately, all it did was roar causing the sheriff to fall and drop her gun which made it go off.

“I remember you now.” Nicholas said with a confident smile, “You’re Marshmell-”

But the monster cut him off by swatting him away into the nearest wall. “Ow.” Nicholas groaned as his wounds healed.

“Evil snowman!” Leroy shouted causing mass panic, “Run!”

“Nicholas,” Emma said as David and Hook joined them, “I think now would be a good time to use your gloves.”

“You know, I would, but I left them at home in my other jacket.” he replied, “Although, I think all this noise might be scaring it.”

“I think you’re right.” she realized, “It’s headed for the forest.”

As they ran after the giant snow mound, they came up to Robin’s camp to warn him and his men of what was coming their way. “What is it?” Robin asked.

“Some kind of snow monster.” David answered.

“No monster shall cross our path.” Robin argued, “We’ll give you our assist-”

The archer was interrupted by the sound of growling faintly coming from the woods. “It’s getting closer.” Hook said, “It’s coming from the north.”

Within seconds, the monster came into view through the trees. Without any warning, or thought, Little John fired an arrow at the monster. Unfortunately, this only made it even more angry and gave it a reason to approach the camp.

“Yeah, I really picked a bad day to leave my gloves at home.” Nicholas sighed as he made a sword from the ground, “Emma, you may have to back me up on this.”

“What?” she asked.

“Your magic, love.” Hook reminded.

“Right.” she nodded. As the monster came closer, she held up her hands and sent a blast of magic at its head dazing it for a moment. “Take that, Frosty.”

“Wait for it.” Nicholas warned expecting more. Sure enough, the monster was unharmed and roared at them all while sprouting spikes on its arms and back just before swatting them to the ground and blasting them with its icy breath. “Yep. There it is.”

Marian took the chance to try and fight back with an arrow only to be pushed back by the monster. Nicholas was the only one conscious but he chose not to do anything as the beast roared at her. On one hand, if he did nothing, he’d be a threat to the League short and could focus on helping the others make sure Gold didn’t take anything from the Mansion while keeping the League still a secret. On the other hand, he’d have to deal with the guilt of leaving one of his closest friend’s and comrades’ wife to die a second time. Tough choice.

Next thing anyone knew, Regina emerged from the trees next to Marian while staring up at the monster. Her expression seemed blank but Nicholas could easily tell it was colder than the monster before them as she looked down at Marian.

“Please.” Marian begged in fear, “Help me.”

“Regina, just leave her.” Nicholas whispered as his sister vanished in a cloud of smoke. Once she was gone, the monster lifted its foot ready to crush her. “I’m sorry, Robin.”

But before it could do the deed, Regina destroyed it from behind with her magic. Everyone began to groan as they regained consciousness while Nicholas bowed his head.

“You saved me.” Marian said in shock.

“Dammit.” Nicholas whispered as he got to his feet.

“Marian, are you alright?” Robin asked before realizing his former love was there too, “Regina.”

“Maybe you’re not a monster.” Marian admitted.

“Maybe I’m not.” Regina replied showing no emotion, “Welcome to Storybrooke, Marian.”

As she walked away, Emma tried to talk to her. “Regina, we’ve been trying to find you.”

“Sister, wait.” Nicholas pleaded as she poofed away causing him to drop his head and sigh.

“Your sister really doesn’t want to talk, huh, mate?” Hook asked.

“What made you think that?” he asked sarcastically, “Was it her ignoring me and poofing away or that she hasn’t said two words to me since last night?”

“There’s no need to be sarcastic.” huffed the pirate.

“You think she’s gonna be okay?” Emma asked.

“My sister is a very emotional person, Emma.” Nicholas sighed, “It was bad when her last love died but now, when he’s still alive and reunited with his dead wife/the mother of his child…things are bound to be worse.”

“I should talk to her.” she said ready to walk back to town only to be stopped by her boyfriend.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” he halted, “Em, honey, no offense, but that’s a terrible idea and borderline stupid.”

“Excuse me?” she asked baffled.

“I know you feel guilty, but I’ve seen what Regina does to people when she’s pissed. Quite frankly, I don’t want to see my big sis kill my girlfriend or vice-versa.”

“Alright,” the blonde relented, “I see your point. See you back at the loft.”

“Okay. Just hold on a minute.” he said before surprising her by pulling her in for a kiss, “Love ya.”

“Hmm. I love you, too.” she smiled. Off to the side, David sighed in distaste while Hook mischievously smirked.

“Just think, mate, if Flamel weren’t around and I didn’t have Ariel, that could’ve been me with your daughter.”

“…Oh, shut up, Hook. Just shut up.” David said flatly.

Back in town that evening, Regina sat against her office door with her knees up against her chest in silence. On the other side, Nicholas approached the door and knocked on it hoping to get through to her.

“Regina, I know you’re in there. I can see the light’s on.” he said before leaning his arm on the door and sighing, “I know this is all…complicated, but you can have happiness. I know it doesn’t seem like it, but you just have to fight. If you won’t, I will. I wasn’t able to stop you from falling into despair before but there’s no way in hell I’m gonna let that happen again.”

After hearing the sound of his boots hitting the floor fade away, Regina raised her head out of her arms and looked over at Henry’s book across the room with an idea in her head.

Elsewhere, in the League’s mansion, while his new wife slept soundly in bed, Rumple stared down at a round, golden box with a strange blue, swirly design with stars in the center. With a wave of his dagger, and a small cloud of blue smoke, the box morphed into a bent, pointy, blue hat that looked as though it had an entire universe in the center.

As this happened, all around town, a massive ice wall erupted along the border trapping everyone inside without anybody realizing it. Over at the loft, however, the Charmings hung out while Snow put Neal in his crib.

“Here you go, sweetheart. I’ll see you in three hours for your midnight shrieking. Yes, I will.” Snow said lovingly with a little humor/dread for the inevitable, “Sweet dreams.”

“What do you think babies dream about?” Henry asked.

“Bullfighting.” David replied joking.

“Laser tag.” Emma added.

“That’s not true.” Snow argued.

“I think they’re joking.” Henry eased.

“Right.” Snow sighed, “I’ll recognize funny again when he’s three and I’ve had some sleep.”

“Three?” David asked his wife, “I see the optimism returning. At least he probably doesn’t dream stuff like Flamel.”

“Like what?” Emma asked.

“You know, sciencey, nerdy stuff.” he shrugged smirking, “Like, the sum of the square root of any two sides of an isosceles triangle is equal to the square root of the remaining side.”

“That’s a right triangle, ya idiot!” Nicholas said from the bathroom before flushing.

“Is it?” Henry asked his mother.

“How should I know?” she asked as Nicholas came out drying his hands.

“Remind me again, why are you here?” David asked trying to get over the idiot remark.

“I’m bored, I wanna spend time with my girlfriend and nephew, I like babies, my house is eerily empty and quiet and I don’t plan on sleeping for another four days.” Nicholas listed with his fingers.

“You seriously don’t sleep for days regularly?” Snow asked in surprise.

“Pretty much. Why else would I drink almost ten cups of coffee every day? I have more of a caffeine addiction than I do smoking.” he shrugged as he pointed at Henry, “It certainly came in handy when I had to deal with this guy as a baby.”

“So what do you do at night while everyone else is asleep?” she asked.

“Eh, usually I just work on my research or train. Sometimes I just read a book or watch a movie.” he replied while noticing a little basket filled with treats being made by Henry, “Chocolate, DVDs, ice cream, red wine? What is this, a care package or a prep kit for a _Gilmore Girls_ marathon?”

“It’s for my mom.” he replied.

“I don’t drink and sheriff.” Emma joked.

“My other mom.” he clarified, “I googled ‘How to Get Over a Breakup.’ Though, it didn’t talk about your boyfriend’s wife time-traveling back from the past.”

“That’s page six, Henry.” Nicholas joked, “Wait a minute. How come I didn’t get anything like this after Ruby broke up with me?”

“Because you were busy trying to kill me while working with Cora to help her take out Gold and become the new dark one.” Snow dryly reminded.

“Touché.” he admitted pointing at her while still looking at Henry.

“I thought about that. That’s why I asked Leroy to help get you these.” Henry admitted while pulling out about five wrapped cigars from his pocket.

“Henry?!” Emma exclaimed while she and her parents looked at him in shock. 

As for Nicholas, he merely asked, “Are those Cuban?”

“Nicholas!” Emma admonished smacking his chest.

“What? I’m just asking!” he cringed trying not to smirk, “Seriously, are they Cuban?”

“Yep.” Henry nodded handing them over as his uncle sniffed them deeply.

“Oh, yeah, these are the good ones.” he exhaled with a very happy expression.

“Wait, I thought you only smoked those when angry.” David pointed out.

“No, no, no. This is how it goes: I smoke my pipe to help me think. I smoke regular cigars when I’m pissed because there’s more potent tobacco in them and that calms my nerves. But when it comes to Cuban cigars, that’s more for personal enjoyment.” Nicholas explained earning looks from the adults, “Oh, come on. It’s not like I’m doing weed. That’s something I’ll never do; trust me.”

“Great. My grandson is walking around with stogies in his pockets.” Snow huffed, “Next thing we know, he’ll have tattoos, as well.”

“If that does ever happen, I won’t be the only one to blame.” Nicholas defended still smirking, “Emma’s got one, too.”

“Huh?” David asked.

“Thanks, babe.” she muttered sarcastically, “Yes, I admit it. I have a tattoo. But nothing like his!”

“Where? What is it?” Snow asked surprisingly looking excited.

“Should I leave the room?” David asked looking sick.

“No!” Emma replied with a disgusted expression, “It’s on my wrist. Geez, Dad.”

Pulling up her sleeve and unraveling her shoelace bracelet, she unveiled her little tattoo of a flower on her left wrist. To clarify on the bracelet, when Emma became sheriff during the curse, Nicholas decided to give her the rest of Graham’s belongings seeing as he felt only a pair of walkie-talkies wasn’t enough. However, seeing as he already took the jacket, Emma was left with a few loose items including the Huntsman’s boots which were much too big for her. So with no other ideas, Emma decided to take one of the shoelaces and wrap it around her wrist as a bracelet to remember her friend.

“See? It’s just a flower. Not a crown, pair of wings and a giant cross with a snake draped over it like someone else’s we know.” she said indicating to her lover.

“You can mock me all you want, babe, but I have never once regretted getting my tattoo.” Nicholas coolly defended before taking a drink of his whiskey. Suddenly, a raven pecked at the window from outside with a message on its leg.

“It’s for Henry and Nicholas.” Snow said after taking the message, “It’s from Regina.”

Henry took the roll of paper and read it. Once he was finished, he looked downcast. “She doesn’t want to see me.” he said as he left the loft. Emma and Nicholas went after him and followed him inside to Granny’s.

“You know, that is not exactly what she said. I read the note. She said for right now, while she’s dealing with things.” Emma pointed out as they sat next to him.

“She doesn’t want to see me.” Henry repeated staring at the counter.

“She’s in a lot of pain over Robin Hood and everything that’s happened over the last…well, forever.” Nicholas reminded, “Things have been tough on her and you. She’s trying to fix them so that you two can be together because she cares about you.”

“So why’d she tell me to stay away?” he asked.

“Because she things she’s making things better.” Emma replied gently.

“She’s not.” Henry argued before the power randomly shut down.

“Now what?” Nicholas sighed.

“Emma,” David said over the radio, “I’m getting calls from all over. It’s a town-wide blackout.”

“Yeah, copy that. I’m looking at it.” she replied.

“I’ll swing by to get you. We can check this out.”

“Hey, kid. You wanna come along on this one?” Emma asked, “We can call it Operation…Nightshade or, uh, Blackthorn or-”

“That’s okay.” Henry interrupted. Once David arrived with the patrol car, Emma told her father what happened and expressed how it made her feel.

“He wouldn’t even let us hug him. It killed me.” she said.

“Sounds familiar.” David said.

“Cause I do that. Great. I’ve passed it along.” she huffed.

“Not just you. Henry has two moms who both put up walls.” David reminded, “Sounds like he’s taking after the both of you.”

“He has a point.” Nicholas agreed from the back seat.

“It’s not like him to pass up on operation anything. I’m worried.”

“Well, kids have extreme reactions. They get over it fast. Just stay strong and roll with it. There’s always people in this world who want you to give up. Don’t make their jobs any easier.”

“What the hell is that?” Nicholas asked as they spotted the ice wall and a powerline on the ground.

“Well, there you go.” Emma remarked, “Whatever happened to these powerlines happened after the snow monster. Let’s go find whoever did this.”

“This takes me back.” Nicholas thought, “I haven’t seen anything like this since I was in Arendelle.”

“In case any of you were wondering, it goes the whole way ‘round.” Hook informed as he and Ariel came out of the woods with lanterns.

“Hook, I didn’t know you and Ariel were joining us.” David remarked.

“I get a distress call from a fair maiden, and I’m on the spot.” he joked, “And this bloody ice wall has sprung up not far from the docks keeping my ship here. That and Ariel wanted to come.”

“I keep missing out on all the excitement.” she shrugged.

“So any way you slice it, we can’t leave Storybrooke.” Nicholas observed, “Question is, who did this and why?”

“Kill us all one by one.” Hook replied with a dry smile, “It’s what I’d do.”

“Same.” Nicholas nodded while David went over to check his car radio. As he did, both he and Emma saw something move behind some of the ice spikes.

“Did you see that?” Emma asked.

“No.” Hook said.

“Me neither.” Ariel added.

“I saw it, too.” Nicholas replied focusing his attention at the wall.

“I’m gonna check it out.” Emma said heading over while David approached the alchemist.

“I think it’s time you and I had a little talk about your intentions with my daughter.” he said going into “protective father mode.”

“Really?” he asked, “Even after spending almost an entire year giving her nothing but unconditional love?”

“Well, I know your reputation.” David coolly countered, “Emma is not some kind of experiment for you test out.”

“…I may have a stone in my chest, Charming. But I’ve never considered Emma an experiment. Your daughter means all of the worlds to me.” Nicholas defended. His phone began to buzz with Skinner on the other line again. As he answered, Hook, Ariel, and David went over to join Emma.

“What now, Skinner?” he asked.

“Gold’s done it. He’s opened the box.” The Invisible Man informed.

“What?” Nicholas asked, “Sigh…we’ll deal with this later. Has he done anything with it yet?”

“No. He’s just stared at it.”

“That’s it?” he asked, “No hocus pocus, hand waving, dark one magic stuff?

“Nope.” Skinner replied, “I’ve already contacted the others. We plan on meeting at Robin’s camp to discuss what to do next.”

“Understood. I’ll be awhile, though. I’m with Emma, Charming and Hook checking out this ice wall at the town line. It’s what’s caused the power outage.”

As he said this, the wall shook and sprouted more spikes trapping Emma inside while leaving the others outside. “I’ll call you back.” Nicholas said before hanging up.

“The device-call her.” Hook said panicking.

“What happened?” Nicholas asked.

“This woman on the other side made the wall and trapped herself with Emma on the other side.” Ariel replied.

“Emma, are you in there?” David asked trying to remain calm.

“I’m getting her out.” Nicholas said flexing his hand ready to destroy the ice. As soon as his sparking hand made contact, his arm suffered the effects of a rebound which nearly destroyed it.

“Gah!!” he cried in pain as his arm tried to regenerate, “You could have told me this ice was made by magic, you know!”

“We figured you knew!” Ariel defended.

“She’s not answering.” David said, “Try your gloves.”

“Won’t work.” Nicholas grunted, “This is magical ice. Only magic can take it down.”

“We aren’t giving up.” Hook argued.

“We’re not, but we need another way.” Nicholas retorted, “Try again.”

“Emma!” David shouted into the radio, “Can you hear me?! Emma, are you okay?! Say something!”

“Dad, can you hear me?” Emma asked calmly, “I’m in here with this woman. She’s looking for her sister, Anna.”

“Anna?” Nicholas muttered.

“She thinks that Anna is in town because she found a necklace of hers in Gold’s shop. She wants us to try to find her before-”

“Before I freeze this town and everyone in it.” she cut off.

“Nicholas, where are you going?” David asked as the alchemist stormed off and deconstructed himself. About ten minutes later, he came driving down the road well over the speed limit in his car and slid to a halt. When he got out, he marched to his trunk without saying a word.

“What’s he doing?” Ariel asked as Nicholas pulled out a massive weapon and loaded it.

“What is that?” Hook asked as Nicholas got in front of his car and kneeled with the weapon over his shoulder.

“What-is that a bazooka?!” David exclaimed.

“Everybody down!!!” Nicholas shouted as he squeezed the trigger. As the projectile fired at the wall, the others jumped out of the way just in time. Unfortunately, there wasn’t so much as a dent in the wall.

“Where the hell did you get a bazooka?!” David yelled as Nicholas came over after putting the weapon in his trunk.

“What?!” he asked loudly, “I can’t hear you! My ears are ringing from the bazooka!”

“Mate, if your alchemy couldn’t break through the ice, what made you think that bloody bazooka thing could?” Hook asked.

“It seemed like a better option than relying on that ice pick of yours.” Nicholas retorted.

“We’re getting nowhere fast. Gold might be able to help us. Maybe find this woman’s sister.” David suggested.

“We don’t need him.” Nicholas argued, “Anna’s not in Storybrooke.”

“And you know this how?” David asked.

“Trust me, Anna’s not the kind of person that goes unnoticed.”

“Wait, you know her?” he asked.

“Yeah.” Nicholas nodded pointing at the wall, “That woman’s name is Queen Elsa of Arendelle. I met her and her sister after I befriended some traders from her kingdom when I got out of Xerxes.”

“Do you know how we can get her to lower the wall without her sister, then?” Ariel asked.

“Maybe, maybe not.” he replied, “Elsa’s magic is connected with her emotions and unfortunately, thanks to her parents, she doesn’t have control over either. I may be able to calm her down myself; we were pretty close when we were kids. Hand me the walkie.”

“Just get her back.” David pleaded as he gave the radio.

“Elsa?” Nicholas asked, “Elsa, can you hear me?”

“Who is this?” she asked feeling scared, “Where’s David?”

“Elsa, it’s me, Nicholas. Nicholas Flamel. Remember? We were friends back when we were kids.” he tried to remind.

“Nicholas?” she asked, “Is that really you?”

“Yeah, Elsa. It’s me.” he laughed happy hearing the sound of his old friend’s voice.

“Wh-how are you here? Do you know where Anna is?” Elsa asked.

“No. I don’t. But I need you to listen to me, Elsa.” he coached, “How’s Emma doing?”

“She’s freezing…turning blue.” she said in a panic.

“Elsa, calm down. I need you to find a way out.” Nicholas said gently.

“I need Anna.” she stressed.

“I know, but we don’t know where she is right now. You’re gonna have to do this by yourself.”

“I can’t.” she denied, “I can’t control this. Not on my own.”

“Yes, you can.” he argued, “I know you can. You’re stronger than you think; you’ve always been strong enough to do it on your own. You can’t let fear continue to control your life like this. If you do, neither you or Emma will survive.”

“She won’t, I will.” Elsa corrected.

“No, you won’t. Not if you allow yourself to be trapped like this. Anna never wanted this for you, neither have I. I told you a long time ago that the only thing stopping you is yourself. Take all your fear, Elsa, and let it go.”

Elsa didn’t reply afterwards. Instead, she took her friend’s advice and let go of her fear allowing her to make a hole in the wall large enough for both her and Emma to crawl through. David wasted no time in pulling his beloved daughter into his arms while Nicholas helped his childhood friend out.

“Your Majesty.” he nodded with a smirk before the platinum blonde flung her arms around him.

“Let’s get her home, warm her up.” David said picking her up bridal style.

“Are you okay?” Nicholas asked stroking her face. She didn’t say anything, but she rapidly nodded her head, “Thank you. You saved her.”

“Yes, I did.” Elsa nodded looking guilty, “But I also endangered her. You owe me nothing.”

“Your right, I don’t.” he nodded, “But that’s because you’re my friend. And no matter what they do, I will always be there to help my friends. I promise, we are going to find Anna.”

Back at the loft, Nicholas held Emma close to his chest after she was wrapped in probably seven blankets. Fortunately, the power quickly came back on and Henry readied one of the space heaters for her.

“I’ll go make some hot cocoa.” he offered.

“Wait.” she said stopping him.

“I know, with cinnamon.” he replied before being pulled in by his shivering mother.

“I’m sorry if I wasn’t much help earlier, kid.” she apologized.

“I’m just glad you’re okay. I was already down to one mother, and I won’t go lower than that.” he said causing Emma to chuckle while Elsa looked upset.

“Elsa?” she asked, “You okay?”

“Not only have I lost my sister, I’ve lost her necklace, too. Now I have nothing of hers.” Elsa informed as David came back with a long Sheppard’s Crook in his hand.

“Then let’s find her.” he said.

“David, I know you used to be a Sheppard, but is this really the time to gather the flock?” Nicholas asked.

“Flamel, just shut up.” he snapped, “As it happens, you aren’t the only who knew Anna.”

“You knew my sister?” Elsa asked.

“I did. She helped me once when I most needed it.” David nodded, “When she did, she had a run in with someone I knew who liked to ‘brand’ people she wanted to control with this crook. Fortunately, one of its perks is allowing us to located where ever someone who’s been branded is.”

“Well, isn’t that randomly convenient?” Nicholas dryly thought while Elsa looked through the hook.

“I don’t see anything.” she said.

“It should work.” David sighed.

“Is it broken?” Hook asked.

“Or does it mean something happened to her?” Elsa asked fearing the worst.

“Wait.” Nicholas said as his ears picked up a faint noise, “What’s that sound?”

“…Is that a heartbeat?” Elsa asked.

“It is.” David nodded.

“We might know where your sister is but we know the most important thing.” Emma assured.

“She’s alive.” Elsa nodded as Mary Margaret entered with baby Neal.

“Who’s alive? Oh. Who are you?” she asked.

“Uh, this is Elsa.” David answered as he took his son, “We’re gonna find her sister. That’s what this family does. We find people. We always do because we really, really don’t like to give up.”

Later that night, around 3:00 AM when everyone was asleep, Nicholas ventured into the woods to meet up with his fellow League members around a fire. Much to his relief, Robin decided to leave Marian behind with the rest of the Merry Men.

“It’s certainly been awhile since we’ve had a briefing like this.” Nicholas remarked as he took a seat on a log, “Now what exactly are we going to do about Gold?”

“I’m afraid that we’re backed into a corner for now.” Mina commented, “We were lucky after the first curse broke that no one was able to find the mansion. I don’t think any of us expected Belle of all people to find it.”

“Or to use it for her honeymoon with the bloody dark one.” Skinner added as he warmed his hands.

“Fortunately, we never left anything above ground to show any indication of our residence there.” Nemo reminded.

“Yeah, just that damn hat the director asked us to keep an eye on.” Sawyer countered, “Now that Gold’s found it he won’t let it out of his sight.”

“I’m a little lost,” Robin interjected, “What exactly does the hat do?”

“We don’t know everything about it.” Quartermain began, “All we do know is that it was created by Merlin and was protected by his apprentice for over a thousand years until shortly before the third ogres war. The apprentice entrusted it with us because he no longer believed he was befit to guard it after Rumplestiltskin managed to get his hands on it briefly.”

“He said that it is commonly used as a means to seal magical entities that posed threats to the realms in times of great need.” Nemo added, “And apparently, since its creation, every dark one has tried to get their hands on it.”

“And now Rumple has it.” Nicholas nodded, “Fan-freaking-tastic!”

“He hasn’t used it yet, though, Nicholas.” Mina reminded, “That’s a good sign.”

“Emphasis on yet.” he countered, “When has that midget ever passed up the chance to acquire more power? The answer: never.”

“What do we do?” Robin asked.

“As of now, the entire town, and most importantly the Charmings, is focused on Elsa and her ice wall.” Quartermain explained.

“Which for some reason she can’t take down according to Emma.” Nicholas added.

“Right, so we can focus our attention on retrieving the hat.” he finished.

“How?” Sawyer asked, “Out the seven of us, the only ones that can actually show themselves in public are Nicholas and Robin. I can’t go into town because I screwed up and stuck around too long when Zelena went after Henry. Nemo can’t because he sticks out like a sore thumb. Skinner can but there’s no way of him grabbing the box without people noticing it bouncing around in midair. Mina can’t because she refuses to wear anything other than funeral clothes. And we all know why you can’t go out and ‘bout, boss.”

“He’s got a point, Quartermain.” Nicholas agreed before looking at Nemo and Robin, “And no offense, you guys, but your men aren’t skilled or experienced enough for a job like this.”

“We’ll worry about the hat latter. There’s something else we need to discuss.” Quartermain informed, “The mansion’s been compromised. We can’t keep using it like we’ve been doing. Not after what’s happened because you know Belle will tell her friends about it. Our base is on the verge of becoming a romantic getaway for the people of Storybrooke.”

“We need to take every chance we can get to get what we can out and what we can’t locked up tight.” Nicholas agreed.

“But what about us?” Skinner asked, “Not to sound whiny, but we’ve been living in the mansion this entire time, Nicholas.”

“Don’t worry, I thought ahead of this, Skinner.” he reassured, “I still have plenty of space in my underground laboratories which are all connected through a tunnel system.”

“But doesn’t your sister know about them?” Mina asked.

“No, she only knows about the one north of the park. All the others are safe with beds, weapons and plenty of provisions. You’d basically be staying in bomb shelters.”

“I for one would rather not sleep on a bench like a hobo.” Sawyer commented, “I’m in.”

“Seconded.” Mina nodded.

“It’s unanimous.” Skinner joked holding up his invisible hand.

“Fine.” Quartermain muttered before giving his orders, “Skinner, I want you and Sawyer to keep track of Gold and Belle for the next week. If there is any repeating sign of him leaving that box out of his sight, report back to me and we’ll discuss our next approach. Nemo, have your divers see if they can break past the section of the ice wall that’s sprung up in the ocean. Harker, I want you looking into anything that may be able to work against ice magic. Locksley, have your Merry Men sneak into the mansion at every given chance while keeping look out for any new comers and retrieve what you can. Flamel, keep an eye on your friend the queen. I wanna know if her arrival will lead to anything unpleasant like what our previous visitors have brought.”

“Got it, boss.” Nicholas nodded, “What about you?”

“Despite my disliking towards it, I need to inform the director of what has happened to the hat.” he replied, “I’ll take the blame. I just hope that smiling bastard doesn’t find an excuse to drag the rest of you down along with me.”

“I’m not a member of your branch. You think he’ll be merciful with me?” Robin asked.

“You do know who we work for, right?” Nicholas asked.

“Hmph, just thought I’d ask.” he defended.

“Well, it just goes to show, it’s never a dull moment in Storybrooke.” Nicholas said as his friends and comrades nodded in agreement.


	37. Rocky Road

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

Many years ago, in the kingdom of Arendelle, a young Flamel walked through the streets of the town in awe of everything around him. Arendelle was nothing like Xerxes, no sand blowing in his eyes, no blistering heat bearing down on his skin and most importantly, no slaves of any kind.

He especially enjoyed the smell and sight of the sea before him. However, while he was enjoying every moment he spent in Arendelle, he still wanted to go back to his original home in the Enchanted Forest. Unfortunately, there had been storms that had been damaging and even destroying ships recently so he had no other choice but to wait until it was safe. For the time being, he was enjoying his time in the beautiful kingdom.

Currently, he was enjoying a peaceful walk through the woods by the waterfall behind the castle. As he was walking through the trees with a happy smile on his face, his recently heightened sense of smell picked up a faint trace of human blood nearby. Following the trail, he came up to see a young girl clutching her bloody knee with tears in her eyes sniffling in pain and fear.

“Are you okay?” Flamel asked as he approached the girl.

“I-I hurt my knee and I can’t get up.” she sniffled.

“Hold still. I can fix it.” he said gently. With his newfound knowledge and powers, Flamel’s hands sparked with red alchemic electricity over the child’s knee. When the light was gone, her wound was gone and left no sign of any previous injury. “There now. All better.”

“Wow!” she exclaimed in wonder. To further test if she was better, the girl jumped to her feet and bounced on her heels, “That was amazing! I mean incredible, I mean-thank you!”

“Little ball of energy, this one.” Flamel thought before actually speaking, “You’re welcome. If you don’t mind my asking, what were you doing out here by yourself?”

“I got bored so I decided to leave the castle and play out here.” she chirped.

“Wait. The castle?” Flamel asked.

“Yep.” she smiled innocently, “I’m Princess Anna.”

“Well, Princess, it’s very nice to meet you. My name is Nicholas Flamel.” he introduced.

**OUaT**

About a day or so after Elsa was welcomed into Storybrooke, Emma and Nicholas decided to confront Gold about Elsa. As it turns out, she came to the town through the time portal inside an urn that was held inside his vault which held anything and everything he collected that feared even him.

“I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I’ve never seen her before in my life.” Rumple said to the couple and queen.

“So how’d she end up inside your urn inside your secret vault of terror?” Emma asked.

“Look, if you really want to know how she wound up there, she’s standing right beside you, Ms. Swan. Why don’t you simply ask her?” he suggested.

“Oh, gee, why didn’t we think of that?” Nicholas sarcastically asked.

“They did. But I can’t remember.” Elsa clarified, “Something happened to my memories.”

“Well, an all too common affliction around these parts. Pity.” Gold remarked, “But as you can see, many objects fall into my possession. Urns, necklaces, all manner of things. I can’t know the history behind them all.”

“Only if there’s something in it for you.” Nicholas retorted with a dry glare, “Everything in this place is something you took or came into contact with. My sister didn’t just give you this place to use as a storage shed for things from our realm.”

“Oh, don’t make me laugh, Flamel.” Gold scoffed, “You’re an alchemist. Keeping things for your own personal interest and gain comes in your job description. And that may have been true for me once, but my life has recently been turned upside down. I’ve lost a son. I’ve gained a wife. So you might say I’ve decided to turn over a new leaf.”

“Don’t forget about my super power.” Emma reminded, “I’ll be able to tell if you’re lying.”

“How about I do you one better?” Gold recommended, “Let’s simply have Belle use the dagger on me.”

“N-no. No.” she stammered, “Rumple, you don’t have to do that.”

“No, no, no. Ms. Swan and Mr. Flamel want proof and I’m happy to cooperate.”

“Fine.” she sighed as she went over and held the dagger in front of her husband, “I command you, dark one, to tell them the truth.”

“The truth is…just as I said.” Gold complied, “I had no idea there was someone inside there. I know nothing about Elsa. Or her sister. But I wish you the best of luck finding her.”

“Thank you for your time, Mr. Gold.” Nicholas said with false delight before he and the girls left the pawn shop.

**OUaT**

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Flamel asked as Anna pulled him towards the castle’s gates.

“Of course. My parents would be happy to meet the person who saved me.” she replied finding his question odd, “Besides, it’s not often I get to make a new friend. Mostly because I never get to leave the palace, but that’s beside the point.”

“Why do I get the feeling I’m literally being pulled into a heap of trouble?” Flamel thought bluntly.

“Maybe we can even get my sister to play with us!” Anna said with hope.

“You have a sister?” he asked.

“Yep. My big sister Elsa.” she nodded enthusiastically, “We used to play all the time until a few years ago. Maybe all she needs is a new friend to get her out of that dusty old room of hers.”

“I guess.” Flamel shrugged. Once they were inside, they noticed the king giving his guards orders with a serious look on his face while the queen looked like she was close to tears.

“I’m back!” Anna announced without a care in the world. At the sound of her voice, her parents looked at her and wasted no time in rushing over to pick her up and hold her close in their arms.

“Anna, where have you been?” the king asked, “We’ve been looking for you everywhere.”

“I got bored so I went outside to play.” she said not seeing any issue.

“Wh-what happened?” the queen asked seeing the dried blood on her stocking and dress, “Why is there blood on your dress? And who is this boy you brought with you?”

“Guards!” the king barked. Sure enough, about four guards blocked the exit and had their spears pointed at the young alchemist.

“I knew getting involved in another royal family would bite me in the ass.” he muttered as he raised his hands.

“Papa, stop!” Anna demanded, “He’s my friend! He healed my leg after I hurt myself in the woods.”

“In my defense, Majesty, it is true.” Flamel defended, “If you could be so kind as to have your guards lower their weapons I would appreciate it.”

“Gerda,” the king said staring at Anna knee where the wound used to be, “Look.”

“Pretty cool, huh?” Anna asked with a smile, “Nicholas healed me with this bright red light covering his hands and voila!”

But the monarchs didn’t seem as impressed as their daughter. If anything, they seemed concerned and nervous. “Release him.” the king ordered, “Bring him to my study, immediately.”

“Just my luck, I’m enjoying a peaceful stroll through the woods, meet a nice girl, help her out of the goodness of my heart and how am I rewarded? I get dragged away by palace guards.” Flamel dryly thought as the guards literally dragged him to the king’s study. A few minutes later, both royals stormed in and locked the door behind them.

“…How did you heal my daughter’s injury?” the king asked with his voice shaking.

“Why do you wish to know?” Flamel asked acting calm and collected.

“Answer me!” he shouted slamming his fist on his desk.

“Hmph, you royals are so dramatic.” Flamel scoffed.

“What sort of magic did you use to heal her?” he asked, “I checked it myself, there’s no sign of any injury. Not even the faintest trace of a scar. How did you do it?”

“Well, for starters, I did not use magic.” Flamel replied.

“Then how?” the queen asked.

“Tell me, how familiar are you two with the science of alchemy?” he asked.

“Not much.” King Ivar said, “It’s supposedly used throughout the desert kingdom Xerxes.”

“Well, it seems like one of its users has made their way into your kingdom.” grinned Flamel.

“So Xerxes has sent you to destroy us then?” Ivar asked thinking he knew the answer.

“…If I was going to do that, do you honestly think I would waste my time helping your daughter?” Flamel dryly asked, “Besides, you don’t have to worry about Xerxes anymore.”

“Why not?” Gerda asked.

“Everyone’s dead.” he curtly replied, “The entire population, except myself, was killed in a single night. If you were to go there, you’d probably still be able to see the bodies poking out of the sand.”

“If everyone is dead, then how did you manage to survive?” Ivar asked.

“That’s my business.” he replied with a tight fake smile, “My question is, why were you two so frazzled when you thought I had magic?”

“No reason.” Gerda blurted. Obviously, Flamel wasn’t convinced.

“No,” he said putting the pieces together, “When you thought I had magic, both of you looked frightened. Obviously, you’ve had some experience with magic; and so has Anna. Hasn’t she? Don’t deny it, I can see it written all over your faces. So Anna has come into contact with magic. Well, obviously, she doesn’t have any of her own or else she would have been able to heal herself. And you two don’t exactly come across as the magical types…so it must have been someone else. Else…oh, I see. Her sister Elsa has magic, doesn’t she?”

“…Yes.” Ivar growled, “Elsa has magic.”

“Hmm. I take it that’s how Anna got that little streak in her hair, then?” Flamel asked.

“It was an accident.” Gerda defended, “They-they were playing and Elsa accidently struck her head with her magic.”

“Well, from what I gathered, Anna didn’t seem to hold any resentment towards her sister. She was actually excited for me to meet her.”

“Anna doesn’t know Elsa has magic.” Ivar informed, “Or rather, she doesn’t remember that she does.”

“Come again?” Flamel asked.

“When Elsa struck Anna, it did more to her than we thought. We sought help from the rock trolls in the north mountain; they specialize in memory magic. We couldn’t risk Anna growing up fearing her sister, it would devastate them both. Until Elsa can control her powers, no one, not even Anna, must ever know.”

“So why did you bring me here?”

“We were hoping that if you had magic, you would help us with Elsa.” Gerda replied.

“Well, from the way you literally had me dragged in here, it didn’t seem like I was going to have much of a choice.” Flamel remarked before sighing, “Alright. I’ll see what I can do to help. I may not have magic, but I may be able to help her control hers by other means.”

“Thank you.” Ivar nodded, “Please, let me show you to her room.”

Ten minutes later, the monarch knocked on his daughter’s door softly. “Elsa. Darling, open the door.”

A few seconds later, the door slowly opened with a frightened young girl dressed in blue with her platinum blonde hair in a braid clinging to the knob. “Yes, papa?” she asked nervously.

“Sweetheart, there’s someone I would like you to meet.” he said with love and a splash of sympathy, “This young man is here to help you with your…powers.”

“Hello, princess.” Flamel politely nodded. When Ivar left them, they sat in Elsa’s room; Elsa on her bed, Flamel on the windowsill.

“Are you a cleric?” she asked breaking the silent. The alchemist softly chuckled before giving his answer.

“No. Far from it, actually.”

“…I don’t believe you.” she argued.

“From what your parents have told me, you can do strange things. Things that other children cannot. Can’t you, Elsa?” he asked.

She hesitated for a moment before speaking again. “I can make snow and ice form in the palm of my hands; even when it’s hot enough outside to pass out from exhaustion. I can make a blizzard inside even when all the windows are shut and the fireplaces are roaring. I can freeze people…if I want.”

“I don’t believe you do.” Flamel gently debated, “You don’t strike me as the kind of person who likes hurting people. But you’re afraid that you will no matter how hard you try not to.”

“…Who are you?” Elsa asked.

“Well, I’m like you, Elsa. I’m different.” he replied.

“Prove it.” she demanded. Without so much as a twitch, Flamel was able to create a bulky suit of armor with spikes on its shoulders and knee caps from the floor and willed it to bow on its knee with its arm over its chest before the young princess who looked in awe.

“It may not be magic, but I can do plenty of strange things, as well.” he said as Elsa touched the armor to see if it was indeed real, “And like anything in this world, a person can control it as long as they understand it. You have the potential to do just that, Elsa, should you allow yourself. The only thing stopping you, is yourself.”

“How can I?” she asked, “My father always says not to use my powers.”

“Because of Anna.” he stated causing Elsa to gasp and look down in shame, “I’m aware of what happened between you two. And that she has no memory of what happened, as well.”

“I almost killed her!” Elsa said on the verge of tears, “She was lucky I struck her head and not her heart. I can’t let that happen again.”

“Then don’t. But don’t punish yourself by shutting your sister out as you have been.” Flamel coached, “Elsa, how long has it been since you struck Anna?”

The princess sniffled and said, “Seven years. Almost eight.”

“And how much success have you had in controlling your magic since then?”

“…None.”

“Do you feel as though this method your parents have taught you has helped you in any way?”

“No.” she admitted.

“Then don’t you think it’s time you take a different approach?” he asked, “Let me teach you and you will never have to worry about hurting the people you love ever again.”

“…Okay, I’ll do it.” she said looking directly into his eyes.

“Excellent.” he smiled, “Oh, and to answer your question from earlier. The name’s Nicholas Flamel.”

**OUaT**

Later that day, Nicholas received an urgent text from Robin concerning Marian and some kind of ice magic. Not wanting to risk the woman blabbing about the League, he immediately rushed over to Regina’s, or rather Snow’s, office and found Marian lying on the couch covered in frost.

“What the hell happened?” he asked.

“Perhaps you should ask your old friend.” Regina suggested looking at Elsa, “After all, it was her monster that attacked Marian.”

“Well, to be fair, sis, it was provoked.” he defended.

“But this isn’t my magic. Someone else did this.” Elsa defended.

“Oh, and we’re supposed to trust you?” Regina asked.

“You can trust me and your brother.” Emma snapped, “If she says it was someone else, it was.”

“So, how do we break the spell?” Henry asked.

“The only way to cure a freezing spell is an act of true love.” Elsa explained.

“True love’s kiss.” Regina said bitterly.

“Well, then there’s no time to lose.” Robin said before reaching down to kiss his wife. But when their lips parted, nothing changed, “What’s wrong? Why isn’t it working?”

“I’ve seen this once before. When Frederick was turned to gold.” David said.

“Who the hell’s Frederick?” Emma asked bluntly.

“Long story.” Henry replied knowing it already.

“So, the cold is acting as a barrier?” Robin asked, “Is there nothing we can do?”

“Well, every curse is different. I need more time to study this one.” Regina replied.

“I’m gonna go find who did this before it happens again.” Emma said about to leave.

“Well, I hope you’re bringing back-up.” Regina remarked causing the blonde to come back.

“What the hell was that supposed to mean?” she asked.

“Well, between the snow monster and the cave in, seems like the Savior needs saving these days.”

“I think you’re bitter and you’re taking it out on the wrong person.” Emma retorted, “I’ll be fine.”

“In the meantime, I’ll keep an eye on Elsa. Knowing how every jackass in this town is quick to jump the gun and rally into an angry mob, it’d be best if someone were around to help.” Nicholas added as he and the two blondes left the office.

While Emma and David were off looking for anything that could lead to the person who froze Marian, Nicholas led Elsa through town while avoiding the vengeful townsfolk. “Alright, coast is clear.” he said as they emerged from an alley. However, Elsa didn’t seem keen on following her friend. “That means, let’s go, Elsa.”

“I’m not coming with you.” she said, “There’s someone out there with powers like mine. I need to find out who. I-I can’t just hide out in some sheriff’s station.”

“Well, you’re in luck because we’re not going to the sheriff’s station.” he replied.

“We’re not?” she asked.

“With Emma blindly charging into danger, again? No chance in hell.” Nicholas said, “We’re going this way.”

“And what’s there?” Elsa asked.

“Knowing my luck, danger.” he grinned, “This won’t be like the last time you and I went on an excursion, Elsa; I can assure you.”

“Believe me, I’d rather avoid going through anything like that again.” she remarked following him, “That’s the last time I ever follow you into a cave at night.

“You had fun and you know it.” he admonished looking back as he walked on, “I didn’t hear you complaining when we found that hot spring and spent hours soaking in it.”

“Fair enough.” Elsa relented

**OUaT**

It had been a week since Flamel began to help the timid princess with her magic. It took time at first, but they seemed to be making process with her control. When they weren’t working on that, they spent the days acting like children for the first time in so many years; even Anna joined them whenever Flamel told her in advance. All in all, Flamel felt truly happy and blessed to have found such good friends in the young royals.

However, he certainly didn’t trust either of their parents and made a point of keeping a close eye on them whenever he could. While he didn’t doubt that Ivar and Gerda loved their daughter, he could easily tell that they were, even just slightly, afraid of Elsa and her magic. And from what he deduced, that fear was undoubtedly caused by something relatable in one of their pasts. He just couldn’t tell which one.

In any case, Flamel’s time in Arendelle was coming to an end much to the princesses’ disliking. The storms had finally calmed and ships were once again able to enter and leave Arendelle as they pleased. Currently, Flamel was browsing through the market to stock up on supplies for his journey home; true, he didn’t need food to survive anymore, but constantly being hungry and not being able to die from hunger was an experience he did not want to go through again. As he purchased a few plums, he spotted a familiar face over at an herbalist stand.

“See anything you need?” the merchant asked kindly asked Flamel approached him.

“Aren’t you the one who gave me my tattoo?” he asked, “What’s with the herb stand?”

“I find that having multiple professions brings in a better source of income.” he replied, “However, I doubt someone like you is in need of anything I have.”

“…What do you mean?” Flamel asked trying to remain calm.

“I noticed that your body was being partially stubborn with the needle when you and I did business in my shop not long ago.” he smirked, “And I was able to tell that it was not magic.”

“…What do you want?” Flamel asked quietly.

“Nothing.” he replied honestly, “Your secret is safe with me. Keeping secrets is a way of life for those who work in my profession.”

“Tattoo artists and apothecaries?” Flamel asked.

“No, no.” he chuckled, “Something else. Something that could use a man of your talents.”

“Are you trying to offer me a job or something?” Flamel asked in confusion. Instead of giving an answer, the man took out a coin from his sleeve and flipped it at Flamel. In surprise, he caught it with a slight fumble before looking up from his palms to see that the man was gone. He looked around and saw no trace of him anywhere.

“What the hell was that about?” he bluntly asked aloud.

**OUaT**

Once Nicholas and Elsa were able to sneak out of town, they found a trail of ice that lead into the woods by the person they were looking for. After about an hour, through the trees, they spotted their target: a middle-aged blonde woman wearing a white dress in a similar design to Elsa’s.

“Get down.” Nicholas whispered as he pulled the young queen down with him as they watched the woman. Keeping their eyes on her, Nicholas pulled out his phone in hopes to call Emma; he didn’t fully trust Elsa enough to give any indication about the League.

“What is that thing?” she asked.

“It’s a device we use in this realm for talking to people who aren’t nearby. It’s like an enchanted shell.” he explained as he dialed his girlfriend. Unfortunately, all he heard was her voicemail recording.

“Why is it you never pick up when I’m the one calling about an emergency?” Nicholas asked stressed out, “We found the person who froze Marian. Get to the west edge of the woods right away.”

As he said this, Elsa slowly rose over the log to get a better look only to be stopped by her childhood friend. “What are you doing?” he asked pulling her back down.

“Sorry. I’ve never seen someone like me before.” Elsa apologized, “She doesn’t look evil.”

“She may not be, but for now, let’s just stay out of sight until we have a reason to act.” Nicholas advised, “Besides, I do better with the heat than I do with the cold.”

Suddenly, from behind, the woman in question used her magic to incase Nicholas’s legs in ice keeping him in place. “Well, that’s a shame.” she said in a calm, yet, intimidating voice. “Because you’ll have to deal with it for now.”

“Let go of him, now.” Elsa demanded.

“Not when you and I have so much catching up to do, my sweet Elsa.” she said mysteriously as she walked past them.

“Catching up?” Nicholas asked, “What do you know her?”

“I’ve never seen her before.” Elsa replied.

“You’ve simply forgotten.”

“I wouldn’t forget someone like you. Like me.” Elsa argued.

“The magic of the rock trolls. They pull memories. They did quite a number on you, I’m afraid.”

“The rock trolls? Why would they do that to me?” Elsa asked.

“For the same reason they did it to your sister, Anna. Some memories are too painful.”

“You know Anna? What happened to her?” she asked.

“The same thing that happens to every ordinary person. Eventually, they grow to fear us. You wonder how you ended up trapped in that urn. It was your sister. Anna put you there.”

“You’re lying.” Elsa denied.

“Am I? Look at the people in this town. They’re ready to burn you at the stake.”

“Yeah, because of what you did, you cynical psychopath.” Nicholas spat as he tried to break free.

“You wanted them to think it was me. To blame me. Why?” Elsa asked.

“I was trying to teach you a lesson.” she said going over to Nicholas while creating dozens of icicles over his head, “Eventually, everyone turns on people like us. Even friends. Even family. They’re just waiting for a reason.”

“What are you doing?!” Elsa cried.

“When your friend is found, you will look responsible. Then they’ll turn on you and treat you as the monster that they truly see you as, and you’ll know that I’m right.”

“No!” Elsa pleaded.

“Oh, I got to stop leaving my gloves at home this season.” Nicholas said looking up at the icicles cringing at the thought of the pain he was about to feel. Just then, Emma and David came charging in.

“Hey, Dairy Queen!” Emma shouted causing the woman to look at her with a longing look on her face.

“Emma?” she whispered loud enough for everyone to hear.

“Do we know each other?” Emma asked.

“Of course not.” she lied, “Your reputation precedes you. You really think that your magic is a match for mine?”

“There’s only one way to find out.” Emma spat before sending a powerful blast from her hands which knocked the Snow Queen back. Having enough of his restraints, Nicholas destroyed the ground beneath him and broke free from the ice. With a wave of her hands, the Snow Queen vanished in a small blizzard leaving the battle.

**OUaT**

As the mighty vessel rocked against the waves with the wind carrying it strongly, Flamel gazed at the magnificent view of the ocean as Arendelle slowly shrunk in the distance behind him. As he stared out at the sea, he fiddled with the coin he acquired earlier that day in his pocket. Pulling it out, he flipped it and caught it in the palm of his hand stroking the engraving with his index finger.

“LXG.” he muttered looking at the letters; the first and last smaller at the sides while the X took up the majority of the coin, “Huh. I wonder what that means.”


	38. Alchemy Swan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

In the depths of one of the underground laboratories, Skinner, Quartermain, Nemo and Sawyer were playing a game of poker while Mina was sitting elegantly on a chair while reading a book. It was an ordinary day in Storybrooke and all seemed quiet for a change. A few moments later, Nicholas entered the room looking sharp in his better looking clothes.

“Okay, guys. How do I look?” he asked looking slightly nervous.

“Whoa, mate! I though you loved this girl. Why are you trying to kill her?” Skinner asked.

“What?” he asked.

“Well, as you are now, you’ll knock her dead.” Skinner replied before grinning mischievously.

“…I’ll actually give you points for that. It wasn’t that bad.” Nicholas admitted.

“Just remember to play it safe.” Sawyer teased, “We all know how crazy kids your age can be around pretty girls.”

“Tom, you’re like three years older than me. Not to mention, you’ve had sex with Mina. You have no room to talk about playing it safe when it comes to sex; even if you’re just kidding.” Nicholas came back.

“He does have a point.” Mina acknowledged looking up from her book and reading glasses while Sawyer looked back his cards causing the others to laugh.

“Well, as much fun as it’s been making fun of Sawyer, I have date with a beautiful woman.” Nicholas smirked as he headed to the entrance, “Don’t wait up!”

As he about to pull out his car keys, he heard the door behind him open again. “Nicholas, wait.” Mina said catching up.

“Mina. What did I forget something?” he asked.

“No, but maybe you should bring this along for tonight.” she said pulling out a small velvet box. When she opened it, it revealed her old wedding ring from her previous marriage. “Perhaps it’s time to make it official. I don’t know Emma’s size, but I’m sure your alchemy can fix that.”

“Mina, I-I can’t take that.” he said in surprise at the offer, “This is your wedding ring.”

“And I’ve worn it for more years than I was ever married. It’s meant to be worn by a happy bride still with her love. Not some blood-sucking widow.” she smiled, “I know you want to ask her. We all do.”

“B-but I-”

“Just hold on to it for now.” she pleaded before dropping her smile, “If you don’t, I’ll talk about all the times I’ve had sex with Henry, Sawyer and Mr. Q.”

“Gimme.” Nicholas said grabbing the box and marching over to his driver’s seat, “I hate it when you use your sex life with the others as a weapon against me, Mina!” he cried as he drove off.

“Heheh. He’s so easy to control and yet he thinks otherwise.” Mina chuckled before heading back inside.

Elsewhere, at the Charming’s loft, Elsa watched as Snow slammed book after book on the dining table in front of her. “Census records from the first and second curses. If Anna was ever in Storybrooke, we’ll find some trace of her here.”

“Your curses are very thorough.” Elsa chuckled while Snow bounced Neal.

“That’s just A-E.” Snow informed bluntly as David dropped the rest on the table.

“Here’s the rest of them.” he grunted. As he did, Emma came in from her room dressed in a beautiful pink dress with her hair in a high ponytail with just enough make-up.

“Okay. I want honest opinions. What do we think?” she asked nervously while everyone looked at her in awe.

“Wow.” Snow said.

“What your mother said.” David added.

“Is that just the corset? Where’s the rest of it?” Elsa asked kindly.

“This is the rest of it.” Emma said finding the question odd.

“Someone’s sister is going on a very big date tonight!” Snow cooed at her son as she placed him in his crib.

“Let’s not oversell-” Emma said only to be cut off as her mother snapped a picture with an old flash camera, “Wow, I really need to get my own place.” she laughed.

“Cut your mother some slack.” David chuckled, “It’s not like we got to send you to a ball.”

“You sure you guys don’t want help?” Emma asked, “Maybe I can get Nicholas to stay in for the night.”

“Hmm. Enjoy some peace and quiet while looking at over a dozen consensus books, or looking at over a dozen consensus books while listening to Flamel’s smartass remarks. Tough choice.” David joked.

“My sister put her wedding on hold because of me. I don’t want anyone else to stop living their lives on my account. Especially my two closest friends.” Elsa added before a knock on the door could be heard.

“Here we go.” Snow said in excitement.

“Okay.” Emma said as she went over and opened the door to see her immortal boyfriend on the other side looking at her with nothing but love and his hand behind his back.

“You look stunning, Emma.” he said softly with a smile.

“Thanks. So do you.” she smiled. Nicholas then showed his hidden hand which had about five seeds in it. “Oh. Seeds.” she said finding the gesture odd.

But with a playful smirk, the alchemist used his alchemy in the seeds and had them grow before everyone’s eyes into beautiful, red roses in bloom and gave them to the now amazed blonde.

“Happy anniversary.” he smiled as Emma held the roses close to smell them.

“Happy anniversary.” she said back while putting the roses in a nearby vase, “So what exactly does the Immortal Alchemist have in store tonight?”

“Well, I guess you’ll just have to come along and find out, now won’t you?” he playfully asked, “But first,” he said reaching into his jacket pocket, “I think this wants to go around your neck before we leave.”

As he said this, he got behind her and began to put a lovely diamond necklace around her neck. “Never let it be said that I don’t try to spoil you from time to time.” he said in her ear causing her to resist the urge to laugh. 

“Okay. Let’s get out of here before David gives you his overprotective dad speech.” she suggested.

“Well, you can spare yourself the trouble, Dave. I assure you, your daughter couldn’t be in safer hands.”

“That’s exactly what worries me, especially since you can make as many as you want and they’ll just grow back if I cut them off.” David retorted threateningly.

“I can take care of myself.” Emma reminded with a fake smile.

“You sure you don’t want me to drive?” he asked.

“Goodbye.” Emma said embarrassed as she shut the door.

“I wasn’t too hard on him, was I?” David asked the two women causing them to laugh.

After a short drive to the restaurant, Nicholas escorted Emma in to the delightful tune of soft piano music and chatter. “Not bad for our first official date in Storybrooke, huh?” he asked with a grin.

“I like that it’s not Granny’s.” she said as Nicholas pulled out a chair for her.

“Shall I order us some drinks?” he asked.

“Not tonight.” she replied with a guilty smirk.

“Why? Afraid that you’ll find me even more irresistible after a few drinks?” Nicholas teased.

“No. I want to stay sober tonight just in case the Snow Queen decides to crash our date.”

“You still think her being here has something to do with you.” he huffed while trying to play it cool.

“I don’t think it. I know it.” she defended, “There was a puddle next to my car this afternoon.”

“A puddle?” he asked trying not to laugh, “What’s next? A cloud?”

“Nicky…” Emma sighed.

“Emma, I didn’t bring you here to worry about the Snow Queen.” he said taking her hands in his own, “I brought you here to celebrate a spectacular year of being with you and to show you a good time.”

“Sigh…alright.” she relented bringing back her smile, “Which reminds me. I got you something, too.”

Reaching into her purse, and pulled out a new silver watch and began to put it on Nicholas’s wrist. “I know you’re smart enough to tell what time of day it is by looking at the sky or whatever, but I think this’ll look good on you.”

“Thanks, babe.” he smiled before pulling up her hand to kiss it. As he did, their waiter came over with their drinks while a man staggered past them which resulted in a little of the wine splashing on Emma’s dress.

“Oh, my God. Are you alright, mate?” he asked.

“Really?” Emma groaned.

Outraged, Nicholas grabbed the man by his jacket ready to teach him a lesson. But before he could make his threat, he immediately recognized the man who in turn recognized him as well.

“Will Scarlet?” he asked.

“Agent Flamel?” Will asked causing Nicholas to panic at his cover being blown. Thankfully, Emma was more focused on drying her dress and didn’t catch that little tidbit. Without hesitation, Nicholas used his alchemy to slide Will across the floor and out into the streets before he could say anything else related to the League.

“That was too close.” Nicholas thought trying to compose himself, “Why is it that all of the League’s problems have been happening because of people from Robin’s past?!”

“Nicholas?” Emma asked snapping the alchemist out of his thoughts, “Babe, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” he replied looking away from the door and back at her, “Nothing at all. Because we are on a date celebrating our anniversary and I am not going to let some drunken moron ruin it.”

For the rest of the evening, no other unwanted circumstances occurred allowing the happy couple to enjoy their anniversary to the fullest. Well, not entirely to the fullest on account of Emma’s overprotective parent’s (namely father) made a point to ensure that Emma at the age of twenty-nine, almost thirty, practically had a curfew.

In blatant terms, they were once again being cock-blocked.

Moving on from that, Emma walked up the stairs to her home while wearing Nicholas’s jacket while holding onto his arm like a love-struck teenager. In her defense, she rarely had the chance to act like this so she was going to express her feelings for as long and hard as she could before resuming her tough-girl personality.

“Well, not bad. You actually managed to make me forget that Storybrooke was under siege from an evil Snow Queen.” Emma praised.

“I was worried that our run-in with that guy at the restaurant might have killed the mood tonight. I apologize for overreacting and making a scene with my alchemy like that.” Nicholas apologized looking guilty as Emma took his hands in hers.

“Hey. It’s okay. You want to come in and have coffee with my parents, a newborn and a human ice maker?” she asked jokingly, “I really need my own place.”

“Look at this way, you don’t live with Regina like I do.” Nicholas laughed, “Maybe next year.”

“Next year? That sounds pretty optimistic.” Emma teased with a playful grin even though she liked the thought.

As she said this, Mina’s ring suddenly felt heavier in Nicholas’s pocket. “Oh, I don’t plan on letting you go anytime soon, Savior. You can count on that.”

She then took the initiative to pull him in for one last kiss. With her heart fluttering, Emma pulled away with a huge smile as she shrugged the jacket off. While her back was turned, Nicholas couldn’t help but fiddle with the box in his pocket trying not to sweat.

“Hey, Emma.” he said quickly.

“Yeah?” she asked turning towards him.

“I, uh…I…love you.” he said finally deciding on his choice of words.

“Hmm.” she hummed happily, “I love you, too. Goodnight, Nicholas.”

“Good night.” he whispered as she closed the door. On the other side, Emma pressed herself against the door letting all the butterflies in her stomach fly out.

“So how was it?” Snow asked surprising her daughter who finally noticed her parents sitting on the couch staring at her; Snow looking happier than David for obvious reasons. 

“You guys are still awake.” Emma chuckled.

“We want to hear everything about the date.” Snow said.

“Just for the record, some of us don’t want to hear…everything.” David clarified.

“How was the restaurant? Did you go anywhere after? Was there a goodnight kiss? Oh, did he propose?” Snow asked without pausing for an answer.

“That, for instance, is something I don’t want to know about.” David added.

“I really need to get my own place.” Emma sighed with a faint smile, “Goodnight, guys.”

“She seems happy.” Snow said as Emma went upstairs.

“I guess he really changed for her.” David acknowledged.

“I can hear you guys.” Emma informed from her room.

Outside, as he walked to his car, Nicholas couldn’t help but mull over his thoughts. Some were about Emma, some were about the ring and some were about his concerns over his confrontation with Will Scarlet; that was definitely something he was going to talk about with the others once he got back to the laboratory.

Once he arrived, he found the four men asleep on the poker table with their liquor bottles empty and dry as per usual whenever the deck of cards were brought out. “Heh. Somethings will never change.” he chuckled softly.

“Quite the quartet of lightweights, wouldn’t you say?” Mina whispered from the nearby kitchen.

“Something tells me that Skinner and Sawyer were the only ones to pass out and the two geezers fell asleep on their own.” he smirked.

“So, how was it?” she asked, “Did you give Emma the ring?”

“Oh.” he said shocked that the vampire would get right to the point, “Uh, well, I-”

“I knew it.” Mina groaned, “Boys! Wake up! Nicholas chickened out!”

“Called it! Pay up, Skinner!” Sawyer slurred as his head shot up from the table and then smack it as he fell unconscious again.

“Argh! Thas the las time I put faith in your romantical side, Nicholas Fla-Flamel!” Skinner slurred as he pulled out twenty bucks and threw them at Sawyer’s head before tugging on his hat and falling back asleep.

“I did not chicken out!” Nicholas defended, “Besides, you guys will want to stay awake for what I have to tell you.”

“Save it until morning, boy.” Quartermain groaned as he covered his face with his hat.

“Will Scarlet is in Storybrooke and he called me Agent Flamel in public.” Nicholas flatly informed causing everyone to scramble awake and look at him, “Feel like waiting until morning, now?”

“What do you mean he called you Agent Flamel?” Quartermain hotly asked.

“Exactly as I said. He bumped into our waiter, got wine on Emma, I pulled him in about ready to clock him in the face and realized it was him. And as soon as I did, he called me that out of shock at seeing my face after all these years.” he explained.

“Please tell me Emma didn’t hear that.” Sawyer groaned as he dragged his hands down his face.

“No, she was too busy trying to dry off the mess he made before I threw him out with my alchemy. That’s not what I’m concerned about. What I’m concerned about is that we now have two possible threats of exposure in addition to our base being compromised by the dark one who is now in possession of the Hat!”

“Actually, your sister hasn’t been able to find a way to unfreeze Marian yet, so really, we just have the one threat of exposure right now.” Skinner corrected.

“Still! We all know that Will has a hard time keeping his mouth shut, especially when he’s drunk-which happens often!” Nicholas exclaimed.

“I don’t understand. Last I heard, Scarlet was still in Wonderland ruling alongside the Red Queen after they got back together and took down Jafar.” Sawyer recalled.

“Apparently, it didn’t work out unless Snow White and Prince Charming’s curse brought him here by mistake.” Nemo speculated.

“Or both.” Nicholas supplied, “Whatever the reason behind him being here, Scarlet was a high ranking member of the Merry Men. Robin put more of his trust and faith in him than he ever did Friar Tuck or Little John and he knows almost as much business about the League as Robin did before he left. What if he decides to let a few things slip to some of the townsfolk? What then?”

“Depending on how much time we have left until the Promised Day, we’ll need to be cautious towards whomever he tells if he decides too.” Mina reminded, “How much longer do we have, Nicholas?”

“We’re looking at a little less than half a year; five months at most. And we still only have two human sacrifices right now, myself and Gold. That’s definitely something we cannot let the public know yet. I don’t care if our cover is blown first, we need to keep the Promised Day under wraps until all five sacrifices are here.” he stressed.

“We shouldn’t need to worry about Scarlet revealing that anytime soon.” Quartermain coaxed, “Locksley wasn’t briefed on this until after you ran into him after we returned to the Enchanted Forest.”

“Excellent point, Mr. Q. But what happens if he spills the beans on us and Nicholas is left to face the heat again as the Charmings and the others begin questioning him like last time?” Mina asked, “We cannot afford to keep making slip ups like we have been lately.”

“So, what? We just gonna kill ‘em then?” Skinner asked.

“It’s your call, boss.” Nicholas sighed with his faces in his hands.

“…When next you see him, I want you to give him this message, Flamel. And tell him it came directly from me.” Quartermain growled as he slammed his fist on the table in anger.

The following morning, Nicholas decided to check in on his favorite blonde at the sheriff’s station. Ironically, as he entered the office, he spotted Will sleeping in one of the cells and as soon as he woke up, he cringed at the sight of both him and Emma.

“Oh, bloody hell.” he groaned.

“Good morning, sunshine.” Emma mocked, “Want to tell me why you broke into the library last night?”

“The what?” he asked, “Oh, that’s what that place was? I just thought it was a poorly stocked pub.”

“Okay, I get it. Every town needs a village idiot, but your little stunt pulled me away from an important investigation and interrupted my night off. Start talking.”

“The last thing I remember is getting thrown out by your lover, and then I eased my pain with a nice bottle of whiskey.” Will replied.

“Did you do it with all your friends, Alice and the White Rabbit?” Emma asked holding up a copy of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland along with a torn page showing the illustration of the Red Queen, “This was on you in the library. Mean anything to you?”

“Nope. Doesn’t mean a thing.” he lied stiffly while eying Nicholas.

“Well, have fun reading, then.” she said tossing the book in the cell.

“You’re just gonna keep me here because I broke into a bloody library?” Will asked.

“Because you crashed my anniversary.” Emma snapped before turning to Nicholas with a better mood, “Which turned out pretty good, despite the rude interruption.”

“Emma,” David called from her desk behind the glass, “There’s something I need to show you.”

“Okay, but make it fast. I want to go after the Snow Queen before the trail gets…cold.” she said as she entered the office giving Nicholas the chance to give Quartermain’s message.

“Hello, Will.” he said standing in front of the cell.

“Agent Flamel.” he nodded, “Let me guess, you’re here to kill me, aren’t you?”

“No. Not today, at least.” he replied, “For now, I’ve just been told to give you a message. I believe that you can recall that Allan Quartermain is Senior Field Agent and head of my branch of the League?”

“Hard to forget that old tiger.” Will remarked, “What about him?”

“He’s asked me to give you a message; directly from his mouth.” Nicholas informed still looking emotionless before changing his voice to match Quartermain’s, “He said, ‘Will Scarlet may live as long as he manages to keep his trap shut about our business. If he fails to do so, it’s either my boot or my shot gun up his arse.’ Also, you will be kept under surveillance by Nemo’s men and if you let anything about us slip, sober or not, they have permission to but a bullet through your head.”

“And here I thought Quartermain’s boys were getting soft.” Will joked, “Don’t worry, mate. Your secret’s safe with me. I washed me hands clean of the League when I left Robbie.”

“Spare me the attempt at what you think is silver-tongue banter, Scarlet. We both know that anyone involved with LXG has anything but clean hands.” Nicholas flatly spat, “Just keep in mind what I’ve said and we won’t have any issues. Okay?”

“Crystal clear.” Will nodded.

Once business was taken care of with the former Merry Man and night fell, Nicholas returned to the temporary base to report back to the others. Oddly enough, the only one he found was Mina sitting in her chair again.

“Good news?” she asked.

“I’d say so. We shouldn’t have to worry about William any time soon so all we have to deal with now is getting our mansion and the Hat back.” Nicholas informed.

“And you getting down on one knee and proposing to Emma.” Mina added while turning a page in her book.

“Mina,” he sighed, “Are you going to keep pestering me about this until I actually do it?”

“I’ll give you three guesses as to what my answer is.” she replied before sighing and shutting her book, “Why didn’t you do it? You had the perfect setting: a romantic restaurant, subtle music, and on your anniversary, too. What went wrong?”

“…Do you really have to ask?” he muttered plopping on the sofa, “You know what’s coming.”

“Sigh…you’re worried about the Promised Day.” she realized before going over to sit next to him, “Nicholas, it’s going to be fine. We’ve faced worse before.”

“…That’s exactly what you told Henry and Edward and look what happened to them.” Nicholas bitterly reminded, “You don’t know how dangerous he can be. You don’t know him like I do. Even I don’t know if I’ll survive in the end.”

“And that frightens you?” Mina asked.

“No. I’m not afraid to die. I’ve seen and caused too much death to fear such a thing.” he replied.

“Then what is it? Tell me.” she gently pleaded.

“…I don’t want to hurt her.” he muttered sadly, “If she lives and I die, I don’t want to break her heart. She’s had that happen too many time, already. I couldn’t forgive myself if I ever let that happen to her because of me. Do I want to marry Emma? Of course, I do. But…I-I can’t…I can’t ask her when there’s a higher chance of me dying in the next six months.”

“…I understand.” Mina finally said, “Really, I do. But I want you to promise me something, Nicholas. When we do beat the Homunculus, and we will, I want you to grow a pair and propose to that girl or else I’m going to break your knee and drop you to the ground for you. Come here.”

Without any chance to argue, Nicholas was pulled into a warm and much needed hug by the beautiful vampire. True, Mina Harker was known to be a flirt, but when it came to Nicholas, she always treated him like the brother or son she never had; and not once did he ever complain.

They may act like they want to kill each other all the time, but in this branch of the League, everyone was considered family and like in every family, you looked out for each other. No matter how hard times are, no matter what lies ahead, you look out for your family and keep them safe. That’s always been the unspoken rule and it will always be upheld in this branch of the League.

And if you didn’t, Quartermain would shoot you in the head.


	39. The Snow Queen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Several days after their anniversary, and a brief run in with the Snow Queen’s magic, Nicholas decided to check in on Emma at the Sheriff’s Station. Knocking on the office door, the young alchemist gained his girlfriend’s attention.

“Howdy, sheriff.” he teased with a hick accent.

“Were the hell have you been all day?” she chuckled as he leaned over to kiss her cheek.

“I told you, today’s my sleeping day.” he replied.

“Oh, yeah. I thought you were kidding.” she replied.

“Nope. Hey, when you regularly go three weeks without any sleep like I do, you’ll wanna sleep in even longer than I do.”

“Is that why you said you were gonna be in one of those secret underground labs of yours?” Emma asked with a smirk.

“No. That was because if I did that at home I’d freak everyone who could hear me out because of my night terrors.” he replied not seeing anything wrong or odd with his sentence.

“Night terrors?” she asked.

“Yeah, you know. Thrashing around in my sleep, knocking things over and breaking them. Me screaming bloody murder as I relive my traumatic past as a slave and intentionally/unintentionally hurting myself to take my mind off the mental pain. You know…a night terror.” he explained without any sign of negative emotions.

“…Okay then.” Emma drawled hoping to change the subject.

“You okay?” Nicholas asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just spent the past couple of hours dealing with your sister and the Snow Queen.” she replied.

“Regina still giving you a hard time?” he asked taking the chance to rub the blonde’s shoulders.

“Actually, I think I’ve finally gotten through to her and patched things up.” she informed.

“Great. So why are you looking at that box with a look of sad nostalgia?” he asked.

“Because it has what’s left of my childhood.”

“Can I see what’s inside?” he asked. Emma said nothing as she opened the box and rummaged through the near forgotten contents inside. “Are you okay?”

“I think so.” she nodded before snorting at the sight of her old glasses. Nicholas continued to smile in amusement at all the things that made up his lover’s past; that is until he spotted a picture of her with Neal. Emma struggled with her forming tears before grabbing an old camquarter and hooking it up to the T.V.

“I haven’t watched this since I recorded it, but some things happened today, made me think about the past.” Emma sighed.

“I’m here for you if you’re ready to watch it.” Nicholas softly said taking her hand in his, “Plus, I wouldn’t mind seeing a part of your beginnings.”

Emma just smiled at him with love before embracing herself to face her past. Once she presses play, a younger Emma, roughly 13, was giggling and making faces at the camera with another girl about her age with long black hair.

“Who’s that?” he asked.

“Just an old friend.” Emma whispered as Nicholas put his arm around her. The video then went static before another recording appeared only this time, Emma was not as happy as before. In it, she was still the same age as before but trying to take back her camera from some chubby boy that kept teasing her.

“I’m guessing he wasn’t another old friend?” Nicholas asked.

“I have no idea. I don’t remember any of this. Maybe my next foster home?” she replied feeling confused.

“Blocked it out? Unpleasant time?”

“I guess.” she said no less perplexed. The next person to show up on the screen was definitely familiar and shocked the happy couple. It was the Snow Queen of all people, dressed in modern clothes defending Emma from the bully.

“What the hell is this?” Nicholas asked as they both stared at the screen.

“I don’t know.” Emma said in shock.

The next day, Emma called everyone over to the station to show them what they discovered. Needless to say, everyone was just as surprised as they were.

“Emma, that’s you.” Snow said taking in the sight of her daughter, “You must be-”

“Thirteen, maybe fourteen.” Emma replied.

“Are you missing the part where she’s with the Snow Queen?” Regina asked clearly baffled, “Emma, you knew her before you came to Storybrooke?”

“Apparently, my run-in with her in town wasn’t the only memory she erased. All this time in this foster home, or whatever that place was, it’s gone.” she explained.

“Look, I-I just don’t understand how she ended up in this world.” Belle said.

“We were hoping Gold could tell us that.” Emma replied looking at the former cripple, “You spent more time trying to get here than anyone. How the hell did she do it?”

“Considering the time I spent on the same task, I’d love to know.” he replied clearly miffed.

“Does it really matter how she got to Emma?” David asked, “I mean, shouldn’t we be more concerned about why?”

“For once, I agree with sheep-head, here.” Nicholas commented.

“Obviously, she needed her for something. But what?” Regina asked, “Well, that’s our next problem.”

“Well, we know she’s hiding somewhere in the North woods. We combed every inch of her shop. We tore apart her house. She must have cleared everything out days before.” David speculated.

“Which means she must be hiding something.” Hook pointed out.

“Question is where?” Nicholas asked.

“What about her ice-cream truck?” Henry asked.

“Whoa, Snow Queen has an ice-cream truck?” Emma asked.

“You sound surprised. The town was made during 83, remember?” Nicholas reminded.

“Then we split up into groups. We search the town, the woods. Nicholas, Regina, Hook, Emma, you take the west. Gold, you’re with me for the east.” David assigned.

“I think we all know I work best alone.” Gold argued.

“Well, no time to argue that.” he nodded, “Belle, how are you at tracking?”

“Uh, actually, I-I think I’ll be more helpful at the library.” Belle offered, “Maybe I can dig something up on the Snow Queen.”

“I’d like to come with you, Belle, if that’s okay?” Elsa asked, “Maybe something about my sister will be there, too. Unless you’d rather not have the company?” she asked noticing Belle’s expression.

“No, n-not at all.” she assured, “I would love some.”

After everyone went their separate ways, Nicholas and the others located the truck with Robin and some of his men’s assistance. “David, call off the search party.” Emma said into her walkie, “We found the truck near the Merry Men’s camp.”

“Thanks for keeping an eye out.” Nicholas said to his fellow Leaguer.

“Gladly.” he nodded, “Your lovely Savior is the first sheriff I don’t mind assisting. Uh, Regina, there’s something I would like to talk to you about.”

“Uh, in case you haven’t noticed, I’m about to storm an evil ice-cream truck.” Regina said awkwardly.

“There’s a sentence you don’t hear every day.” Nicholas chuckled.

“You could have just said ‘maybe later’.” Emma offered.

“I know you’re trying to make everything better, but staying out of it is your best bet.” Regina retorted, “It’s bad enough I’m stuck here with you making eyes with my little brother.”

“I don’t make eyes.” Emma sighed as Hook opened up the truck ahead of them.

“It appears she beat us to it.” he informed as they climbed inside.

“What now?” Regina asked, “Should we question the cows she gets her milk from?”

“If we do, it’s probably best if I stay behind. The temptation of cow-tipping is too great for me.” Nicholas joked while Emma rolled her eyes and examined a locked freezer.

“Hang on. Look. Who locks their freezer? Was she afraid someone was gonna steal the Rocky Road?” she asked.

“Stand back.” Hook said before breaking the lock with his namesake. Inside was something no one expected, a large folder filled with papers with one thing in common; Emma.

“Looks like the dairy queen’s been following me for a long time.” Emma said holding up a copy of a newspaper reporting when she and Pinocchio arrived in this realm.

“Is it just me, or am I not the only making snarky remarks anymore?” Nicholas asked, “I feel like you guys are stealing my thunder, or something.”

“Oh, shut up, Nicholas.” Regina groaned as she climbed out of the trunk.

“…I think that’s actually the first time she’s ever told me to shut up.” he said looking at Emma and Hook.

“According to this she was my foster parent for six months.” Emma said as she looked through the folder, “That’s the longest I was ever in one spot, but I don’t remember a second of it.”

“You alright, Swan?” Hook asked.

“I’m fine. It was all a long time ago.” she sighed.

“Perhaps, but wounds made when we’re young tend to linger.” Nicholas reminded as he struck a match and lit his pipe while he noticed Emma staring at an old painting, “What’s that?”

“It’s a painting I did when I was in school.” she informed.

“What about it?” he asked.

“It’s not the only one. This crazy woman has a whole file of my old art projects and essays…just like the ones we have for Henry.” Emma said beginning to realize something, “You don’t keep stuff like this unless you care about someone.”

“I don’t know if I’d rather want boss to do this or just keep slapping me upside the head to show his affection.” Nicholas grimaced while flashes of years’ worth of said slaps ran through his mind.

“Well, perhaps the Snow Queen wasn’t simply using you. Perhaps she’d grown fond of you over time.” Hook speculated while Emma opened an old card.

“Looks like the feeling was mutual.” she said before reading aloud, “Thanks for being the family I never had. Love, Emma.”

“Looks like you two were close once.” Nicholas observed while letting out smoke.

“But she still erased my memories. Something must have happened to change all that. There has to be a clue as to why.”

“Perhaps there is, if you can read hieroglyphs.” Hook said pulling out an old scroll written in what resembled Nordic runes.

“This isn’t from our world.” Emma said, “What the hell was she doing with me?”

Later that day, Elsa barged into the station to tell Emma and Nicholas important news she discovered in the library. “Back up. The Snow Queen is your aunt?” Nicholas asked.

“According to this heraldry book I found in the library.” Elsa replied showing the couple the book, “Her name is Ingrid.”

“I didn’t realize Queen Gerda had any sisters.” Nicholas said, “I specifically remember snooping around every book I could find during my time at your castle and I never came across anything that indicated she had one sister, let alone two.”

“I’m as surprised as you are.” Elsa nodded.

“Well, spend a little more time in this town and you’ll realize almost everyone’s related.” Emma remarked.

“This book traces the lineage in Arendelle for generations.” Elsa said pointing to the pictures of her relatives, “That’s Gerda, my mother. And this is Helga, my other aunt.”

“Who bears a striking resemblance to you, Emma.” Nicholas observed, “Maybe that’s why she was so obsessed with you, why she kept all that stuff from your childhood.”

“She came to this world looking for blondes?” Emma asked as Elsa reached for the old scroll from earlier, “There’s a lot more than just me.”

“God help us if there are.” Nicholas joked causing Emma to smack his chest.

“She wasn’t looking for a blonde. She was looking for the Savior.” Elsa informed as she read the scroll.

“What?” she asked.

“This scroll, the writing is runic. It’s a prophecy. It says, ‘the name of the Savior is Emma.’” Elsa read.

“She knew?”

“Before you even did. She knew you were powerful.”

“But why?” Nicholas asked.

“It says it right here. ‘And the Savior shall become Ingrid’s sister.’”

“What the hell does that mean?” Emma asked.

“Well, my mother died, and her other sister, she’s not around anymore. I think Ingrid believes in this prophecy. I think she’s looking to replace them.” Elsa guessed as Belle barged in looking panicked and guilty.

“Elsa.” she said.

“Belle, what is it?” she asked sweetly.

“I…-I’m sorry. I am so, so sorry, but…I’ve been keeping a secret. I know your sister, Anna. She helped me once. But when I had a chance to help her, I let her down.” Belle admitted, “And because I did, she was captured by the Snow Queen.”

“What?” Elsa asked, “Where did this happen? When?”

“Arendelle…a long, long time ago. And I have no idea where she is now.” she said while Elsa looked as though she was about to have a panic attack, “But, uh, I’m afraid we have a more pressing concern. The Snow Queen has a mirror imbued with terrible magic that can do terrible things.”

“Mirror? Easy enough, let’s just go smash the damn thing.” Nicholas suggested.

“It’s not that simple.” Belle argued, “Rumple told me it’s part of an awful spell; the Spell of Shattered Sight. If she casts it, its magic will make everyone in Storybrooke turn on one another. And no offense, Nicholas, but I think I speak for everyone when I say that we’d be in trouble if you were affected by this, too.”

“I wouldn’t be the only one to worry about.” he thought thinking about the other League members and what they could be capable of, “The town would destroy itself.”

“And there would be no one left.” Belle nodded.

“Except us.” Emma said looking at Elsa.

“What makes you think that she’d spare you and Elsa?” Belle asked.

“Because of this.” Emma sighed tapping the book and scroll.

“She wants it to be just the three of us.” Elsa whispered in fear.

“Her perfect family.” Emma nodded.

The next day, after receiving a call from David, Emma was able to intercept the Snow Queen and capture her at the clock tower easily; too easily from Nicholas’s perspective. As she and Elsa were at the station to perform the interrogation, Nicholas was at home enjoying at little quiet time and one of his delicious plums while Regina looked over Henry’s storybook.

“Hey, Uncle Nicholas.” Henry said coming into the den looking sharply dressed holding a tie, “Could you help me with this thing?”

“Well, look at you all dressed up.” Nicholas smirked, “What’s the occasion?”

“I’m getting married.” he replied causing Regina to look like the world was coming to an end, “Work.” he clarified, “With Grandpa. At the shop.”

“Heh, heh, that’s my boy.” Nicholas laughed in his head at Henry’s wit.

“He said if I was gonna learn the family business, I’d have to represent the family business. Which would be fine if it didn’t also mean wearing a tie.”

“Sure thing.” Nicholas said getting up and began to tie it with expertise, “By the way, if you ever see your grandpa try to make a joke by chasing you around with an orange peel that looks like fangs in his mouth, tell him you’re not Michael Corleone.”

“Godfather reference?” Henry asked smirking.

“Don’t ask me about my business, Henry.” Nicholas replied trying to sound like Al Pacino.

“Well, I think you look very handsome.” Regina complimented while Henry noticed she was hurting inside.

“Hey, Uncle?” Henry asked, “Can I have a minute with Mom for a sec? Alone?”

“Hmm.” Nicholas grinned feeling proud of his nephew over his concern for Regina, “Sure thing, kiddo. In fact, I think I’m gonna head over to the clock tower and check out the Snow Queen’s mirror with Elsa and the others.”

And with that, Nicholas transported himself to the entrance of the library and made his way up to the top where he found Elsa, Hook and David examining the large white mirror.

“Hey, guys.” he greeted, “Anything interesting yet?”

“Not hardly.” Hook remarked, “I mean, this is what we’ve been worried about? Shouldn’t it be shaking or doing something evil?”

“Agreed.” Elsa nodded as Belle came up and joined them, “It feels like just a harmless looking glass to me.”

“I’ve found nothing to counteract the spell yet.” she informed before overreacting at everyone staring at the glass, “Hey, stop! Do not look in that thing. It’ll make you see the worst in yourself.”

“You sure?” Nicholas asked, “I mean, I know my self-esteem can be pretty low sometimes, but I don’t feel any different even in the brief time I’ve been looking at this thing.”

“Aye,” Hook nodded, “I’ve been staring at it all day, and I think I’m even more devilishly handsome and charming than usual.”

“Well, we know Hook’s self-esteem and ego are as high up as ever.” Nicholas dryly thought.

“Uh…this isn’t the same mirror.” Belle informed.

“Why would the Snow Queen risk coming all the way out here to plant a fake mirror?” Elsa asked.

“Because she wanted to get caught.” David realized before everyone else caught on and followed him out to the sheriff’s station. Unfortunately, as soon as they arrived, they found all the entrances and windows glazed over by Ingrid’s ice which sent them over to Gold’s for his help.

“Ah, this kind of procession never bodes well.” Rumple muttered as they barged into the shop.

“Save it, snaggle-tooth.” Nicholas snapped, “The Snow Queen iced over the locks of the sheriff’s station. Emma’s trapped inside with her.”

“We need your help, Rumple. You must be able to get us in there.” Belle pleaded.

“How could I ever turn down the pleas of my beloved wife?” Rumple asked, “After you.”

Once again, the party rushed outside in order to protect their friend from any harm from the Snow Queen. As they headed over to the station, Mary Margaret noticed them outside of Granny’s and joined them as her husband filled her in on the situation. Hearing a loud explosion, they followed the sound to the back parking lot and saw Emma looking at a massive hole in the building in shock.

“Emma!” David shouted, “Are you alright?”

“We were so worried.” Snow panted.

“Wait!” Emma warned.

“Seems you didn’t need my help after all.” Gold remarked.

“Emma, what did that bitch do to the sheriff’s station?” Nicholas asked.

“The bitch who did this was not the Snow Queen. It was me.” Emma informed looking scared.

“What?” David asked as he and Nicholas tried to soothe the frightened blonde.

“Just keep your distance.” she warned while trying to get away, “I don’t know if I can control myself. I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

“Emma.” Nicholas begged.

“We should heed her words.” Rumple warned.

“Emma, we can help.” Elsa assured.

“Just stay away!” Emma pleaded as Nicholas tried to grab her arm, “Let me go!”

In her attempt to shrug her boyfriend off, Emma unintentionally blasted him and a nearby streetlight with her magic as the station’s lights exploded. The streetlight began to tip over which managed to catch David’s arm during the fall causing him to fall to the ground and clutch his arm in pain.

“David!” Snow cried rushing to her husband.

As for Nicholas, well, he managed to receive a greater injury. Now, remember, any time Nicholas is struck by magic, his body doesn’t respond well and in this case, that was proven once again. When Emma tried to shove him off with her arm, the blast hit the entire left side of his upper torso and head, which would have knocked his Philosopher’s Stone out of him if he hadn’t moved it to the other side of his chest. Unfortunately, this still rendered him to the ground with a large portion of his body destroyed and being slowly/painfully regenerated.

Emma could only look at them in horror feeling nothing but guilt and heartache at what she had done. And to make matters worse, Snow decided to open her mouth before thinking; again.

“Emma!” she snapped hotly making her daughter only feel worse. Seeing her daughter’s expression, Snow realized what she did and tried to take it back knowing fully well what Emma was going to do next: run. “Emma. Emma, wait.”

But it was too late. Emma saw the look of fear and anger in her parents’ eyes and that was more than enough for her to take the chance to run over to her car and drive away.

“No, please, come back!” Snow cried, “It’s okay!”

“Swan!” Hook called.

“Emma!” Nicholas shouted through his pain. Emma only ignored them as she got in her car and drove away. Little did any of them notice, but Ingrid watched the entire scene play out from behind a nearby building.

After hours of searching, Hook, Elsa, Nicholas and David returned to the loft to let Snow know what they found.

“Did you find her?” she asked.

“No. We looked everywhere, which means only one thing.” David replied.

“She doesn’t want to be found.” Hook finished.

“I’ve been through this.” said Elsa, “And I saw the same looks on my loved ones’ faces as Emma just did. I saw fear.”

“…David, we failed today.” Snow sighed causing Nicholas’s jaw to clench and veins to rise on his temples, “When our daughter needed us most, she looked in our eyes, and…all she saw was fear. This Snow Queen has some mirror that turns us against each other? Well, she doesn’t need it. Look at us. We’re doing it to ourselves.”

“…That’s rich, seeing as you were the only one who scared her off.” Nicholas growled trying to control his rage, especially around baby Neal.

“Nicholas?” Elsa asked not liking where her old friend was taking this.

“Mate, try to calm down.” Hook coached.

“You got something you wanna say, Flamel?” David hotly asked.

“I believe I just said it.” Nicholas snapped seething with anger, “I only angry with your self-absorbed wife right now, you sure you wanna get on my bad side, too?”

“Hey!” David snapped shoving the alchemist back, “Don’t talk about my wife like that!”

“Oh, so you do wanna play this game then.” Nicholas said about ready to push back only to be held back by Killian and Elsa.

“Easy, mate. Easy.” Killian said grabbing the alchemist’s arms while Elsa got in front of him, “You’re upset, we get that. Why don’t you just head outside, take a minute and smoke one of those cigars of yours?”

“Oh, there aren’t enough cigars in this realm to calm me down right now.” Nicholas snarled glaring at the Charmings, “You have no idea what’s out there. None of you! You have no idea the kind of danger Emma is in out there alone!”

**OUaT**

As the hours went by in Storybrooke, the ever growing brighter color of the orange sunrise slowly began to begin. As it did, an unknown tunnel that led into the depths of Storybrooke became easier to see and the growling beast inside. In the shadows, two round, red eyes glowed as the creature that owned them trudge out into the fresh morning air. Hunched over and panting with excitement, the creature raised its arms and fists into the air happily.

“Time to eat!!!” it cried letting its tongue hang from its mouth. Funny thing about this creature’s tongue.

It had an Ouroborous tattoo on it identical to Lust’s.


	40. Smash the Mirror & Fall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

“Ah, damn it!” cried a scratchy male voice. In the crisp morning air of Storybrooke, a young man with black hair slicked back wearing black short and a sleeveless muscle shirt with a black head band looked around in panic searching for something.

“I can’t believe that fat idiot managed to find a way out!” he yelled clutching his head, “Father’s going to be furious when he finds out.”

“Oh, he knows.” another man’s voice said from inside the tunnel. Coming into the light, the newcomer was dressed in black slacks and a sleeveless muscle shirt and looked to be a few years older than the younger man and had a confident, almost arrogant, smile. “You really, screwed up this time, Envy. Letting Gluttony out of your sight this close to one of the few entrances Pops hasn’t sealed off. How embarrassing.”

“And I take it you’re just gonna stand there and mock me, aren’t you, Greed?” Envy asked.

“Well, as much I enjoy doing it, Father wanted me to tell you that you have until noon to find Gluttony and bring him back. Otherwise, you might just find yourself taking trip back to where we come from, if you catch my drift.” Greed replied smirking.

“Shouldn’t be too hard.” Envy scoffed, “No one comes through this neck of the woods so it’s not like there’s anybody around for him to eat.”

“You’d think so, wouldn’t you?” Greed asked with a scoff.

“What are you talking about?”

“Oh, so you didn’t hear about what happened yesterday in town. Seems that the Savior is having a little trouble controlling her magic since she blasted a hole in the sheriff’s station yesterday. And as your luck would have it, she’s been hiding out around here all night with everyone out looking for her.” he said causing Envy’s eyes to widen, “And I don’t think I need to remind you that Father sees potential in her. So if Gluttony eats her because you let him wander off, you’re gonna be in trouble~!” Greed sang causing Envy to grit his teeth and snarl.

“Fine. I’ll go get ‘em.” Envy spat before running into the woods and doing something unexpected; he transformed himself into a hawk exactly like Nicholas would with his Stone.

Little did either of them know, the very person they were looking for was humming softly through the woods while clutching a headless baby deer in one hand as he yanked off a large chunk of its flesh with his teeth.

**OUaT**

Not much farther away, Emma was sleeping in the front seat of her car in the middle of a small clearing; that is until she was awakened by her hands sparking with raw magical energy. Seeing this, she tried to calm herself down while getting out of the vehicle in hopes of getting some fresh air. As she paced and tried to control herself, Emma heard the voice of the one person she didn’t want anywhere near her with her powers acting up, Henry.

“Mom?” he called approaching her.

“Henry?” she asked, “What are you doing here?”

“I’ve been out all night looking for you. Everyone has.” he replied.

“I told them all to stay away. I can’t control my powers right now. Listen, don’t worry about me. I’m gonna find a way to fix this. But until I do…you got to go.” Emma gently warned.

“No.” Henry argued, “You always think that pulling away from people will fix your problems, but it never does. I can help you.”

“Henry, just wait.” Emma pleaded as her son tried to take her hands, but as soon as he did, he was sent flying back by a powerful blast of magic. “Henry! Henry, are you okay?! You okay?”

“Y-yeah, I’m fine.” Henry replied finding a bit of blood from behind his ear as his mother came to check on him while keeping her distance.

“Is that a cut?” she asked, “Henry, what did I do?”

“I-it’s fine. I’m okay.” he tried to assure.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Emma said frantically.

“Mom-”

“Stop!” she snapped, “Please, don’t come any closer. I love you, kid, but you have to go.”

As she said this, another blast of magic fired from her hands uncontrollably. “Go!” she pleaded. With no other choice, Henry scrambled away and ran back to town.

“I know exactly how you feel.” Ingrid said suddenly appearing behind Emma, “Seeing the fear in his eyes.”

Emma was about to snap at her with an insult but instead fired off more of her magic into the air which only made her feel even more afraid. “You _are_ out of control. But, Emma, you’re not going to hurt me. Nor should you. I’m on your side.”

“Just leave me the hell alone.” Emma spat while storming off.

“You can run, but it won’t help.” Ingrid warned, “The only way this ends is by embracing who you are.”

“If it means hurting people I love, no, thanks.” she said walking further into the woods not knowing what lied ahead. Thankfully, Ingrid didn’t pursue Emma after she stormed off. Not long after she left her former foster parent, Emma finally stumbled upon Gluttony as he finished off the remainder of his snack.

Picking up her scent, Gluttony turned his fat head to see Emma looking disgusted at all the blood on his face. “You smell like lemons.” he said grinning as he faced her and whipped the blood off his face, “Do you taste like lemons, too?”

**OUaT**

Once everyone returned to the loft after searching for Emma all night, Henry came back and told them about his encounter with his mother. After Snow cleaned up his wound and put him upstairs, Elsa decided to help by giving him some ice.

“How is he?” Nicholas asked.

“I gave him enough ice for the week.” she joked, “It should help with the swelling.”

“No. How is he?” Snow asked.

“…Upset.” Elsa relented, “I just wanted him to understand that Emma’s magic is tied to her emotions, like mine. The reason she hurt him is because she was trying so hard not to hurt him. It sounds very convoluted when I try to explain it now.”

“No. No, um, it makes perfect sense.” Snow agreed as Regina barged in.

“Where’s Henry? Is he okay?” she asked.

“He’s fine. He’s upstairs.” Nicholas replied, “We’ve been trying to call you all night.”

“Well, I’m sorry if I don’t respond to your every summons!” she snapped, “Though I did bring that locator potion you wanted. Next time, maybe try leading with, ‘thank you.’ Now, may I please see my son?”

“You might want to finish buttoning your shirt first.” Snow whispered only to be heard by Nicholas who groaned in disgust.

“Oh. Well, I was in a rush to get here.” Regina lied.

“Keep telling yourself that, sis.” Nicholas thought before thinking about Emma again.

**OUaT**

“Do I smell like what?” Emma asked baffled at the question, “Look, pal, I don’t know what your deal is, but trust me, you should keep your distance.”

Still giving that stupid, innocent smile, Gluttony sniffed the air around her, “I also smell somebody that smells like Father on you. Now how could that be?”

“What the hell is he talking about? His father?” Emma thought before realizing Gluttony charged at her with insane hunger. Raising her hands, Emma blasted the Homunculus back into a tree causing his head to split. Before the shock over killing someone could sink in, Emma noticed her attacker regenerate.

“That lightning, it’s just like how Nicholas heals!” she thought in shock.

“That hurt!” Gluttony cried with tears in his eyes, “I just want to eat you! So why did you kill me?”

“What the hell is this freak?” Emma thought before speaking, “Guess I don’t have to go easy on you, then.”

Getting serious, she sent another powerful burst of magic at Gluttony which destroyed his left arm and made him cry out in pain as he regenerated. With surprising agility, he jumped over to her and began to flail his strong arms at her only to miss at each swing. Emma tried to blast him again, but Gluttony finally managed to land a punch on her which knocked her out in the process.

Panting and smiling, the fat Homunculus looked down at the fallen Savior ready to eat with his fat tongue dangling out of his mouth. But before he could enjoy his meal, he was stopped by the sound of Envy’s voice.

“Stop it! Now, Gluttony!” he shouted hotly.

“Envy?” he asked confused.

“That stupid stomach of yours is going to get us all into trouble one of these days, you know that?” Envy spat, “Gah! I can’t believe you almost ate a candidate for human sacrifice!”

“I did?!” Gluttony asked looking frightened, “W-who?!”

“…You have no idea who this is, do you?” Envy dryly asked.

“…You mean her?!” he asked pointing at Emma.

“Yes, her, you idiot!” Envy shouted, “That’s Emma Swan, the Savior!”

“Really? I thought she’d be taller.”

“That’s not the point, you fat ass!” he screamed, “We’ll talk about this later, Father’s angry enough that you got out on my watch as it is. Let’s just go home before things get any worse. If Greed hasn’t done that already, that is.”

After the two artificial humans left, Emma eventually regained consciousness and found her hands sparking with magic once again. With no other option in mind, the Savior decided to go to the one person who she thought could help her; Rumplestiltskin.

**OUaT**

Back at the loft, everyone was still feeling down about not finding Emma when suddenly, Snow’s phone buzzed with Emma on the other line. “It’s her.” she informed before answering, “Oh, yes, yes. No, he’s fine. Emma, I am so sorry about what happened yesterday. I don’t want you to ever think that we are afraid of you. No, of course it matters…Emma, no, wait.”

“What did she say?” David asked.

“She said she’s going to get rid of her magic, forever.” Snow replied.

“How is that even possible?” Elsa asked.

“She said it will all be over soon, and she can’t wait to be home for a cocoa with cinnamon.”

“Did she say anything about the method?” Nicholas asked trying not to let anyone know he knew what was going on, “Was it a spell or a magic object of some kind?”

“Who cares how she’s doing it? That’s not what matters here.” David bluntly pointed out.

“No, of course not, you’re right.” Nicholas nodded, “I wonder if she tried to call me. Damn, must’ve left it in my car. Be back in a sec.”

Once he left the loft and headed down the stairs, he pulled out his phone and left a voicemail on his girlfriend’s phone warning her to stay away from Gold. “Emma, whatever it is you’re planning to do, don’t do it or else you’ll never be home for hot chocolate and cinnamon again.”

When he came back in, he noticed three things missing; Emma’s scarf, the locator potion, and Elsa. Needless to say, everyone went back to searching for Emma along with her fellow magic-wielding blonde. Fortunately for him, Nicholas was able to pick up the trail faster than anyone and ran towards the mansion where Emma and Elsa were safe and sound.

“Emma!” he cried once he spotted her before running up to hold her, “Are you alright?”

“She didn’t do it. She didn’t take away her magic.” Elsa informed happily.

“Wow, I’ve never seen people so happy about me not doing something.” Emma said while being squeezed.

“We’ll find another way to defeat the Snow Queen; together.” Nicholas promised before kissing his true love. Elsa simply blushed and looked away with a smirk.

“Mm. Easy, snake-boy, we’ve got company.” Emma reminded, “I didn’t know you were such a fan of my magic.”

“Why would you say that? I’m a fan of every part of you.” Nicholas smirked while noticing Emma’s odd expression, “You okay? You look at me any harder and you’re gonna drill a hole in my head.”

“Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just that…I saw something weird this morning that reminded me of you and not in a good way.” she replied.

“Uh…okay?” Nicholas replied not sure how to respond or feel to that, “Why don’t you go outside? The others are out waiting to see you, too.”

When he was sure the two ladies were gone, Nicholas headed over to the room Gold had placed the Hat in. When he opened the door, he found nothing which made him clench his fists on the doors in anger causing them to be crushed in his grip.

“That midget bastard!” he snarled before heading back outside. Fortunately, he made it just in time to watch Emma show off by making an aurora borealis turn into fireworks that lit up the sky. Naturally, everyone smiled at the spectacle including Nicholas who wrapped his arm around Emma and kissed her head.

“Mom, when did you get that?” Henry asked pointing at a strange yellow ribbon on her left wrist; which was identical to the one on Elsa’s.

“Emma, what’s happening?” Elsa asked as they struggled to take the ribbons off, “It won’t come off.”

“Mine won’t either.” she said as they both began to glow.

“I feel it too. It’s like it’s funneling all my magic away, like it’s harnessing it somehow.” said Elsa.

“Any idea what this is?” David asked.

“No.” Emma replied, “But I have a pretty good idea where it came from.”

Little did any of them know, but in her cave in the woods, Ingrid destroyed her mirror and finally enacted the Spell of Shattered Sight. Unlike Regina’s curse, this spell had a much slower pace, it hadn’t even reached the town yet the following morning.

“Belle was right.” Elsa said as everyone watched the spell’s cloud slowly approach the town, “My aunt is actually doing this.”

“Judging by the pace it’s currently at, I’d say we have until…sundown; at the most.” Nicholas estimated.

“We open the mines and the vault. We take shelter there.” David suggested.

“This is magic. It doesn’t care about ceilings.” Regina sighed, “By sundown, everyone in this town will be tearing each other apart.”

“Okay, the answer is simple. Let’s not be in town.” Emma suggested.

Over at the ice wall, the party tried to devise a way to break past it in hopes of escape. “Hardly an elegant solution.” Regina remarked.

“Nothing wrong with brute force if it works.” Emma countered.

“Well, if blasting the bloody thing with a bazooka doesn’t count as brute force, then I’d hate to know what does.” Hook commented glancing at Nicholas.

“Where the heck did you get a bazooka anyway?” Emma asked.

“I know a guy. Uh, Leroy, any ideas?” he asked trying to change the subject.

“If we can get over, we can build a frame, take people over one at a time. Maybe try making a ramp with your alchemy first.”

“Alrighty.” he nodded. Without so much as a twitch, the ground beneath him elevated into a ramp. Unfortunately, as soon as Nicholas made it to the top, the wall grew even taller and pierced his shoulders causing him to roll down the ramp. 

“Okay, that didn’t work.” he grunted while healing. Because of this, the base of the wall split and revealed something to Elsa; her sister’s necklace.

“Emma, look.” she said happily, “It’s Anna’s necklace. I thought it was lost, it’s like a miracle.

“Glade you found it.”

“It’s a sign, Emma, a sign we’re gonna win.”

“Is everyone into this hope thing now?” Regina asked.

“If we’re gonna win, we need to stop wasting time. Mom, Dad, Leroy, go tell everyone what’s going on. When this goes down, everyone needs to be separated from their loved ones if they don’t want to hurt each other. Killian, you and Ariel go to the waterfront, see if we can use boats to get some people out.”

“I have to warn Robin Hood. His camp’s not far from here.” Regina informed.

“Okay, go. Elsa, Nicholas and I are gonna talk to Gold, see if he has any ideas. Henry, you come with us.”

“No.” Regina interjected, “He’s with me. I’m Henry’s best chance.”

“That might not be true.” Elsa argued, “Emma and I? I think we’re immune.”

“What?” she asked.

“These ribbons. If the Snow Queen wants us to be her sisters, then the curse won’t affect us.” Elsa explained.

“So I should definitely watch Henry.” Emma stressed.

“No, you’re part of this nut job’s plan.” Regina debated, “I want Henry near me as long as it’s safe for him.”

“It’s okay, Mom. I’ll be fine with her.” Henry assured.

“One other thing.” Nicholas interjected, “I’m not going with you and Elsa.”

“Why not?” Emma asked.

“I have too many things to check and make sure stay safe when this spell hits. If I don’t, we’re all gonna be in trouble. I’ll meet you at the station later when I’m done.” he informed before pulling Emma into a hug and deconstructing himself away. His first stop, Robin’s camp where the others were.

When he reconstructed himself, he found his fellow agents gazing up at the cloud of magic and broken glass. “Guys!” he yelled gaining their attention, “Guys, we gotta move, now!”

“Nicholas?” Robin asked, “Mate, what are you doing here?”

“No time. Listen, Regina’s on her way here to warn you about the incoming spell. The rest of you need to get back into the tunnels before she gets here.” he explained, “Boss, have you come up with a way to keep you guys out of sight, yet?”

“That I’m leaving up to you, Flamel.” Quartermain gruffly said, “Although, it won’t be able to keep us at bay for long. Do you think you can avoid this damn thing?”

“I can try. I was gonna coat myself in my shield under a dome covered with my shadows. If that doesn’t work, then this town is gonna find out what LXG can do sooner than we wanted.”

“Wherever it is you plan on sealing them, I’m going with you.” Robin informed, “I may not be part of your branch, but my skills are dangerous enough to do tremendous damage to the townspeople.”

“Bud, you’re in LXG. Our branch or not, you’re certifiably capable of wiping out everyone in this town with little to no effort.” Sawyer reminded, “What’s the plan, Boss?”

“Flamel’s going to trap us with his alchemy before the spell hits far enough from the civilians. If he manages to spare himself, then it’ll be his job to keep the six of us at bay until the Savior defeats the Snow Queen and ends the spell.”

“And if I’m not?” Nicholas asked.

“Well, just think of how Sawyer and I repeatedly shot you in the head while Skinner broke your arms and legs last year.” Quartermain bluntly suggested, “Should be more than enough to kick-start you’re spell induced rage towards us causing you to come find us and fight us.”

“Well, with a plan like that just proves why you’re the boss, Boss.” Nicholas complimented, “Now hurry! Regina could be here any minute!”

**OUaT**

In another realm there was a kingdom completely frozen in solid ice along with everyone in it. This kingdom was known as Arendelle and inside the castle, Anna, now a beautiful young woman, and her fiancé Kristoff found themselves being thawed along with everything around them.

“Holy cats! That is cold!” Anna said the moment she could move.

“Ice is like that, I’ve noticed.” Kristoff commented as he tried to warm up.

“The urn!” Anna realized, “It was here. It’s gone, and so is Elsa and my aunt!”

“But I saw you with it.” Kristoff recalled.

“Well, now it’s missing, and Elsa is in it. I just have to get her out, let her know I didn’t mean it.” Anna rambled while stepping on something that crunched under her boots.

“What’s that?”

“It’s straw. Gold straw…Rumplestiltskin!” she realized, “Kristoff, my aunt doesn’t have the urn. He does.”

“You are literally hanging a big assumption on a really thin straw.” he bluntly pointed out.

“But it makes sense. She would never let someone walk off with something he valued.” Anna argued, “I should’ve known he’d follow me.”

“And this is…good news?” Kristoff asked.

“Don’t worry. We can get to him we can handle him. And even if we can’t, I know someone we can trust who can help us. Elsa is the only one who can rule Arendelle.”

“Um, I beg to differ.” argued a man with long sideburns as he barged in with several other brutes at his side with drawn swords.

“What are you doing here, Hans?” Anna asked her ex-fiancé and current enemy.

“Hearing you confess you attacked the reigning queen, and then lost her to another land, that sounds like treason to me. Doesn’t it, guys?” he asked his brothers.

“And to think I sang with you.” Anna spat in disgust causing Hans’s brothers to laugh while he blushed.

“You’re both under arrest, under my order as the new king of Arendelle.” Hans informed.

“What?” she asked.

“We were all frozen, but now that your sister’s spell has worn off, no one will argue with a new benevolent leader such as myself.”

“It wasn’t her.” Anna hissed.

“As if anyone will believe that.” Hans smirked arrogantly.

“Okay, you know what? You got us.” Kristoff said holding his arms up in surrender. Just as they were about to bind their hands, the young couple easily disarmed them and took their weapons turning the tables. When they had the chance, they made a break for the door in escape.

“Wait!” Anna said panting as they made it into the woods, “Stop! Too much running!”

“So,” Kristoff asked while panting, “Who’s this person we’re gonna get help from?”

“Heh, somebody Hans and Rumplestiltskin better be afraid of.” Anna laughed, “An old friend of mine; Nicholas Flamel.”

**OUaT**

“Uh, boss?” Nicholas asked looking skeptic, “Are you sure you want me to do this?”

“Would I ask otherwise?” Quartermain harshly asked as he and the others began to dig holes outside of town.

“I’m just feeling a little uncomfortable practically putting you guys, except Mina, into coffins.” he said.

“Lad, trust me, none of us want you to do it.” Skinner said dryly.

“They’re not actual coffins, Nicholas.” Nemo reminded, “We’re just having you put our containers in the ground so our inevitable escape will be somewhat more difficult for us.”

“Though, for the sake of dramatic effect, I would recommend making mine an actual coffin.” Mina suggested, “I am the living dead, after all.”

“I thought that was zombies, not vampires.” Sawyer said.

“No, you’re thinking the walking dead, man.” Nicholas corrected, “And thanks to my mother’s twisted sense of humor and manipulation, I speak from experience. Okay, so, we just need to wait on Robin and then you guys go six feet under, so to speak.”

“I swear, if you don’t put air holes in mine, I will kill you, Flamel.” Skinner threatened.

“Oh, don’t worry, Skinner, I will.” Nicholas replied before muttering, “Just probably not as many as the others after that little threat. Oh, this is gonna be one crazy ass, shit filled night!”

**OUaT**

Once Anna and Kristoff managed to make it to port, the searched for the one kind of ship they knew would take anybody for the right price, a pirate ship. “Okay, so all we need to do is find somebody here who’s a pirate to take us to Misthaven so we can find the alchemist friend of yours, right?” Kristoff asked.

“Right, and as luck would have it, this particular port is a certain pirate’s favorite so we know that there’s a good chance he’ll be here.” Anna nodded.

“And that would be…”

“Captain Blackbeard.” Anna replied not at all worried while her fiancé became pale with fear.

“Remind me, how do you know about all these dangerous people again?” he asked.

“I wouldn’t call Nicholas dangerous.” Anna smirked, “Although, he is kinda dangerous, but that’s only because he gets into trouble a lot. At least, he did back when we were kids, so he might be better at not doing that or he may be even worse than before.”

“How do you even know if this guy is still alive?”

“Considering that he’s immortal, I’d say pretty good.” Anna replied.

“Wait. You were serious about that?” Kristoff asked.

“Believe me, after watching him walk right into one of the display armors’ lances only to heal completely a few seconds later after saying, ‘oh, look at that, I’ve been impaled,’ there’s no arguing with him about that.” Anna replied dryly laughing at the somewhat dark memory.

“…Honey, have you ever noticed that a majority of the people in your life are weird?” he asked.

“Yes, but that’s just one of the things I love about you.” Anna replied misunderstanding the question.

“I didn’t exactly mean me.” he bluntly said as they came up to the Revenge, “So, I don’t see like a doorbell or anything so how do we-”

“Captain Blackbeard?” Anna called as she boarded the ship.

“Oh, okay. Just-just get on the ship full of pirates and zombies and hope for the best.” he said to himself out loud.

“Be it my birthday already?” Teach asked jokingly, “Or am I simply fortunate enough to find a beautiful young lass calling out my name?”

“An engaged lass, by the way.” Kristoff added as they approached the pirate.

“Congratulations, I suppose. To what do I owe the gift of your company, my child?” Teach asked stroking Anna’s cheek and braid.

“I am Princess Anna of Arendelle and I need you to take us to Misthaven on your ship.” Anna replied trying not to show fear.

“Hmm, demands from a princess. And what will you offer me in return?” he asked.

“Uh, wh-what’s your price? We’ll pay anything.” she replied.

“My weight in gold.” he answered.

“Oh, well, uh, if it’s not too delicate, how much…tonnage? What would you say you weigh, sir?” Anna asked getting nervous under the pirate’s gaze, “Oh, never mind. It’s fine. Sold! I mean, bought.”

“See?” she asked her fiancé, “I told you if we just keep the faith, everything’s gonna work out.”

“And I told you that pirates were easier to deal with than wizards.” Kristoff reminded.

“Hey, I told you that.” she pointed out.

“And no one asked me at all.” Hans said coming up behind them with his brothers and their weapons ready.

“He did it again.” Anna sighed, “How do you keep doing that?”

“You didn’t exactly leave inconspicuously.” Hans chuckled, “A paid informant told us where you went and why. I’ll give you credit, but I don’t scare easily. Especially over some loser old friend of yours.”

“This was a trap?” she asked looking hurt at Blackbeard as she and Kristoff had their hands tied, “We have a deal! Something about what, well over two-hundred pounds of gold.”

“My child, it’s nothing personal, it’s just good business.” Teach replied, “Prince Sideburns here and his brothers offered me a better deal, that’s all.”

“We had plenty of time to get acquainted with your riches as we rolled around in the royal treasury.” Hans taunted.

“You rolled around in gold bars? Weird. And ouch.” Anna remarked.

“Figure of speech. We reveled in it.” Hans clarified, “The point is, it’s now in my control, not yours. You’re what they call penniless. But, uh, that doesn’t matter, because where you’re going, you don’t need money.”

“Where is that?” Anna asked showing no fear.

“Death.”

“I’m not sure that’s a place.” Kristoff commented.

“Well, you’re both about to find out.” Hans retorted as his brothers pointed their swords at the couple’s necks. Once they were far enough out into the sea, Hans resumed his triumphant speech. “This is the treacherous area known as Poseidon’s Boneyard, the exact spot where your parents’ ship went down. How fitting that mother and daughter will have their last regrets in the same place. Will you both die, wishing you’d never try to help your freak sister? Well, maybe your bones will mingle with your mother’s on the bottom of the sea.”

“Bring forward the trunk.” Teach ordered his zombies.

“There’s a trunk?” Hans asked, “How-how will their bones mingle if she’s in a trunk?”

“You’d be surprised if you knew how many helpful sea-creatures there are beneath the waves.” Teach smirked, “I’m not one to risk loose ends. This trunk will make sure they die without ‘finterference.’”

“Elsa’s gonna get out of that urn, and when she does, she’s gonna take back the kingdom and kick you and your brothers back to the Southern Isles, which sounds lovelier than I bet it actually is.” Anna threatened as the zombies stuffed her and Kristoff into the trunk.

“I doubt that.” Hans smirked, “I control the royal navy, the vast armies, and if Elsa hasn’t found a way to escape that urn in the last thirty years, I doubt she will.”

“Wait. What? Thirty years?” she asked.

“The spell that froze Arendelle, it had us all frozen for thirty years.”

“My aunt kept us like that for decades?” Anna said in shock, “Elsa. My poor sister. She was stuck in an urn all that time!”

“Why would Ingrid unfreeze us all right now?” Kristoff asked.

“Because she wants to do something worse. We have to get to Elsa and Nicholas. We have to stop whatever it is Ingrid-ahh!” Anna said before Hans slammed the lid on her.

“She’s so talky.” he said before ordering his brothers, “Toss them over the side.”

Laughing as they did it, two of his brothers flung the trunk over the side as they were told. However, just before the trunk could touch the water, two ropes from the Revenge shot out and grappled the two side handles and hoisted it back onto the ship.

Opening the trunk, Teach looked down at the confused and frightened couple with a stern neutral expression. “What was that name you said?” he asked, “Speak quickly, child, before I change my mind in saving you.”

“Uh, uh, Nicholas? Nicholas Flamel.” she answered.

“And how do you know the Immortal Alchemist?” he asked.

“Wha-he’s an old friend of mine. I was hoping he could help us take back Arendelle from these guys and save my sister.”

“Really?” he asked in a brighter mood, “Why didn’t you say so in the first place? In that case, I will gladly help; any friend of Flamel’s is a friend of mine.”

“What?” she asked.

“What?” Kristoff asked.

“Yeah, what?” Hans asked, “Need I remind you that we had a deal? I order you to throw them back into the sea, now!”

Teach’s expression began stone-cold after he heard those words. He then shut the trunk on Anna and Kristoff and hilt of his sword in anger. “Aye,” he said, “That we do. But apparently, there’s one thing that you have seemed to have never learned, your highness.”

“And what’s that?” Hans asked flatly.

“Never order a pirate captain around.” Teach said before swiftly drawing his sword and decapitating the young prince in one quick, clean motion, “Especially on his own ship. Kill his brothers and feed their corpses to the sharks!” he ordered his crew.

After they did just that, Teach opened up the trunk again and help the two lovers out. “So sorry about that, I didn’t want milady to witness such a gruesome sight.”

“Um, thanks?” Anna said still confused.

“My pleasure. Now, regarding Flamel, I regret to inform you that he is no longer in this realm.”

“Nicholas is dead?” Anna asked.

“No, no. I mean, he is literally not in this realm. Currently, he resides in a land without magic where I am told, your sister Queen Elsa is as well.” Teach clarified.

“He is? They are?” she asked, “W-well, how do we get there? I mean, we don’t really have to worry about Hans and his brothers anymore thanks to you, but Arendelle still needs someone to rule it.”

“Worry not. I can provide transportation to this realm for you.” he replied.

“You can?” Kristoff asked.

“Aye, however, there be one small catch to it. You’ll have to go back in the trunk.” Teach replied before pushing them into said trunk for the third time.

“Wait! Why are you doing this?!” Anna yelled from inside.

“My apologies, princess, but I cannot allow either of you to learn of the method for which I am using for you.” he said before thinking, “If I did, the director would have my head.”

Reaching into his pocket with one hand and stroking his sword with the other, Teach had his ropes grab the trunk like before while he pulled out a corked vial with a magic bean inside. Tearing it open with his teeth, he tossed the bean into the water thinking solely of Storybrooke which opened up a portal and tossed the trunk directly into it. Little did he know, it picked up something else along the way.

**OUaT**

Back in Storybrooke, Nicholas managed to get his fellow members tucked away safely and made his way to check on his inventions one last time before heading over to the station. On his way, he could see everyone looking up at the sky in fear at what was coming. When he finally arrived, he saw Snow and David locked behind the cells while Emma held her brother with tears in her eyes; also, Elsa stood next to some man he didn’t know and a young redhead he assumed was Anna all grown up.

“Emma?” he called softly from the entry. Still trying not to cry, Emma handed Neal over to Elsa before walking over to talk to him.

“What are you doing here? You know what’s about to happen.” she choked.

“I know. But I just needed to see you before this all goes down.” he said looking her in the eyes he loved so much, “Before I took care of myself for everyone’s safety, I needed to see you one more time.”

“Nicholas, I’m not a tearful goodbye kiss person.” Emma said as she cried, “But maybe just this once.”

When they finally parted, Nicholas swallowed the lump in his throat and pressed his head against hers taking in her presence before he had to do the one thing he feared most. “I love you.” he whispered before leaving.

Mere moments later the spell finally made it over Storybrooke. Every one of our heroes and villains was either locked up or staring up at the mirror fragments glittering in the sky before they came down onto the little town. 

Nicholas was currently as he told the others he would be, under a dome covered with his shadows with his shield covering his entire body with his eyes sealed shut. Unfortunately, the glass still managed to break through everyone’s defenses and enter all of their eyes; well, all except Emma’s, Elsa’s, Anna’s, Ingrid’s, Gold’s and Nicholas’s.

But this did not comfort him. Not at all because he knew exactly what he had to do now. On the other side of town, once all of the glass had finally stopped raining down, six fists broke through the ground clenched in rage, ready to crush anyone in sight.


	41. Shattered Sight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

“Prince Charming.” Snow said in false amusement, “Finally, I’m seeing you clearly.”

“And what do you see?” he asked trying not to show his spell-induced anger.

“A fraud.” she spat, “A shepherd who has no business being royalty.

“Well, I see a spoiled little princess who ran away from her troubles; who always runs away!” he snarled as they got in each-others’ faces through the bars.

“I can’t believe I had a child with you.” she spat.

“Oh, who knows? Maybe you didn’t. Could be Whale’s!” David retorted.

“You know, if this is what marriage is like, I’m glad you keep postponing ours.” Kristoff said to Anna who looked hurt at his comment.

“You don’t mean that, Kristoff. It’s the spell.” she sighed.

“No. I’m seeing clearly now, too. I’m beginning to think that this haircut wasn’t my only bad idea.” he snapped.

“I know this isn’t really you. I know it. But it’s still upsetting so I’m just-I’m gonna go see my sister, where you can’t hurt anybody, but me, with your words.” Anna said as she headed over to Elsa and Emma.

“My parents,” she said bouncing her brother, “That’s not who they are.”

“They’re their worst selves.” Elsa nodded, “It’s like when Anna put me in that urn. She didn’t mean what she said either; I hope.”

“I didn’t. That doesn’t make any of this less horrible.” Anna said as she hugged her sister.

“It’s okay. You’re immune. We all are. And we’re together.” Elsa assured.

“It’s gonna be alright.” Emma nodded, “Remember, I’m the Savior.”

“Is that, like, a real job here?” Anna asked.

“Apparently, it is.” Emma lightly chuckled, “I promised all these people I’d get them their happy endings. And I will. I’m just not sure how at this moment.”

“I think I might have an idea.” Anna spoke up, “Do you know how the Snow Queen got the idea for the curse? It’s from a legend called ‘The Trolden Glass.’”

“Never heard of it.” Emma said.

“Its origin isn’t important. What matters is how they broke the curse.”

“What was done?” Elsa asked.

“Uh, to break the spell…oh. They had to kill the king who cast it.” Anna replied looking sad, “So in this case, that would mean Ingrid.”

“I don’t believe killing is ever the answer.” Elsa said, “Are you sure we can’t reason with her?”

“She’s beyond that.” Emma argued, “We all want another way, but if it comes down to her or the town, I’m gonna do what has to be done. We’re lucky Nicholas doesn’t know about this or else he’d be charging over to her cave right now with every intent to kill her. We’re out of options. Anna, how are you with kids?”

“I love kids.” she answered as Emma passed Neal over to her.

“Elsa, we should get going.”

“Wait, wait. I’m the babysitter?” Anna asked, “The Snow Queen’s my aunt, too. If this is what has to happen, I wanna be by your side.”

“I’m sorry, but someone has to stay here with everyone else.” Emma apologized.

“Emma’s right. Stay with Kristoff.” Elsa pleaded.

“But this was my plan.” Anna whined.

“I know it was.” Elsa said as Emma kissed her brother before heading out the door, “You’re the smartest person I know, and you’re my sister, which means you need to stay safe. Ingrid is a problem that Emma and I have to solve.”

“Do you trust Emma?” Anna whispered.

“I do. She’s my friend.” Elsa said sincerely.

“Then go.” Anna nodded.

**OUaT**

While the three ladies were dealing with only their loved ones being effected by the curse, Nicholas was having a much more difficult time. He knew that his teammates would have broken free by now so, naturally, he ran as fast as he could through the chaos that was Storybrooke. Jumping over wrecked cars, dodging rocks and glass and even arrows, all while shoving, punching, and kicking people aside to get to the others.

When he finally arrived, his worst fears came to fruition when he laid eyes on his fellow agents, each one wielding their signature weapons. Now, before we get into the actual fight, there are some things you might want to know about these Leaguers and their fighting styles.

Sawyer had three distinct weapons he used, two revolvers and a Winchester rifle. With his expertise in close combat, his revolvers were often used to back up his fists before finishing his enemies off with a bullet. Normally, his riffle was used for sniper shots, much like how he went against Nicholas over a year before. However, there were often times when he was forced to use it like a bow staff or a club when his revolvers couldn’t get the job done.

Skinner didn’t have a single weapon on him. He couldn’t allow himself to carry any weapons unless absolutely necessary on account of his need to completely disrobe in order to escape his enemies’ eyes. However, he, himself, was a honed weapon. Everyone in the League were experts in multiple styles in hand-to-hand combat, but Skinner was considered the best out of everyone in the entire organization.

Robin’s skills go without saying; for the most part. True, he was a master when it came to a bow along with knives, swords, and guns, but no one used a bow like he did. In full combat, this man carried at least six different types of bows on his body. Two smaller crossbows he kept in his boots, two mini crossbows built into his cuffs on his wrists, a Gatling crossbow normally kept on his back, and his hand-crafted bow. This bow, of course, was his most dangerous weapon. Made from dragons’ bone, the bow had two dragons’ fangs imbedded on each end of this mighty weapon used to pierce his enemies when forced to engage in close combat.

Mina had more than enough skills as a vampire; though, unlike most vampires, she could actually withstand the sun for short periods of time and still be able to fight. In addition to that, she had the strength of one hundred men, immortality, regenerative abilities, heightened senses, being able to turn into a swarm of bats, and control over creatures of the night; not to mention, she was an expert in using her favored silver daggers in combat. Along with all of this, her calm personality and tenacity was what made her third in command of Quartermain’s branch of the League.

Nemo was without a doubt the most level headed member of the team. His genius intellect and inventive nature rivaled Nicholas’s, but his near super-human reflexes gained through years of training gave him the well-deserved position of second in command along with being Quartermain’s most trusted ally.

Finally, the leader of this branch made all of the others look like mere weaklings. No one truly knew the extent of his power, but Allan Quartermain was no ordinary human. Nicholas could certainly vouch for that. It can’t be seen unless he’s shirtless, but there is one scar on his left collar-bone that hasn’t left his body since he received it from his leader; and this was after he gained his Stone. Like Sawyer, he only had three weapons, a Winchester, a revolver, and a knife he could attach to his riffle to use as a bayonet. The only strange thing was that whenever he equipped the knife, he would wield the weapon as though it were a sword and occasionally fire it as he fought.

Nicholas knew all of this and how each of these people fought. His disadvantage, he would have to fight them all along with ensuring they didn’t kill each other or anyone else and make sure no one saw any of them. His advantage, the spell had made them fueled by their rage which would make their attacks sloppy. Still, he was up against some of the most dangerous people he knew all by himself and couldn’t kill them like he would his past opponents.

“Don’t tell me you guys started the fun without me?” he teased as he covered all but his head and neck with his shield.

“You!” Sawyer shouted as he ran up to him ready to drive his guns into his head which was easily dodged.

“What the hell, Tom?!” Nicholas yelled, “What’d you do that for?!”

“You know damn well why, ya pipe smokin’, yellow-bellied turd!” he shouted.

“Who’re you calling a yellow-bellied turd?!” Nicholas snarled.

“You! We’ve been cooped up for twenty-nine years because you convinced us it would be best if we stayed locked up in that damn mansion!” Sawyer shouted as he fired at his friend.

“Whoa!” Nicholas cried as he dodged the bullets, “Hold it! That was Quartermain’s idea, not mine!”

But Sawyer clearly wasn’t listening. And thus, the battle between Nicholas and his spell-inflicted teammates began. Obviously, Nicholas had the odds against him, what with Skinner’s invisible kicks and punches being thrown at him while Nemo swung his sword at him almost in a blur. Jumping up, the alchemist did a split kick to the two men’s faces just before Mina’s bats smothered his face in attempt to suck out his blood. Robin made an attempt to pierce through the Ultimate Shield with his arrows, but they managed to only strike Mina which made her revert to her human form and look at the archer with rage.

With her eyes red as blood and her fangs barred, the vampire snarled and lunged at Robin who easily fended her off with his Gatling bow, which was heavy and made of metal, and slammed it onto her skull, crushing it against the ground. Having witnessed this, Nicholas transmuted the ground and tossed Robin aside before Mina had the chance to tear out his jugular all while dodging Nemo’s swings and Sawyer’s bullets.

**OUaT**

After making it safely to the ice-cream shop, Emma and Elsa waited for Ingrid to come out, fully prepared to fight. When she did, they both stared her down ready to face their foe. 

“Stop.” Emma barked.

“This must end, Ingrid.” said Elsa.

“Our magic is a part of us now. We control it, and we control it really well.” Emma warned. But Ingrid just kept smiling at them, lost in her delusional little world.

“I’m so proud of you both.” she said as though she were their mother, “You’ve finally embraced who you truly are.”

Hearing enough, the two women shot their hands out at the elder blonde but saw no magic erupt from their fingertips. “Emma.” Elsa muttered.

“Again.” she instructed, but the results were the same. It was then that they noticed that the ribbons Ingrid placed on their wrists began to glow.

“The love that flows through our ribbons is without equal. Its strength protects the life-force that we all now share.” Ingrid explained.

“She’s made it impossible for us to hurt her.” Elsa summed up looking at Emma.

“We gotta get these things off.” Emma said.

“There’s no need.” Ingrid gently argued, “Soon, you won’t want to hurt me. Soon, you will love me. For real.”

Before either of them could say or do anything else, Ingrid vanished into a small blizzard. With no other option, Emma led her friend over to the pawn shop in hopes of gaining Rumplestiltskin’s assistance.

“Gold? Belle?” Emma called but received no answer, “They’re gone.”

“Then what do we do?” Elsa asked.

“We do it ourselves.” Emma said as she went behind the counter and tried to cut the ribbon with one of Gold’s knives. When that didn’t work, she tried various other objects all of which failed.

“I give up.” Emma flatly said, “It’s useless. The magic protecting this ribbon is just too powerful.”

“I guess the Snow Queen meant what she said about her love.” Elsa said.

“I’m sorry, I was too busy thinking of ways to punch her to retain that.” Emma sighed clearly miffed.

“She said the love flowing through out ribbons was without equal.” Elsa reminded. This managed to give Emma an idea.

“Maybe without equal, but not without an opposite that’s equally strong. If her amplified love put these ribbons on our wrists, then maybe what we need is someone’s equally amplified hatred to get them off.” Emma explained.

“Emma, you’re a bit prickly, but you’re certainly not hateable.” Elsa argued/defended/partially insulted.

“Tell that to Regina.” Emma chuckled before realizing what her friend said, “I’m prickly?”

“If you let Regina out while she’s under the influence of the Snow Queen’s curse, she’ll kill you.” Elsa stressed.

“She’ll try. But right now, it’s-”

“A theory.” she cut off in worry.

“The best chance we have.” Emma corrected, “If Storybrooke wants to survive, Regina needs to hate me like she’s never hated me before.”

**OUaT**

“I do not get paid enough for this!” Nicholas shouted as he had his shadows surround him to fend off against Mina’s army of bats while the others fought him and themselves. Using the shadows like tentacles, he had them punch Robin, Nemo and Skinner while also using them to deflects Sawyer and Quartermain’s bullets and while trying to locate and grab Mina’s original bat swarm to cut off her connection with the others.

Unfortunately, Mina managed to get the upper hand and willed the bats to form a giant hand which formed into a fist of bats, slamming down on the Immortal Alchemist. But just before the blood sucking creatures could reach him, Nicholas transmuted himself out of their reach and waited for Mina to reform. When she did, looking all around for him while snarling, he used his alchemy to make the ground charge at her and envelope her as it became a concrete coffin bound in chains being tossed into the woods.

Before he could even take the chance to breathe, Robin decided to switch his crossbow for his signature weapon, the very thing that attracted the League’s attention before he officially joined.

“Robin,” Nicholas said holding up his hands, “Man, listen to me. I don’t to fight you.”

“Oh, I don’t either.” Robin said mockingly before glaring at him in hatred, “Quite frankly, I’d rather be at the vault doing what I did to your sister the other night again; yanking her sweaty hair as I make her moan out my name like the filthy, petty, pain-loving, shameful slut of a whore that she is!”

“Okay! Now I wanna fight ya!” Nicholas cried as he charged at the bowman with his sword at the ready. Robin managed to block the strike and shoved him off allowing him to fight back. Swinging it like a madman, Robin succeeded in jamming one of the fangs into Nicholas’s skull causing him to shout in pain and kick him away as his wound healed.

By this point, if anyone were to have just now walked in on the fight, they would think that Nicholas was under the influence of the spell with how angry he looked. Making another sword from the ground while knocking the others away from each other, Nicholas stared down the archer and took a dual-wielding stance. In turn, Robin did something unexpected, he twisted the bow and separated it into two and had the notch string drag down to the grips; it was as if he was wielding two razor sharp hooks instead of a bow now.

Dropping them both, he began to twirl them by the notch where the fangs grazed against the ground making sparks on contact. Robin then shot them at Nicholas who barely dodged them. Smirking as he did it, Robin yanked them back causing them to pierce Nicholas’s shoulder blades and tumble right into his friend’s knee strike to the abdomen. He then grabbed the hooks, turned him around and used the notch string to strangle him like piano wire.

Through his suffocation, Nicholas head-butted the archer and escaped his grip before returning the blow he just received to the abdomen and quickly spun around to deliver a side-kick to the abs and a punch to the nose sending him flying into a tree and rendering him unconscious as the tree bound him with its transmuted roots. One down, five more to go.

**OUaT**

After leaving the shop, Emma and Elsa arrived at the vault hoping that their plan would work; if not, they would most likely be killed. “Okay, stand back.” Emma advised as she threw a rock to show a spell covering the vault. “Containment spell. Okay. Here goes.”

When she raised her hands, nothing happened; the sound of crickets chirping in the background added to the humor in this. “You can do it.” Elsa encouraged.

The second time around, she was able to take down the barrier. “Well, I’m still getting the hang of the controlling the magic thing. But lucky for us, the next part should be easy for me.”

“What’s that?” Elsa asked.

“Be prickly.” she replied as they barged in. When they made it downstairs, Emma jolted at the sight of Regina dressed in one of her old Evil Queen dresses. “Whoa. Little late for Halloween.”

“You.” Regina softly growled with an insane smile.

“How do you walk in that thing?” Emma asked bluntly.

“With the poise and composure of a queen.” she sneered, “Perfect timing, Miss Swan. I was just reading up on how to turn you into a garden topiary. What’s she doing here?”

“I wanted to see your face when you learned the truth.” Elsa lied looking smug.

“The truth about what?” Regina asked.

“I lied to you, Regina, about Marian. I knew all along. I brought her here on purpose.” Emma lied.

“Tell me something I don’t know.” she growled.

“What you don’t know is why. Not only did I wanna break your heart, I wanted you to see me and Nicholas together, see the happiness you could never have and cheated him from for so long. After all, it was your fault what happened to him, wasn’t it?” she asked as veins began to bulge on Regina’s forehead, “I wanted to ruin it for you again, just like my mother did.”

“I’ve been waiting a long time for this. Abba, forgive me.” Regina snarled as her voice trembled in pure rage with a fireball in her hand. When she threw it, the girls raised their arms up and allowed the fire to burn away their ribbons. As soon as they were gone, Emma magically pushed Regina to the wall giving them the chance to run away as fast as they could.

“SWAN!!!” she cried loud enough to be heard above ground outside.

**OUaT**

If it hadn’t been for the Philosopher’s Stone, Nicholas would have been killed a hundred time over before tonight. That being said, he’d have easily been killed ten times that amount during his fight with the others. Fortunately, Robin was still unconscious and Mina hadn’t found her way out of the coffin yet so that just left, Skinner, Nemo, Sawyer and Quartermain. However, none of them were making his job any easier.

Skinner was actually able to land numerous shots on Nicholas from all sides. Through his daze, he struggled to find the pattern in his fighting style so he could pinpoint his next strike. When he finally found it, he grabbed hold of Skinner’s wrist, or at least he hoped it was his wrist, and began to transmute his sleeve around the Invisible Man’s body like a mummy with only his head unwrapped. Once he was tied up tight, Nicholas kicked him away and kept him pinned with the ground transmuted like a hand over his body.

Nemo then took the chance to resume his attack while Quartermain and Sawyer tried to land at least one bullet on their target(s). Nicholas was barely able to fend the former pirate with his sword even with his impeccable skills. When he managed to get a good enough distance, he turned his right eye as far as it could to the left before the jerked away and revealed a strange symbol carved into the eyeball. For some reason, this gave Nicholas the edge he needed against Nemo and was able to go from the defensive to the offensive. He even seemed to be able to see and read Nemo’s movements before he could even make them.

With a swift diagonal strike, Nicholas used the blunt side of his sword to knock the wind out of his comrade and friend. As he staggered, Nemo was helpless to do anything but watch as Nicholas delivered a superman punch to his temple knocking him out cold. For added measure, Nicholas slid him over away from the others and bound his arms, legs and body with pipes from the ground.

Suddenly, a loud click could be heard from behind the alchemist, hearing this caused him to stiffen and pale. He didn’t have to turn around to know what made that sound, for he had heard it before. Holding his weapon like a sword, Allan Quartermain glared at Nicholas with his knife attached to his Winchester. 

Quartermain lunged at him faster than anyone else this night, Nicholas was barely able to block them with his shielded arms; even his sword was destroyed as soon as it was struck by the blade. When swiftly spun around in hopes of cleaving his head off, Quartermain missed and created a shockwave from all sides; fortunately, all it did was make a powerful gust of wind. As he did this, Sawyer took the chance to try and shoot Nicholas again.

“He’s going to draw to much attention to us at this rate.” Nicholas thought as he tried to block and dodge the attacks. Given that he was getting hit more and more as the night went on, he knew his strength was failing him, he had to act fast if he was going to hold them off until Emma defeated the Snow Queen. With no other option coming to mind, he knew what he had to do.

Jumping backwards, he pulled out his gun just at the right moment; when Sawyer was just behind Quartermain. He then distracted Quartermain by tricking him with some alchemic sparks off to the side. When his gaze shifted, Nicholas made his move. 

“Sorry, boss.” he muttered as he squeezed the trigger and watched as the bullet went straight through Allan’s head. When this happened, the blood that splattered out of his head managed to get in Sawyer’s eyes, blinding him for just a second. Once he opened his eyes, he saw Nicholas grab the hem of his shirt and head-butt him breaking his nose in the process.

He then pushed him away, delivered a few quick yet powerful blows to his ribs, and sent him flying into the nearest tree which was transmuted to hold him down like the others. Finally, Nicholas was able to catch his breath, or so he thought. He didn’t even have time to react as the coffin he made to trap Mina was sent hurdling at him. After it hit him, and his wounds slowly healed, he looked up and saw Mina’s glowing red eyes staring down at him. 

He then created a stone pillar which drove into her solar-plexus only to be caught and crushed in her ferocious grip. The battle was not over yet.

“I’ve been waiting months to try this out.” Nicholas mumbled as he pulled something out from his pocket and put it on his hand. It was a glove made from two pieces of metal on the top and palm of his hand with wires connecting to each of the metal claws on his fingertips with a leather strap holding it on his wrist.

“I’ve always wondered who the winner would be between two genius immortals.” Mina said drawing her knives, “Though, your intellect will have to do for today.”

“Haha, I forgot how to laugh.” Nicholas said sarcastically as he discreetly scraped four of his claws over the metal on his palm. As it did this, sparks of static electricity surged from the metal plate, through the wires and up to the tips of his claws. With an added dose of his alchemy to amplify it, Nicholas unleashed bolts of lightning at Mina’s chest and sent her flying into a nearby boulder.

“I’m a genius!” he cheered before kissing the glove which gave him a little shock, “Ow!”

**OUaT**

After getting as far away from Regina as possible, Elsa and Emma made it to Ingrid’s cave where they hoped to confront her. When she saw them look around for her, she decided to stop hiding.

“You two have no idea how long I’ve waited for this moment.” she said before noticing the ribbons were missing, “Your ribbons; what have you done?”

“I’m not much for accessories.” Emma quipped.

“Those ribbons joined us together.” Ingrid said looking genuinely hurt.

“Get it through your head, lady. We’re not your sisters and we’re never gonna love you.”

“Oh, Emma.” she sighed, “I know that you actually believe that. And…it makes me sad. But I know that sadness won’t last because soon, you’ll see you’re wrong.”

“Don’t do it!” Emma warned as Ingrid reached over to grab something. In her hands were two small, purple stones. “The hell are those?”

“They’re memories I took from the two of you. And now it’s time to give them back.”

“Why? So we can remember just how badly you treated us?” Emma asked.

“The funny thing about time is we romanticize the good and forget the bad. That’s exactly what’s in these crystals. These are the good memories and nothing else. Lovely moments the two of you shared with me, which I’ll cherish forever and now, so will you.” Ingrid explained.

“I hate to break it to you, but magic can’t make someone love you.” Emma argued.

“You’re right, Emma. Magic can’t create love. But if someone loved you in the past, it can make them love you again. And I know you’ve forgotten, Emma, but you did love me. You both did. That’s why, right now, you’re not doing anything. We all know the only way to stop me is to kill me, and you’re both hesitating. You don’t have it in you. It’s okay. Come. Be my sisters.”

“I can’t do it, Emma. I can’t hurt her.” Elsa admitted.

“Yeah, well, I can.” she spat ready to blast her with magic. But just as she was about to do it, Anna ran inside and stopped her.

“Wait!” she cried, “Stop!”

“Anna, no, she’s too dangerous.” Elsa warned.

“You should listen to my sister and go.” Ingrid threatened.

“Your sister? She’s mine.” Anna retorted hotly, “And whatever you’re gonna do, well, don’t. Elsa, I found this on the beach. It’s from our mother. She must’ve thrown it into the ocean before their ship sank. It came over in the portal with us.” she said holding up an old scroll.

“Just be careful.” Emma warned.

“No, I’m not gonna be careful. She needs to hear this. You all do.” Anna said before she began to read the letter aloud, “Elsa, Anna, I don’t know if your father and I will ever get back to you, but I need you to know we were wrong to tell Elsa to conceal her powers.”

“How fitting that you, who are so much like your mother, should share her last words.” Ingrid spat ready to finish off her niece.

“I feel terrible but it happened before and I can’t let it happen again.” Anna continued causing her aunt to drop her guard and hand.

“What?” she asked.

“My sister Ingrid, like you, also had ice powers. I never told you about her or my other sister Helga, but I should have. They were beautiful and kind and wonderful, and I was fearful. And I let that fear guide me. I let Ingrid hide when I should have celebrated her for the person she was. I loved her so much.”

“You’re lying!” Ingrid shouted, “My sister hated me! She called me a monster! She put me in that urn, like you did Elsa!”

“In this crystal are the memories of my sisters, which I stole from the people of Arendelle.” Anna continued, “Please return them. My sisters deserve to be known. In a cave in the north valley, you’ll find an urn that contains Ingrid. Please do what I should have done long ago and release her. When you see her, please tell her I love her and I’m sorry. I’d give anything to take back what I did, to hold her hands one more time.”

When she had finished reading the letter, Ingrid looked at her niece with tears brimming in her eyes. However, instead of accepting her words, she thrusted her hand out and began to choke her with her magic.

“Ingrid!” Elsa cried.

“Let her go!” Emma shouted. But Ingrid tossed them away so she could deal with the redhead.

“I understand, Aunt Ingrid.” Anna said as she was being choked, “I understand now why you cast this curse. But you can come back from it.”

“Understand me?” Ingrid asked enraged, “How could you? You’re nothing like me! You understand nothing!”

“You’re right.” she croaked, “I’m not like you. My mother wasn’t like you. But if she was able to love you for who you are, so can I. You’re a part of our family no matter what. And family never gives up on each other.”

“You lie!” Ingrid cried swatting her away. As Emma and Elsa raced over to help Anna up, Ingrid picked up the scroll and touched the memory crystal it carried. As she did, the memories of her sister’s childhood flooded through her mind letting her know how Gerda truly felt about her.

“…Oh, Gerda.” she whispered as tears fell from her eyes, “What have I done? I need to reverse this.”

“You can’t.” Anna said as her aunt approached the glassless mirror, “The only way is if you-”

“I know. I have to destroy myself.” Ingrid said as she began to call back the spell.

“No, Ingrid.” Elsa said.

“Wait!” Emma pleaded.

“There’s no other way. I am a monster. Not because of my powers, but because of what I let them turn me into. I have to undo this.” she said as the shards of glass poured into the cave and began to surround her.

“No, Ingrid. You’ll die.” Elsa said as her voice began to break.

“I know. It’s okay. Elsa, Anna, you found each other. And, Emma, you found your family, even if it wasn’t with me.” Ingrid said with a sad smile as she held up the two crystals, “You, you deserve your memories.”

With a wave of magic flowing into their heads, the two women were finally able to remember all of the wonderful moments they spent with the woman before them; and this made the scene all the more sad and painful.

“You three are so special. Never forget that.”

“There has to be another way. You deserve your happy ending, too.” Emma said.

“Long ago, a prophecy told me that you would lead me to just that, Emma. And this is it. All I wanted was to have my sister’s love, and now I have it. Now…I get to join them.”

As the spell finally took her, Ingrid’s body was reduced to snow and this snow spread from the cave throughout the entire town, curing everyone under the influence of the curse.

**OUaT**

As Nicholas blocked Mina’s knives and tried to land a blow with his shielded claws, the snow found its way over the battle zone. Just as she was about to feast on his blood, the vampire’s mind became clear as the others regained consciousness. It was then that they began laughing at what they had been doing all night. Nicholas the released them and joined in on the laughter.

“Okay, let’s get something straight.” he said while smiling, “We are never doing that again!”

“Agreed.” Mina chuckled.

“I don’t know, I thought it was rather fun.” Robin smirked.

“You mean before or after you called my sister a whore?” Nicholas asked punching his shoulder while laughing.

“I’m surprised that you managed to hold your own against Allan for so long.” Mina praised, “Isn’t that right, Mr.-”

“Oh, God.” Sawyer groaned as he finally noticed Quartermain’s corpse. Needless to say, the laughter quickly stopped.

“Yeah,” Nicholas said sheepishly, “I may have gone a little overboard.”

“Why?!” Skinner cried falling to his knees trying not to laugh, “Why?! Why?! Why?!”

“Skinner, shut up!” Nicholas spat smacking him upside the head.

“We’ll deal with this later.” Nemo sighed, “You and Robin might want to return to town before anyone comes over here and notices us. We’ll take Allan back to the laboratory.”

“Alright.” Nicholas sighed, “Come on, Robin, let’s go. I’m sure my slut of a sister is anxious to see you.”

“…You’re not gonna let me live that down anytime soon, are you?” Robin asked dryly as they began to run back to town.

“Nope!”

When they made it to the town square, they saw everyone laughing and hugging each other as snow covered the ground. The moment Nicholas saw Emma, he ran as fast he could to her and picked her up in his arms.

“I knew you could do it.” he said smiling at her before kissing her as Robin hugged Regina.

“What the hell happened to you two?” she asked looking at them, “You look terrible.”

“Sigh, we had a long night.” Robin groaned.

“And let’s just leave it at that, okay?” Nicholas pleaded while Emma laughed and pulled him in for another kiss.

**OUaT**

As everyone else was celebrating, Gold stood alone at the docks as he stared at the vessel he had hated the most in his many long years. But it wasn’t the ship he was interested in. No, he was more interested in the man who captained the mighty vessel and most importantly, his heart. As he boarded the Jolly Roger, Gold couldn’t help himself but hum the song “A Pirate’s Life for Me” as he went down to the brig.

When he arrived, he found exactly what he was looking for; Hook locked behind bars glaring at him with hate.


	42. Heroes and Villains

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

With Ingrid’s sacrifice having successfully cured everyone under the effects of the curse, everyone tried to settle back into their peaceful everyday lives. While most people helped around with repairing the small damages made during the night, Emma, Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff went to examine the border now that the wall was down. As they did this, Nicholas and his fellow agents, minus Robin as he was with Regina who returned Marian’s heart, were behind the mansion standing before a crate made of glass with metal bindings filled with dirt inside.

“Do I really have to do this?” Nicholas whined.

“You know the rules, mate.” Skinner reminded, “Whoever kills him has to bring Quartermain back.”

“But it’s so tedious!” he complained, “Why can’t I just use the tape recording?”

“Because you broke my nose and knocked us all out last night.” Sawyer flatly replied with a bandage and metal protector covering his nose, “Not to mention, I had to get my eyeballs washed after boss’s blood came close to infecting them when you shot him in the head!”

“I said I was sorry, you just didn’t hear me because these guys were laughing at you when the water hit your nose and you started yelling.” Nicholas pointed out flatly.

“Look, just bring him back and come inside so we can talk about what we’re gonna do next.” Mina said before she and the others headed inside to the conference room. When he was alone, Nicholas began to recite the words that would resurrect his leader.

“Oh, alright.” he sighed, “Zippdy-zab blah-blah-blah, voodoo, blah-blah-blah. Qui-da…ah, hell with it. Whatever.” he groaned before pulling out an old tape recorder and pressed play.

As it played, the sound of a man reciting a voodoo ritual filled the air and did its work. With each passing word, the sky was quickly covered by black clouds with thunder rumbling. In a split second, a powerful bolt of lightning shot from the clouds and struck the glass crate, electrocuting the metal casings around it. When the tape finished, the sky cleared and the crate remained still as Nicholas carefully approached it.

“Boss?” he asked knocking on the glass, “You still dead?”

To answer the question, Quartermain pushed the lid off with incredible strength which nearly hit his subordinate. Only his arms were above the dirt before he pulled his upper body out. Patting his vest and shirt down to get the dust off, Nicholas noticed that no sign of the hole in his head remained proving that the ritual worked once again. Finally noticing him, Quartermain turned to narrow his eyes at the alchemist.

“You shot me in the head.” he stated with a growl.

“Yes, I did.” Nicholas said nervously as he raised a shaking finger, “But in my defense, you’ve shot me in the head at least a dozen times; and with those really brittle bullets that leave a bunch of shrapnel in my head, too.”

“Fair enough.” Quartermain nodded as he pulled out his legs and hopped out of the case and dusted himself off, “How long was I dead this time?”

“Oh, about five hours. I had to deal with Mina after I took care of you and Sawyer. Took me awhile to get away from the townsfolk, too.”

“The curse?” he asked.

“Taken care of, thanks to Emma. Apparently, according to her, the Snow Queen sacrificed herself to end it after Anna gave her closure, or something.” Nicholas shrugged.

“Any casualties?” Quartermain asked as he continued to pat down his clothes.

“Just you and the Snow Queen.” Nicholas replied as they walked back to the manor, “Honestly, this was one of our cleanest crises. If only the Promised Day is going to be like this.”

“Where would the fun in that be?” Quartermain chuckled. Once they made it to the conference room, they joined the others and took their respective seats.

“Morin’, boss.” Sawyer greeted as he played solitaire on the table, “How was the dirt nap?”

“You ask me that every time I die, Sawyer, and it’s still as humorless as ever.” Quartermain sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

“I’d be more than willing to help you work out any remaining kinks, Mr. Q. If you’d let me.” Mina flirted mischievously.

“I’ve got a few kinks from where Flamel hit me that could use working out.” Skinner interjected lewdly earning a scoff and eye roll from the vampire lady.

“Ugh!” Nicholas shuddered, “I know he’s invisible and all, but just the thought of Skinner having sex with anybody just makes me sick.”

“Oi!” he exclaimed.

“Might we get on to the matter at hand, please?” Nemo asked sounding bored.

“Very well.” Quartermain nodded, “Now that the Snow Queen’s threat is over with, we still have two matters to deal with, excluding the upcoming Promised Day. As it stands, we still need to recover the Hat, and ensure that Agent Loxley’s wife doesn’t threaten to expose us; again.”

“Yeah, because we all remember how bad that turned out last time.” Nicholas said shaking his head, “Are we sure that she’s gonna try it again? I mean, I know she’s spent the majority of her time here as an ice sculpture, but even before then, she didn’t give off any vibe of exposing us again.”

“Hmm, maybe Emma brought her back before she made that decision?” Sawyer suggested.

“But I thought she went back to when her parents first met?” Skinner asked, “And if I recall correctly, Marian was dropping hints of our existence shortly before then.”

“I couldn’t tell you. Nemo, Mina and I were doing business with the Fellowship in Middle Earth around that time.” Nicholas replied.

“And we weren’t involved with Agent Loxley at the time either.” Nemo reminded, “We only heard of what Maid Marian was doing through one of the info brokers stationed in the Enchanted Forest that was close enough to Sherwood.”

“Robin was never informed of this, yes?” Mina asked.

“I don’t think anyone had it in ‘em to tell him.” Sawyer said shaking his head, “One of the perks of him being a solo-field agent, I guess.”

“You think we should tell him?” Nicholas asked with a conflicted look.

“That may end badly.” Quartermain warned, “Although, he does seem to be leaning more towards your sister than Marian lately.”

“I still can’t believe he slept with her.” he said dryly with a look of disgust, “And even if he does choose Regina over Marian, what are we gonna do about her? The director’s bound to catch wind of her at some point and he’ll want her killed the moment he does.”

“And if that does happen, Robin’s gonna put the pieces together pretty quick and this could wind up escalating even worse.” Sawyer nodded.

“We could shove her over the town line.” Mina suggested, “She wouldn’t be able to come back, our cover wouldn’t be blown and Nicholas’s sister would finally be able to have a happy ending. In the long run, everybody wins with that option.”

“Except Robin’s little boy who’ll wind up losing his mother because of us, again.” Skinner countered as that thought popped into his head.

“I’m beginning to see a pattern of dead ends here.” Nicholas remarked.

“Normally, I would glare at you or tell you to shut it, but you are right.” Quartermain admitted surprising everyone but Nemo, “Any situation we come up with ends in someone connected to Loxley or Loxley himself getting hurt.”

“Does anyone know how we should go about retrieving the Hat? Or for what purpose the dark one is using it for?” Nemo asked.

“As opposed to when we last discussed it?” Mina asked with a smirk.

“So…by all accounts, we’re clueless idiots at this point.” Nicholas bluntly remarked, “Heh, and to think we have the reputation of being the top branch of the League.”

“I thought our reputation was being the most insane and hot-tempered branch of the League?” Sawyer joked.

“Well, that, too.” Nemo nodded, “What could Rumplestiltskin possibly do with that Hat if it simply absorbs magical entities?”

“He wouldn’t be interested in it this much if that was all it could do, Nemo.” Mina argued, “There must be something we’re missing. But what?”

“Has anyone tried contacting HQ on this?” Nicholas asked, “Or the Apprentice, for that matter?”

“I did.” Sawyer informed, “Our research division told me that the Apprentice refused to give every detail regarding the Hat when he entrusted it to us. Evidently, both he and the Sorcerer didn’t completely trust us at the time.”

“But doesn’t he live here?” Skinner asked causing the others to become silent, “I-I-I’m seriously asking a genuine question. I thought he lived over by the park in a little red house near a stream leading to the pond.”

At that moment, their heads sharply turned to Nicholas with wide eyes; seeing as his sister spared him from losing his memories and gave him all the information regarding the town she had, he would’ve known something like this.

“Uh…” he trailed nervously, “Uh…uh…”

“You mean to tell us,” Quartermain began as he grew angry, “That the bloody Apprentice has been in Storybrooke the whole time and you never told us?!”

“Hold on!” Nicholas exclaimed before they could pounce, “There is a very good chance that he only recently arrived with this newer curse!”

“Whatever! We still have no idea what it is Gold’s planning to do with it!” Sawyer exclaimed, “And until we do, you can’t start dropping hints to the others and have them catch on.”

“Let’s think through what few details we actually have.” Mina suggested, “We know that it absorbs magical entities and that every known dark one has sought to possess it since its creation. Now every dark one has had their own different agenda, so why would they all want the same thing?”

“Either the Hat can do more than we know and suited each of their individual needs or they all had the same goal in mind and were desperate to get it.” Nemo replied.

“And that would be…” Skinner trailed.

“The one thing they all had in common.” Nicholas realized as the pieces came together, “Their one weakness; the dagger.”

“What?” Quartermain asked.

“That’s what it can do.” Nicholas said, “The Hat is the one thing that can free the dark one from the control of the dagger, the only thing that can control and kill them. Why else would they all try to obtain it?”

“Of course.” Mina said catching on, “Something like that would require vast amounts of powerful magic and the Hat’s main function is absorbing magic. That’s why Rumplestiltskin chose to help the Savior when her powers were out of control. He was planning to take the opportunity to absorb her magic to fuel the Hat for his plan.”

“But he failed to do that.” Skinner reminded, “And now that the Snow Queen is gone, there’s one less source of magic to fuel the Hat with.”

“Which leaves only Emma, Regina, Elsa and the fairies left in town with magic.” Sawyer speculated, “And if the Apprentice was here, my money’s on Gold already paid him a visit and sucked him into the damn thing.”

“It’s still not enough.” Quartermain dismissed, “There are too many bloody holes in this. Flamel can’t just tell the others that Gold sucked some hermit no one has even seen in town before into the Hat. He’d have to explain how he knew about the Apprentice, the Hat and Gold’s plan, all of which ties back to us.”

“They’re already suspicious of me.” Nicholas sighed, “Ever since I got into that car with Ishmael they’ve been wary of me. I won’t be able to keep this up for much longer, guys. It’s getting out of hand.”

“We just need to keep this up until the time is right.” Skinner eased, “When were you planning on telling them?”

“I don’t know.” he sighed, “It’s still another five months before it happens and if we act too soon, then the Homunculi are gonna start causing us trouble.”

“And if we wait too long, then the town won’t be prepared.” Quartermain grumbled as he stroked his beard, “And given that there’s no place for them to evacuate, they’ll be caught in the middle of the crossfires anyway.”

“I had hoped that once the curse was finally broken, we would’ve been able to take them on in the Enchanted Forest. But it seems like luck wasn’t on our side for that.” Nicholas remarked bluntly, “Getting back on track, what else are we missing concerning Gold?”

“What do you mean?” Sawyer asked.

“Nicholas is right.” Nemo nodded, “If Rumplestiltskin’s plan were this simple, he’d already be free of the dagger by now and unleashing his darkness upon this world. He hasn’t done it yet. Question is, why?”

“It’s possible that he was missing something for this procedure. And that may or may not still be the case.” Mina speculated.

“If he doesn’t have it, then now’s the perfect time what with the Snow Queen being gone and all.” Skinner pointed out.

“I’m gonna head back to town.” Nicholas said rising out of his seat, “We’re not gonna get any answers just by sitting here asking ourselves questions. If I find out anything, I’ll let you guys now immediately.”

“Do not approach the dark one, Flamel.” Quartermain warned, “Wait for him to slip up and then make your move.”

“Got it, boss.” he nodded, “Tell the Merry Men and Nemo’s undercover men keep a look out for anything suspicious; we’re gonna need eyes and ears everywhere.”

“Where are you off to, then?” Skinner asked as Nicholas headed for the door.

“I’m gonna find Robin and catch him up to speed. He might be able to help!” Nicholas said as the fireplace elevator took him up.

Once he left the mansion, he tracked down Robin’s scent and found him sitting on a bench with Regina in the park while Marian played with Roland by the pond. He sighed knowing that he would have to wait for him and Robin to be alone before he could tell him what was going on.

“Mind if I join you?” he asked the couple.

“By all means.” Robin said as Nicholas sat on the metal armrest and pulled out his pipe.

“So…how’re things?” Nicholas asked, “Still struggling with a complicated love life?”

“What gave it away?” Regina asked as they watched the mother and son, “They do look happy, don’t they?”

“Having Marian back in his life, it means so much to Roland.” Robin said looking at his son fondly.

“I understand.” Regina said neutrally, “At the end of the day, our children come first.”

“Regina?” Robin asked.

“She’s his mother.” she continued.

“I choose you.” he said sincerely. At first, Regina scoffed but quickly realized he was telling the truth from the look in his eyes.

“But, but Roland.” she argued, “What would this look like to him?”

“It’s gonna look like a messy, complicated situation, which it is.” Robin replied, “But if I went back to my life with Marian, I’d be living a lie. The best example I can set to my son is to live truthfully. To follow my heart, to you.”

He then pulled out a folded piece of paper and showed it to Regina. Nicholas leaned over and was shocked by what he saw. It was a younger version of the two next to him kissing each other back in the Enchanted Forest.

“What is that?” Nicholas asked as his sister chuckled fondly at the picture.

“Oh, uh, the other day when I was looking in the library, I found this after it suddenly appeared.” Robin replied.

“Regina, th-this is you back when you were still engaged to Leopold.” Nicholas said as he took the picture in his hand, “When you first met Tinker Bell. But you said you didn’t go into the tavern that night.”

“And you’re right, I didn’t.” she nodded, “This is some sort of alternate version to what happened then. I have no idea what to make of it.”

“How strange.” he muttered before Roland’s shouting snapped him out of his thoughts.

“Papa!” he cried as Marian collapsed next to him, “Papa, help! Help, Papa!”

The adults rushed over to him and saw that Marian had a white streak in her hair as frost began to cover her blueish face.

“I thought she was cured!” Robin exclaimed.

“There must be some remnant of that spell still inside her.” Regina guessed, “Even by now her heart should be infected.”

“She looks like she’ll be dead within the hour.” Nicholas speculated.

“So there’s no hope?” Robin asked.

“…There may be another way to save her.” Regina said with reluctance, “Now that the ice wall is down, she could leave Storybrooke. She can cross the town line and enter a world without magic. Without magic, the harm to her would end.”

“S-s-so let’s get her to the town line!” Robin urged.

“Robin, you need to know something. It’s a one-way trip. There’s a curse on the town line, and once you leave, that’s it.” Regina informed.

“So you’re saying-”

“I’m saying that we can’t just send Marian into an unknown world.”

“We can, and it would be easier for the rest of us if we did.” Nicholas remarked in his mind.

“Someone has to go with her; you and Roland.” Regina said making the hardest choice of her life, “And once you do go…you can never come back.”

“Oh, Regina.” Nicholas sadly thought. About an hour later, the two siblings stood outside Regina’s car as they watched the family of three say their goodbyes to Will Scarlet and the rest of the Merry Men. Unfortunately, none of them or the two agents were able to contact the others and inform them because of Regina’s presence the entire time. So naturally, Nicholas was gonna have be the one to tell them.

While Nicholas stood by his sister in support as she stared out at her second chance at love, Gold of all people approached them. “I hate goodbyes. Don’t you?” he asked.

“If you’ve come here to gloat, I’m really not in the mood.” Regina said as her voice shook.

“What do you want, midget?” Nicholas asked.

“Belle and I are taking a trip. I came to bid you farewell.” he replied ignoring the jab at his height.

“Have you been under a rock all day?” Regina asked, “There’s a curse on the town line. If you leave, you can never come back.”

“Hence the goodbye.” Gold nodded, “But before I go, could you pass something on to my grandson? Tell Henry I’ll miss him, and his charming attempts at snooping around my shop.”

“You knew.” Regina said.

“Oh, I knew. Perhaps you can tell me why.”

“The hell are they talking about?” Nicholas thought.

“He was looking for the impossible, my happy ending.” Regina replied before giving a bitter chuckle, “The storybook has me written as a villain, and villains always lose, so he thought you might have a clue as to who the author is so I can make him change that.”

“Intriguing idea.” Gold replied, “But, alas, I’ve no clue as to his identity.”

“I know. Villains don’t get happy endings.”

“It would appear, in your case, that that’s true.” he countered.

“You and Belle seem content.” Regina acknowledged, “How were you able to get one?”

“Because I took it.” he replied, “And, quite frankly, you should stop moping and do the same thing. I mean, if this Marian died, all would be well, would it not?”

“You don’t know the half of it.” Nicholas thought.

“That’s no longer me.” Regina denied.

“Being good doesn’t mean good things will happen.” Gold lectured.

“That sounds an awful lot like the old Rumplestiltskin talking.” Nicholas pointed out dryly, “Thought you changed.”

“More like evolved.” he corrected, “Coming back from the dead and being a slave to the Wicked Witch tends to do that to you. But if you don’t think villains can get happy endings, just watch me take one. There’s no author of my fate, no storybook with destiny. I’ve been a villain a thousand time over, and yet I’m about to get everything I desire. As unbelievable as it sounds, Regina, I want the same for you.”

And with that, the dark one left the siblings with his words weighing heavily on their minds.

“I think I’m gonna need a moment.” Regina whispered.

“Okay.” Nicholas nodded, “In that case, there are somethings I wanna say to Robin before he leaves. I’ll let you know when I’m done.”

When he went over to his fellow leaguer, he guided him away from Marian and had their backs to Regina so she couldn’t read their lips. “Gold’s trying to leave town. I think he plans on severing himself from the dagger sometime today.” Nicholas whispered.

“I can stay a little longer if you need me.” Robin offered, “I could meet up with Marian after we take care of him.”

“No, it’ll arouse suspicion. If he manages to do it and heads out into the world, I want you to keep an eye on him; he’s still a sacrifice and we need him alive. Otherwise, our entire plan will be thrown out of order.”

“Understood.” he nodded, “Notify me when the Promised Day approaches, I’ll have Lord Dragon give me a scroll that leads through the barrier.”

“Until then, my friend.” Nicholas nodded as they shook hands. He then looked to his sister and nodded before she came over. Getting right to the chase, Regina spoke to the archer.

“The diner I told you about is just a few miles down the road.”

“Right. Uh, Regina-”

“And you have the map I gave you?” she asked, “And the money, so that should be plenty to get you started.”

“Yes, but-”

“Good. Then you should go.” she said wanting this to be over as quickly as possible.

“…Thank you.” Robin said sincerely as Marian doubled over from the cold in her.

“She needs to cross the line now.” Regina stressed.

“Okay, you guys, go. I’ll be right behind you, I promise.” Robin said to his family, “I just-I just need a moment, okay?

“Of course.” Marian nodded before looking at Regina, “Thank you.”

Holding Roland’s little hand, she took one step over the line and was instantly cured of the ice on her heart. She was so happy that she picked up her son and held him close before realizing that she couldn’t see her husband or the others anymore.

“Your family is waiting. Go.” Regina said before Robin pulled her in for one last kiss.

“I…” he whispered as his heart broke.

“I know.” she whispered back as her heart broke, too. With a deep breath, he took a step back and crossed the line leaving Storybrooke and everything in it behind; for now, at least. With tears in her eyes, Regina tore the mysterious page to pieces and left them in the road for the wind to sweep away. When they got into the car, Nicholas finally broke the silence.

“You want me to drive?” he asked.

“No.” she replied.

“You…want me to give you some time alone?”

“…No.” she choked as the dam finally burst. Without a moment’s hesitation, Nicholas leaned over and held his dear sister in his arms as he stroked her hair and let her cry on him.

“I’m so sorry, Gina.” he whispered before gently kissing the top of her head.

As the day went on, Regina managed to calm down and decided to take some time alone which gave Nicholas the chance to check on what was happening in town. Naturally, his first stop was Granny’s which proved to be successful. When he spotted Emma, she was consoling a crying and distraught little mermaid.

“Ariel, everything will be fine, we’ll find him.” Emma soothed as she cried.

“What’s going on?” Nicholas asked.

“Hook’s gone missing ever since this morning. No one’s seen him since last night before the spell hit.” she replied.

“Oh, Ariel, I’m so sorry.” he said feeling sorry, “When did you see him last?”

“Right before I tied myself to the Jolly Roger’s anchor.” she sniffled, “I was the one who locked him in the brig so he couldn’t hurt anyone. After the spell wore off, I asked a nearby shark to cut me loose so I could let him out but when I got there, he was gone!”

“Leroy and the others are out looking for him.” Emma added as she rubbed her friend’s back, “You think you could help out and pick up his scent?”

“Sure thing, but there’s something I need to tell you first.” he informed, “I think I found a portal that leads back to Arendelle at that mansion you went to the other night.”

“You did? How?” she asked.

“Well, that place seemed like it was filled with magic and I felt my Stone act up around where I found it. I’m pretty sure it will lead to Arendelle considering it has designs similar to the kingdom’s colors symbol.”

This was both a lie and the truth. The mansion had a feature that allowed the agents to summon portals that lead to specific places in the other realms when necessary for missions. Thankfully, Nicholas was able to use this to his advantage so he could help his old friends. Emma bought this and managed to convince Ariel to stay behind so she could make sure that Elsa, Anna and Kristoff got home safely. Unfortunately, everyone except Regina and Ariel joined them in saying goodbye at the mansion.

“If the director knew what I was doing.” Nicholas thought in dread at the possible consequences.

“This place is amazing.” Henry said in awe at his uncle’s secret base, “Mom, I’ll, uh, be right back.”

“Hey, Henry, wait!” Nicholas called not wanting his nephew to find anything he shouldn’t.

“Well, Emma, I think this is it.” Snow said as they all approached the portal door.

“Crocuses!” Anna gasped happily, “Arendelle crocuses! Elsa, we’re almost home.”

“Wait,” Emma warned as the ginger was about to open the door, “Maybe I should open it. Magic can be unpredictable.”

“So this is it.” Elsa sighed.

“It would appear so.” Nicholas nodded.

“Thank you, both of you, for taking such good care of my sister.” Anna said to the couple, “You’ve done so much for us, Nicholas, I don’t think we could ever repay you.”

“Somebody’s gotta keep you two in check.” he joked, “It was my pleasure, and wonderful to see you two again after all this time. Now, don’t you all have a kingdom to go save?”

“Nope.” Anna chirped.

“You don’t?” he asked, “Even with Elsa gone?”

“Well, at first we did, but that was taken care of thanks to a certain friend of yours.” she clarified.

“What friend?” he asked.

“Captain Te-” Anna was about to say before Nicholas realized who she meant and immediately cut her off.

“Oh, right! Captain Teanums!” he exclaimed with a lie, “How is that old sea-dog? You know what? Forget it. You three are probably anxious to get back home, let’s not keep you waiting any longer.”

“But I-” Anna said before Kristoff interrupted.

“And maybe finally get married?” he asked her, “Just a thought.”

“Emma, thank you for everything.” Elsa said taking her friend’s hands, “You’ve done so much. I could never repay you.”

With one last hug, the young queen took a deep breath and said, “It’s time. Please, thank Hook and Mr. Gold for us, as well. And Nicholas?” she said feeling brave.

“Yeah?” he asked before being shocked along with everyone else as Elsa kissed him.

“Thanks for everything.” she said with a smile before hurrying through the door.

“Uh,” he trailed as his girlfriend and friends looked at him with surprised smirks, “Would now be an appropriate time for me to tell you guys that me and Elsa used to be a thing when we were kids?”

“Only if I get to say I had a crush on you back then, too.” Anna joked with the truth after Kristoff went through the door causing Nicholas to blush as the others laughed, “You know, I wish I had met this Mr. Gold. He seems super helpful. Who is he? I mean, who is he in the other world? Wait, let me guess. He was a fairy godfather, wasn’t he?”

“Well, not exactly.” David chuckled, “He was an evil sorcerer you’re lucky you never met. Rumplestiltskin.”

“Wait, what?” Anna asked looking concerned.

“You know him?” Emma asked.

“He explicitly said he didn’t know anything about you.” Nicholas pointed out.

“Well, that’s a lie.” she scoffed, “Not that I’m surprised. All he does is lie.”

“So Gold was playing us the whole time. But why?” Emma asked after Anna went through the door.

“Yeah, what could he possibly gain from lying to all of us and pretending that he was under Belle’s control?” Snow asked.

“Let’s hope wherever he is, Hook isn’t around.” David joked, “God knows he’d kill him the first chance he’d get.”

“Oh, shit.” Nicholas thought as the gears turned in his head. Just then, he received a text from Sawyer.

“ _Clock tower, now!_ ” it said.

“Oh, shit!” he shouted as he ran out the door and transmuted himself into town with the others following him via car. As soon as he made it there, a blast of magic erupted from the tower which knocked him back just as the others pulled up to him. As this happened, Belle came out from the shop, saw them and came over to them.

“Nicholas, what’s going on?” Belle asked as Emma helped him up.

“Gold’s gonna kill Hook in order to free himself from the dagger!” he cried as he kicked the doors in and ran into the elevator with her and Emma following him. Once they made it up, they saw Gold enveloped in magic with Hook’s heart in his hand while what seemed to be stars hovered around them.

“Gold!” he shouted, “Stop!”

“I’m sorry, I can’t.” he smiled evilly, “I’ve waited too long for this. And I’m too close.”

Nicholas made an attempt to pierce him with his spears, but with a wave of his hand, Gold froze him and Emma in place just before the tips could reach him. “Well, maybe not everything has gone to plan. But this part, I’m really gonna enjoy.” he said to Hook before squeezing the heart making him cry out in pain. But the dark one quickly realized that he was unable to reduce it to dust like he so wanted.

“I don’t understand.” he said in anger, “Why can’t I-”

“Because I commanded you not to.” Belle said revealing that she was now in possession of the dagger, “Drop the heart.”

Rumple did so and Hook caught it. “Now release everyone.” she ordered. After he did, the stars reverted back to form the Hat box.

“And now, now you can take us to the town line because we need to be alone for what comes next.” Belle ordered before her husband poofed them away in a cloud of red smoke.

As soon as they were gone, Emma and Nicholas ran up to the balcony where Emma helped Hook up and Nicholas grabbed the box before something else happened to it.

“Cutting it a bit close, eh, love?” Hook joked as she gently took his heart and prepared to put it back, “Just be gent-oh!” he exclaimed as she shoved it in.

“Sorry. I just thought if I did it quickly, it’d be like ripping off a Band-Aid.” she apologized.

“Thanks.” he groaned.

“And with that, the director no longer has a reason to want to kill us.” Nicholas thought as he put the box away in his trench coat, “We may be down a member, but things are looking our way now.”

Later that evening, the young couple reunited the pirate with his mermaid who was overjoyed to have him back in her arms; if Nicholas hadn’t stepped in, things would have gotten a little too frisky before they left. Back at Granny’s they found Regina sitting in her spot mopping over Robin.

“I’m not in the mood for a hope speech, guys.” she said as they sat next to her.

“You’re mistaking me for my mother. Besides, you don’t need a speech. You need a couple of drinking buddies. Shots?” Emma asked.

“Sure. Why not?” Regina replied.

“Tequila for the ladies, beer for me.” Nicholas said to the waitress.

“You know you did the right thing today.” Emma praised.

“There it is, a hope speech.” Regina complained, “I thought we were drinking.”

“It’s not a speech. It’s a compliment.” Emma retorted.

“Well, I don’t need your validation. I know I did the right thing. I know because I’m miserable; again.” Regina said dryly.

“Touchy.” Nicholas muttered as they got their drinks, “Well, if it makes you feel any better, so is Gold; whatever Belle did to him.”

“You know what? It actually does.” she nodded as they clinked their drinks. But before they could even take a sip, Henry came bolting through the door at them.

“Whoa, whoa, kid, slow down.” Emma said.

“Guys! Guys! I found something big!” he said in excitement, “You’re gonna want to see this.”

After they all went outside, Nicholas came back in and grabbed his beer. “Wait for me, guys!” he called out as he tried not to spill his drink. It was a good think he brought it too, because Henry led them right back to the mansion.

“After you guys left, I stayed behind to look around, and I found something.” Henry said as he led them downstairs and pulled down a sconce on the wall. It then revealed that the wall was a revolving secret door that led to the one place Nicholas hoped they would never find; the briefing room!

“A library!” Regina concluded only looking at the surrounding books.

“Not just any library. Look.” Henry said as he grabbed one of the books which looked identical to his.

“I am so screwed!” Nicholas thought.

“That looks like your book.” Emma observed.

“Only it’s blank.” Henry said, “They all are.”

“No, they’re just our record books written in ink that only LXG agents can read.” Nicholas thought as he tried not to show that he was panicking.

“If this place is full of potential storybooks…” Henry trailed.

“Then maybe this is the author’s house.” Regina finished looking at her son with a smile before pulling him in for a hug, “Henry, you did it!”

“Did what? What’s going on?” Emma asked.

“I’m gonna be killed or worse, lose my job, that’s what’s going on!” Nicholas screamed in his mind.

“Well, uh, we were looking for the author. I was hoping he could write me a happier story.” Regina replied.

“We called it Operation Mongoose.” Henry grinned.

“I like it. It’s got style.” Emma smirked, “I’m in.”

“You are?” Regina and Nicholas asked.

“I made you a promise I intend to keep. Everyone deserves their happy ending. Right, Nicholas?”

“Yep.” he said struggling not to cry out in frustration, “Count me in, too. I’d like to help.”

“I AM DOOMED!!!” he thought. Later, in the middle of the night, Nicholas called his fellow agents to return to the mansion for an important meeting.

“Could someone please tell me that they knew about the other, more accessible secret entrance we have that leads to this room?!” he exclaimed in frustration as he paced around the table where the others sat.

“Not me, I always thought the elevator in the fire place was the only way down here.” Sawyer replied.

“Today could not have been worse for us!” Nicholas shouted, “First we lose Robin because of Marion, then we lose Rumplestiltskin because of Belle, and now Emma, Henry, Regina and the Charmings know how to get down here and are gonna spend every chance they can get to find out where this author guy is!”

“We have not had the best of luck lately, have we?” Mina asked calmly.

“The director is gonna skin us alive when he finds out about this!” Nicholas cried.

“Flamel, calm down.” Quartermain sighed.

“Don’t tell me to calm down, boss!” he snapped surprising them, “We’re now down an agent, a sacrifice, and to top it all off on the shit pile that is today, our base has been completely compromised! Not to mention, I had to give the Hat back because Gold not only trapped the Apprentice in it, but literally every damn fairy in town! And the Promised Day is now four months away! In what possible way can any of us be calm?!”

“He does have many points, Allan.” Nemo agreed, “Perhaps we should go public now?”

“No, it’s still too early.” Quartermain denied, “We’ll get through this. We’ve faced much worse. Thankfully, everything we had that traced back to the League was removed and brought to the laboratories and they cannot read the record books. I’ll contact Loxley and tell him to keep an eye out for Gold.”

“What makes you think their paths will cross?” Skinner asked.

“Because according to Flamel, his sister gave Loxley the keys and address to Baelfire’s apartment in New York. What other possible place could the dark one go?”

“Hmm, good point.” he nodded.

“Oh, yeah. Everything’s gonna be fine.” Nicholas said sarcastically, “It’s not like I’m the one who has to make sure that we aren’t discovered on a 24/7 basis and keep track of everything for the upcoming hell on earth. Oh, that’s right, I am!”

“If all you’re gonna do tonight is complain and shout, I’m going back to the laboratory. Some of us actually need sleep.” Quartermain sighed as he got up and left.

“Yeah, I’m calling it a night, too.” Sawyer yawned, “Goodnight, y’all.”

“Cheers.” Skinner said as he, Mina and Nemo left as well.

“Fine! Go get some sleep. Leave me here to figure out what to do next all on my own. Oh, I can’t catch a break!” Nicholas shouted in frustration.


	43. Darkness on the Edge of Town

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

Six weeks following Gold’s banishment, everything seemed peaceful and quiet in the little town of Storybrooke. Snow decided that she wasn’t cut out for the mayor’s chair and gave it back to Regina so she could resume teaching at the school. Belle decided to keep the shop open and ran it whenever she wasn’t also working at the library; and when she wasn’t doing either of those, she was working with Hook and Ariel (who were officially engaged not long after Belle dealt with her husband) to figure out a way to free the fairies out of the Hat. Henry finally focused on school and never made any attempt to skip on any of his classes like he used to. David and Emma continued to work as co-sheriffs and used it as a good excuse for father-daughter bonding. As for Nicholas, the only thing he had done when wasn’t spending time with Emma was check on his inventions around town and made sure that no one stumbled upon anything they shouldn’t when they went to the mansion to search for the Author. Everything seemed to be going in everyone’s favor.

One day, Belle received word from an Oxford professor she contacted with a possible way to free everyone inside the Hat. As soon as she learned this, she immediately reported back to Regina so that the mayor could perform the ritual. Out in the woods, everyone gathered around the box in order to witness the spectacle as Regina used Rumple’s dagger to open it.

At first, nothing happened. But a few seconds later, the box erupted a bright golden light and released all of Storybrooke’s nuns from inside, each one in shock after what happened to them. Emma rushed over to Blue to see if she was alright.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“No.” Blue panted, “But I’ll live. Thank you.”

“Actually, it’s my sister you should be thanking.” Nicholas corrected as he helped one of the nuns to her feet.

“Welcome back.” Regina said with a kind smile.

“Thank you.” Blue said reluctantly before going over to join in her sisters’ tearful group hug. But while no one was looking, a small black cloud poured out of the box and escaped while taking on the form of a black, demon-like monster with glowing red eyes. Afterwards, the heroes decided to celebrate the return of the fairies by throwing a party at Granny’s. Everyone, except Nicholas seemed to be enjoying the festivities and Emma noticed.

“Hey.” she said as she sat next to him in the booth, “You know, the whole point of all this is to celebrate, right?”

“Yeah, I know.” he muttered while bouncing his leg and staring at the seat in front of him.

“So what’s wrong?” Emma chuckled.

“I don’t what it is, but I’ve got this feeling like something bad is about to happen today. Really bad.” he replied.

“Nicky,” she laughed while sighing, “You’re being paranoid.”

“No, I just know when my gut tells me I should have my guard up and its yelling at me to do so.” he argued, “Trust me, never ignore your gut. I learned that the hard way.”

“What happened when you didn’t?” Emma asked.

“I lost a poker game and all the money a friend of mine loaned me. He smacked me upside the head so hard I thought I had drain bamage.” Nicholas replied with a joke causing them both to laugh. In the booth in front of them, the couple noticed Regina and Henry approach Mother Superior with one of the (record) books Henry found in the mansion.

“Where did you get this?” Blue asked in shock as she examined the book.

“The Sorcerer’s mansion.” Emma replied as she and Nicholas joined them, “Henry found dozens of these blank books there.”

Nicholas quickly realized that Blue was able to read the book like he was and made sure to send her a discreet glare which clearly told her not to say anything regarding the League. So instead of correcting them, Blue lied and asked, “The Sorcerer is here?”

“Well, his house is, but we haven’t found him yet.” Henry replied.

“You’re looking for him?” she asked now more intrigued.

“Well, _I_ was hoping he could write me a happy ending.” Regina sheepishly admitted, “But that book seems to have great power.”

“Oh, it does.” Blue nodded while staring at the book.

“So I thought if he rewrote it,” Regina chuckled awkwardly, “I know it sounds crazy.”

“It’s not crazy at all.” Blue scoffed, “But you’re looking for the wrong person. Although the Sorcerer is a very powerful wizard, you should be looking for the Author.”

“Aren’t they the same person?” Emma asked.

“Why would the Sorcerer have the Author’s books?” Regina asked while Nicholas gave Blue another threatening look.

“That is a quite perplexing question. And I’m afraid I don’t know.” she said trying to control her fear towards Nicholas, “But I do know that they are two very different people.”

“So you know who the Author is?” Nicholas asked.

“No.” Blue replied, “But I do know he exists. I mean, if he is a ‘he.’ I’ve never actually seen him. No one has. Not for many years.”

“So this is where hope has gotten me?” Regina scoffed looking at Emma and Nicholas.

“We’ll find him, Regina. It’s not like he just vanished.” Emma assured, “Blue, do you have any idea why he might’ve disappeared?”

“Sadly, no. But there are whispers that he left hidden clues in some of his works.”

“You mean, works like Henry’s book?” Nicholas asked just before a loud roar filled the air as the ground shook.

“What the hell was that?” Emma asked.

“I suppose we should go out and see what’s killing property values this time.” Regina suggested.

“You know,” Nicholas said as they exited the diner, “Sometimes I hate being right about crap like this.”

When they made it outside, they looked at the clock tower in fear as they saw a giant black demon with red eyes perched on top of the building. It was muscular, had giant wings as black as night, and looked at everything in sight as though it were its future prey. It then rose into the air and swooped down to try and attack the party with its claws. When it missed, they all took cover behind a building.

“Did that thing come out of the Hat?!” Regina asked Belle, “I thought the spell was only supposed to release the fairies.”

“Well, maybe it is some kind of fairy.” Snow suggested.

“In what kind of sick and twisted world would that thing be considered a fairy?!” Nicholas exclaimed.

“Why don’t we just put it back in the Hat and figure out the rest later?” Emma asked.

“Because we can’t.” Belle replied, “Once something’s freed, it can never be re-trapped.”

“Well, isn’t that inconvenient?” Nicholas dryly remarked, “So our best defense against magical beasts follows the same rules as chicken pox?”

“Surely the Savior, Evil Queen and Immortal Alchemist can defeat a simple hell beast.” Hook argued.

“Can we drop the E word already?” Regina dryly pleaded as the three of them went to the street. As the demon circled back, Emma and Regina raised their hands to cast their magic while Nicholas prepared his lightning alchemy claws. When it dived at them, they unleashed their attacks which drove the beast away.

“Well, that was easy.” Emma remarked.

“Don’t get excited. We only stunned it.” Regina retorted before turning to her brother, “And when the hell did you make those?!”

“Back when I was in New York.” he casually replied, “I got the idea from when Tamara electrocuted me before we dealt with Pan. Pretty badass, huh? That thing’s strong, though. We should’ve been able to destroy it with that attack.”

“I was just getting used to things being relaxing around here.” Emma sighed, “Belle-”

“I’ll see if I can find anything about this thing in the library.” she finished.

“Thanks. And, Mary Margaret-”

“I’ll get everyone to safety. I’m on it.” she replied.

“Wow. You guys really have this down.” Emma pointed out.

“Well, this isn’t our first monster bash.” Hook smirked before going with Belle and Ariel to the library.

“Well, no that that’s settled, what say you and I figure out a way to clip this bat’s wings before it comes back?” Regina suggested. Back in her office, the mayor was working on a plan with her sibling and his girlfriend when an unexpected caller buzzed her phone.

“Regina, who is it?” Nicholas asked when he noticed his sister’s shocked expression.

“The sea bitch.” she growled as she put Ursula on speaker.

“I’ve missed you, too. How are you and your brother doing?” Ursula taunted.

“I think we’re mostly wondering how a plate of uncooked calamari ended up with the dark one’s cell phone.” Regina replied.

“What?” Nicholas asked.

“I stole it from him.” Ursula replied.

“And where is he now?” Nicholas asked.

“If we’re lucky, passed out at the dive bar where Cruella and I left him.” she informed.

“Cruella?” Regina asked in surprise.

“Yes, we’re back together. Rumple found us in New York, said he needed some old friends. Told us a tearful tale about how he was living in a quaint town until he ruined everything. But he said it was a special place where villains could find redemption. Regina, Rumplestiltskin told us how you’ve changed, and we’ve changed, too. We’ve learned our lessons, and we’d like chance to prove it to you and that _handsome_ brother of yours.”

Hearing this made Nicholas shudder in absolute disgust while Emma glared at the phone on the table.

“Please. Let us in.” Ursula kindly pleaded.

“Sorry, dears, but we have enough problems without inviting two-” Regina began to say before the demon’s roar cut her off.

“Is one of those problems a hell-bat with beady eyes and devil horns?” Ursula asked and it was clear she was smirking on the other line.

“I take it that you’ve had experience with the damn thing?” Nicholas asked.

“Indeed. In fact, that’s the exact same sound it made before it tried to kill me. And I can tell you exactly what it wants.” Ursula said before Emma covered the speaker.

“They’ve been living in a land without magic. How could they do it?” Emma asked before answering her own question, “It’s the Hat.”

“Dammit.” Nicholas spat, “Fine. Tell us what it wants, you Starbucks logo reject.”

“Feisty as ever I see, Nicholas.” Ursula teased, “And your sister will let us in if we tell you?”

“Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t.” Regina replied.

“Well, then I guess you’re on your own.”

“Wait.” Emma interjected, “The Snow Queen’s scroll let her into Storybrooke once. Maybe it’ll work for them.”

With no other choice, Regina relented and spoke to the sea witch again. “Alright, squid. If your information pans out, we’ll consider letting you in. Those are my terms.”

“…You’ve got a deal.” Ursula replied, “The beast that’s terrorizing your town in called the Chernabog, a demon that has a specific appetite for those whose hearts have the greatest potential of darkness. Something you might want to be warry of, Regina.”

And with that, Ursula hung up and left the trio to deal with the problem at hand. “Regina, I’m not sure it’s after you.” Emma said while the mayor was pacing around in panic.

“Of course it’s after me.” she scoffed, “Ursula said it devours the heart with the darkest potential and now that Gold’s gone, well, who else could that be? I mean, is there a dwarf named evil-y? It’s me!”

“We’re not gonna just sacrifice you.” Emma argued.

“That may come later, though.” Nicholas bluntly thought

“I’m not sure we have much of a choice.” Regina argued as an idea popped into Emma’s head.

“That thing’s magical, right?” she asked.

“I would say magical is a pretty good guess.” Regina snootily remarked.

“So if it’s magic, what happens if it leaves town for a world with no magic?” Emma asked.

“No magic, no beast.” Regina concluded.

“So all we have to do is lead it over the town line. Hun, you’re a genius!” Nicholas said happily before kissing her cheek making her smile and blush.

“The Chernabog withstood all three of our attacks combined. Even if I poof myself to the town line, the second I’m out in the open, it’ll crush me like a bug.”

“Leave getting the thing over there to me, I’ve got a plan.” Nicholas smirked wickedly. Once he made it outside, he saw the beast circle the buildings until it locked eye contact with him. “It’s been a long time since I got to do this.” he whispered with an insane grin.

Red lightning began to spark around him as his body began to change. It started with his right eye turning black with the exception of his iris turning purple while his left eye seemed have eight more irises in the center that were blood red. He then cried out in pain as his muscles bulged and two more arms erupted from his sides as he grew as large as a giant and his skin turned green. With a long tail and a canine-like face topped with long black hair, his transformation was almost complete. It was finished when hundreds of human heads and arms sprouted along his torso screaming and crying out to whoever could hear them over the sound of Nicholas’ thunderous roar. With all six legs to carry him, Nicholas charged at the Chernabog and began Storybrooke’s first ever giant monster fight.

It was pretty one-sided. Even in the form of a gigantic green monster, Nicholas proved his fighting skills were no laughing matter as he chased the beast into the woods. As they ran through the trees, Nicholas grabbed hold of it and began to thrash it against the ground like a rag doll before throwing it away into the air. While this happened, Emma drove Regina to the town line as fast as her bug could take her.

“What made you choose yellow?” Regina asked over the roaring.

“What?” Emma asked.

“Your bug. Yellow? Bold choice.” she remarked.

“I like yellow. I-I stole it. Is this really the time to question my taste?” Emma asked.

“Sorry, I’m just trying to not think about being some demon’s lunch.”

“You’re not going to be.” Emma reassured.

“I’m glad you’re confident.” Regina spat as the Chernabog landed on top of the car while Nicholas chased it, “What, is this thing made out of tin?”

“Hang on. We’re almost there.” Emma said as the monster punched a hole in front window.

“It’s too late. I’m not gonna let both of us die in this metal coffin on wheels.” Regina said as the car swerved, “Thanks for trying, Miss Swan.”

“What?!” Emma asked as Regina poofed herself away to the line. Only problem was that the Chernabog was still trying to get inside the car.

“No!” Nicholas cried in his mind as he quickened his pace. Once he was close enough, he grabbed the monster again and chucked it over the town line where Cruella and Ursula were waiting oblivious to what was going on just a few feet behind them. Once it crossed the line, it vanished out of existence in a cloud of ash. As it did, David and Snow pulled up in the patrol car next to Nicholas. As soon as they got out, David aimed his gun at him ready to shoot.

“Dad, wait!” Emma cried as she got out of her busted car, “Don’t shoot him!”

“I save the town from certain doom at the hands of a hell-beast and I’m thanked with a gun pointed at me head?” he asked in his monstrous voice while rolling his eyes, “Typical.”

“Nicholas?” Snow asked as he step-uncle reverted back to his human form.

“Would you expect anyone else?” he asked with a smirk, “I have to say, that was freaking awesome. I haven’t taken on that form in decades. Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Emma nodded as she tightly hugged him, “Thanks for saving me.”

“It’s what I do.” he smiled with love before kissing her forehead.

“So Cruella and Ursula were telling the truth.” Snow said not taking her eyes off the backs of the villains.

“It would appear so.” Regina nodded as Emma was about to hand her the scroll.

“No, wait.” Snow immediately interjected, “Emma, I…I think this is a bad idea. Look, they may have told the truth this time. But that doesn’t mean they can be trusted.”

“Mom, this doesn’t sound like you.” Emma said in surprise, “You always believe the best in everyone.”

“Except me.” Nicholas dryly thought, “But she is a bit out of character for some reason.”

“I’m also a realist.” Snow countered.

“Emma, she’s right.” David agreed almost too eagerly, “Things were just about to get back to normal in Storybrooke.”

“You, too?” Emma asked.

“Okay, red flag alert.” Nicholas thought, “The hope police is saying that we shouldn’t give certain people a chance. These two are hiding something.”

“Look, we don’t know anything about these two.” Snow argued, “They could be looking for redemption, but they could also be as evil as Mr. Gold or Zelena or worse.”

“They could be, but they just helped us, and we made a deal.” Emma informed.

“Doesn’t matter. It’s a bad idea. They’re villains.” Snow shot down.

“You’re right. They are. They’re horrible, but not as horrible as I once was. And if I deserve a second chance, so do they.” Regina reminded, “How can I sit here, looking for my happiness, and deny two others a chance at theirs?”

“This isn’t some exclusive country club that only allows the sophisticated and prestigious to enter, guys. It’s a town built for second chances.” Nicholas pointed out, “And as much as those two creep me out because they used to flirt with me every time they came across us back when Regina was the ‘you know what,’ they deserve as much of a second chance as the next guy.”

“I’m with Regina and Nicholas. We let them in.” Emma said to her parents as she gave her friend the scroll. Against her better judgement, Regina tossed the parchment over the orange line and watched as Cruella and Ursula picked it up before entering Cruella’s signature car. Once they unrolled it, they instantly spotted the group and went over the line with ease.

“Welcome to Storybrooke.” Regina greeted.

“Thank you, Regina.” Cruella said sweetly while winking at Nicholas, “You won’t regret it.”

“I better not.” she nodded as the villains drove into their new home. Later on when night fell, the duo returned to the town line with the scroll and tossed it over the side to someone unexpected, Rumplestiltskin.

When he rolled it open, he saw his two allies on the other side with triumphant smirks on their faces.

“We’re back, darling.” Cruella greeted.

“You didn’t think we abandoned you, did you, dark one?” Ursula asked.

“Of course not. We’re a team.” Rumple nodded as he hobbled over the town line. As soon as he crossed it, he traded his ratty old clothes and cane for an expensive suit and a fully functional leg.

“Nice duds. Now what do we do?” Cruella asked.

“Now we begin our task.” Gold replied while tossing the can away. Once in town, the imp informed his co-conspirators of the next phase in their plan. “It’s simple, really. Continue to repent your wicked ways. Make friends. Build relationships.”

“And just what will you be doing?” Cruella asked.

“I’ll continue my work behind the scenes, of course.” he replied.

“Sounds like we’re doing everything, again.” Ursula dryly pointed out.

“How do you think we got in here?” Gold asked having enough with their whining, “And how do you think that Chernabog was released? It was me. I’m the Oxford professor who translated the spell for Belle, the spell that released the fairies and also happened to release that monstrosity. So I ask you to consider what I was able to do on the outside, at my lowest point, without magic. And then consider what I’m able to do in here. So maybe we should stop bickering and get on with it. See our team is one member short. And it’s time to reunite the band.

“Y-you don’t mean-” Cruella stuttered.

“Maleficent.” Ursula finished.

“But she’s dead.” Cruella reminded.

“Not entirely.” Gold smirked.

“Well, just what does that mean?” she asked.

“It means we have our work cut out, much to prepare.” he replied.

“I don’t like it. Dead or alive, we’ve got a bigger problem; Regina and her brother.” Ursula reminded.

“What makes you say that?” Gold asked.

“That beast was unable to defeat either of them. As bad as Maleficent is, Regina’s dark heart and Nicholas’s Philosopher’s Stone are far worse; trust me, I’ve seen what he can do.” she warned mysteriously.

“You are so filled with assumptions.” Gold sighed, “Regina and Flamel are not the one’s we need to worry about.”

“What?”

“That beast did seek out the heart with the greatest potential for darkness, yes, but it wasn’t going after Regina. It was after Emma Swan.”

While they were discussing this, Sawyer was hidden in the shadows on the nearest rooftop listening to every single word. Later that night, he called everyone to return to the mansion in order to share what he had learned.

“And you’re sure Gold said that thing was after Emma?” Nicholas asked.

“100%.” Sawyer nodded, “You know how good I am at recon. He said Emma Swan’s name clear as day.”

“This doesn’t bode well for us.” Skinner sighed.

“On the contrary, Skinner, we couldn’t ask for a better situation.” Mina corrected, “The dark one has returned and the Apprentice is now free so now we have a total of three sacrifices in Storybrooke with another well on the way.”

“True, but we also have to deal with Ursula working with him now and she knows about us.” Skinner reminded, “That sea witch may have just filled in Marian’s shoes for her. Uh, no offense, Nemo.”

“None taken.” he shrugged, “As much as I love her, my wife hasn’t always made the best decisions in life. But I don’t believe she will tell Gold about us. She may not be the League’s biggest fan, but she knows the danger that could put us, specifically me, in.”

“Still find it hard to believe you married Ursula of all people, old friend.” Nicholas sighed, “But Mina is right, this actually is in our favor. But Ursula is familiar with the way we operate. And if we interfere with what’s she doing, it may cost us.”

“They’re after the Author in search of happy endings from what I understand. Figured you’d be hers’, Nemo.” Sawyer commented.

“Sigh, I thought that, as well. I promised her the sea and all its treasures, but there was only one thing that she wanted besides my love; and I could never give it to her.” he sighed sadly, “Please, my friends, I beg of you, when the time comes, let me handle her.”

“Did you think we’d send Skinner to do it?” Quartermain asked with a smirk, “She’s your wife. Handle her however you want.”

“That sounded kind of weird, boss.” Nicholas joked.

“Shut up, Flamel.” he snapped.

“Shutting up. Aside from dealing with Ursula, I want to know what exactly it is Gold plans to do with Emma.” he said.

“I can keep an eye on him for you, mate.” Skinner offered, “It may also help us find out how’s going to find the Author, as well.”

“Thanks, man. I appreciate that.” Nicholas nodded to his friend.

“As for the rest of you, lay low.” Quartermain ordered, “We’re dealing with the dark one and the queens of darkness. We cannot afford any more slip ups. Understood?”

They all nodded in response. “Good. Dismissed.”


	44. Poor Unfortunate Soul

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

The next day, the townsfolk seemed to adjust to the newest residents’ presence; reluctantly. It was nothing more than just the cold shoulder so as not to antagonize them and risk being reminded of their powers. That being said, David and Snow seemed to be more on edge than when they first arrived the day before. Still, things remained quiet around town and no one had turned up dead yet, so all in all things were well.

Nicholas decided to spend his day with Emma when she wasn’t busy chasing down the two witches with her father. Everything was going well until her parents showed up at the station after it got dark; and Nicholas immediately noticed something suspicious about them the moment he saw them.

“I’m afraid we have some bad news.” David informed as they walked in, “Turns out Cruella and Ursula were up to something.”

“They resurrected Maleficent.” Snow said cutting to the chase.

“And then there were four.” Nicholas said in his head.

“The dragon that I slayed under the clock tower?” Emma asked.

“Yeah, and now she’s back to her old self.” David nodded.

“And as long as she’s in town, no one is safe.” Snow added.

“I don’t get it. Why are these witches waging war against us?” Emma asked. For a moment, her parents hesitated, then Snow gave her an answer.

“Because they’re villains, and we’re heroes.” she said.

“Well, that’s rather cynical.” Nicholas thought with his brow furrowed. Later that night, while Nicholas was in his study, he finally heard Regina come in through the front door.

“You’re home late.” he observed, “Busy looking for the Author again?”

“No, something else came up.” she said removing her coat and entering the study, “Mary Margaret and David wanted to talk with me about the dysfunctional trio.”

“About what?” he asked.

“They want me to act as a double agent and spy on them amongst their ranks. And they explicitly want it to be done without Emma knowing about it.” she replied while pouring herself a glass of her hard cider.

“Why? What are they up to?” he asked.

“Well, that’s why they want me to spy on them.” Regina replied before taking a much needed drink.

“Not the witches, the Charmings. What are they up to and why are they so adamant about you spying on Maleficent, Cruella and Ursula?” Nicholas clarified with a sigh.

“They don’t want me telling you, either.” she admitted.

“Really?” Nicholas asked crossing his arms, “Why me, too?”

“Well, obviously, they think you’ll tell Emma as soon as you find out.” Regina retorted.

“What do they take me for? I have more secrets than anyone else in this town and I’ve managed to keep them all!” Nicholas said raising his voice in annoyance.

“And you’re also their daughter’s boyfriend who’s as loyal to her as a dog.” she reminded, “Besides, they didn’t even tell me why they don’t want Emma to know what they did. The only thing I can tell you is that it involved Maleficent back when Snow was still pregnant with Emma. Apparently, that was around the time they met the dragon bitch.”

“Okay, you say that about her but I remember a certain witch-in-training acting like a total fangirl whenever someone even mentioned the name Maleficent.” Nicholas reminded with a knowing look, “Who also made a point to risk her life in order to get her out of magic drug using funk once.”

“Oh, like you never had a role-model growing up.” she countered.

“Considering that I’m literally the most famous alchemist in the history of every realm, not really.” he replied.

“Whatever.” Regina scoffed.

“So when exactly are you gonna try and join the sorority from hell?” he asked.

“Tomorrow night.” she replied taking another drink.

“I see.” Nicholas sighed, “Well, in that case, have fun, don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, and please, for the love of God, don’t get a tattoo; that’s my shtick and we don’t need it to be a family trait.”

“Should I feel offended that you’re not more concerned or trying to stop me?” she joked.

“You’re a big girl and have gotten yourself thrown into deeper shit than this so why should I worry?” he asked with a shrug.

The next morning, after Regina had a night on the town with her fellow villains and after Emma found out what was going on, Nicholas came out of Granny’s just as Emma pulled over her bug to a sudden stop.

“Find anything in there?” she asked worried about her friend’s safety.

“Yeah, a burnt table, some broken bottles, and a very pissed off Granny who probably wishes she could still turn into a wolf and teach them a lesson.” he replied, “Evidently, they drank the place dry. I think she won them over.”

“Unless that’s exactly what they wanted her to think.” Emma argued.

“Look, I know you’re worried, but we don’t even know what happened yet.”

“That’s what’s worrying me. She’s not at home. She’s not in her office. My parents are gonna check her vault, but-”

“And you fear the worst.” he finished.

“I can’t help but think that the undercover thing worked and if she’s got the situation under control, then why the hell isn’t she back yet?” Emma panicked.

“Because she’s in the lion’s den, Em.” Nicholas reminded, “She’s not going to be able to report back regularly. All we can do is wait until she does call in and go from there.”

And that took until the late evening later that day in the back of the library. “Hey, we’re here.” David said before Regina came out from behind the shelves.

“I said we needed to meet covertly. Now I see you brought the entire Charming softball team and the smartass announcer.” Regina remarked.

“Who’re you calling a smartass?” Nicholas asked.

“You.” they all replied bluntly.

“Okay, just checking.” he joked.

“We were worried about you.” Snow said.

“Well, then worry quickly. I can’t be seen with all of you.”

“Regina, listen to me. This is a bad idea.” Emma warned, “This woman, this dragon, she’s dangerous, and you don’t know the first thing about going undercover.”

“I’m a quick study,” Regina defended, “And Maleficent already told me why they’re here. Apparently, they’re after the Author, too. I simply want him to change my fate.”

“Well, what do they want?” Nicholas asked.

“They want to shift the entire balance so that villains win and heroes lose. They feel the only way to get their happy ending is to destroy yours.” she informed gravely.

“Do you think they can find the author?” Emma asked.

“They have a lead we don’t. And tonight, they want me to help them steal it; whatever it is.”

“I’m telling you, these things never end well.” Emma warned.

“I understand your concern, but I’m in.”

“Okay, well, then I’m in, too.” she decided.

“What?” Regina asked.

“I’m gonna stick by you. I’m gonna get your back while you do this.” Emma declared.

“No, it’s too dangerous.” Regina denied.

“I said I was a part of Operation Mongoose. I’m a part of it. You wanted my help, now you’re gonna get it no matter what it means for both of us. Whatever she has planned tonight, I’ll be there.”

“Me, too.” Nicholas nodded, “If anyone’s gonna make sure you don’t screw this up, it’s gonna be me. And we can consider this date-night.” he said smirking at Emma. A few hours later while they were hiding in David’s truck, Nicholas and Emma saw Cruella’s car pull up in front of Regina when Maleficent suddenly appeared next to her. After a brief conversation, they watched as the two women entered the car and followed it at a safe distance.

“Never thought we’d be spending date-night following your sister in a tacky 20s car.” Emma joked not taking her eyes off of the vehicle.

“Honestly, I was expecting a bit more excitement in this.” Nicholas admitted as the car came to a stop, “Now why are they stopping here? This is Marco’s place.”

“Oh, crap.” Emma muttered, “I know why they’re here.”

“Why?”

“Pinocchio.” she growled as she got out of the car.

“What’s he got to do with this?” he whispered as they snuck in to find Marco and his son unconscious with Regina standing over them.

“Regina.” Emma alerted softly.

“Guys, what are you doing here?” she asked.

“We’ve been watching you. I saw you casting a sleeping spell, and my gut said something was wrong.” she replied.

“Well, it will be if you don’t get out of here.” Regina whispered.

“Not until you tell us what Maleficent has you doing in here.” Nicholas whispered.

“They’re after Pinocchio.” she sighed.

“I told you these things never end well.” Emma said hotly, “We’ll have to do this quickly. Let’s take him out the back and then find a safe place.”

“One little snafu and you’re ready to pack up?” Regina asked, “What happens when Mal realizes and lets loose her inner dragon?”

“This is a child we’re talking about, Regina. It’s too big a risk.” Emma argued.

“Not if I’m there to keep him safe. If they try to harm him, I’ll stop them and fight my way out.”

“Three of them! One of you!” Emma exclaimed while whispering.

“I know you think I’m in over my head, but I got this. You don’t know them like I do.”

“Then enlighten me, because ever since they came to town, my superpower’s been going haywire, like everyone, including my own parents, is keeping something from me.” Emma said.

“Emma, the only ones keeping secrets are Maleficent and her friends.” Regina assured with a lie, “They’ve taken a page out of the heroes’ playbook. They’re working together, which means we have to take a page out of theirs and break some rules.”

“She’s right, Em.” Nicholas agreed putting a hand on her shoulder, “This is our best bet right now.”

“Fine.” she relented, “But I see anything I don’t like, we will come in blazing.”

Regina nodded, picked up Pinocchio and brought him outside to show Maleficent. A few minutes after they left, Emma finally lost her patience when her phone wasn’t showing any movement on Regina’s phone.

“Come on. What’s the hold up?” she muttered.

“I think I know.” Nicholas growled as he headed outside the garage. Sure enough, laying in the street was his sister’s cell phone.

“No.” Emma exhaled, “Regina, what are you doing?”

“Something stupid, that’s what.” Nicholas sighed. In the distance, he could pick up the scents of where everyone was. It was faint, but he could smell his sister, Maleficent, Ursula, Cruella, Pinocchio and Gold gathered together in one place. Now, he had an excuse to tell Emma at least that much.

“What is it? What can you smell?” she asked.

“Four different kinds perfume, sawdust…and an expensive kind of cologne. Guess who that belongs too.” Nicholas replied.

“Gold.” Emma gasped, “He’s back. What do we do?”

“Nothing.” he replied earning a shocked look, “If we go over there now we’ll not only risk Regina’s life but Pinocchio’s, as well. Wait a minute.”

“What?”

“One of the scents just changed.” Nicholas said trying to catch a whiff, “Sawdust…cologne…leather…dammit!”

“What is it?” Emma asked in concern.

“I think they just turned Pinocchio back into August.” he replied, “Makes sense if you think about it. The kid can’t remember so why waste everyone’s time when you can just ask the man? Oi vey, Marco’s gonna flip when he finds out. We’re just gonna have to put our faith in Regina, now more than ever.”

**OUaT**

Many years ago at a port in the Enchanted Forest, a handsome, young bronze-skinned sailor was carefully sketching bizarre drawing in an old sketchbook on a massive Navy ship while his shipmates carried in crates of cargo.

“You know, we could use a hand with this!” one of them said while lifting a crate of cannon balls.

“Don’t bother. Once he’s got his nose stuffed in that sketchbook, there’s no stopping him.” another sailor teased.

“Well, if the task is too difficult for you, perhaps the captain selected milk drinkers instead of sailors for this voyage.” the young man said with a playful smirk causing his friends to laugh.

“What are you sketching this time, lad?” one asked as they came over.

“Just an old dream.” he replied as he stared at the drawing with a longing look before it was snatched from him.

“What the bloody hell is this supposed to be anyway?”

“It’s a ship I hope to build one day.” he answered, “One capable of traveling to places never before reached by any known sailor. A ship capable of sailing under water.”

He may have said it in wonder, but his friends did nothing but laugh, for the idea seemed impossible. “A ship that can sail under water?! Bah!” they laughed.

“And just how far could this vessel go, pray tell?”

“20,000 leagues.” he replied in defense.

“Forget it, lad. No such ship will ever exist.” one of them said tossing the book back to him.

“It can and it will; I’ll build it myself.” he vowed.

“It’s a dream, Nemo. Nothing more.” the other man sighed as they went back to their duties.

“I’ll show them.” the young Nemo grumbled, “I will build a ship capable of going underwater. Then everyone will see what I can do.”

“Sounds like she’ll be an impressive vessel.” another voice said from behind. Nemo turned around and saw who it belonged to.

“C-Captain, sir.” he stuttered before saluting, “I-I-I, my apologies, sir. I-I wa-was just-”

“May I see that for a moment, son?” the captain asked kindly. Nemo handed it over and the captain looked at the various designs in amazement. “Fascinating. And you hope to build all these?”

“Yes, sir.” Nemo nodded, “I know they seem foolish-”

“Not at all.” the captain interrupted, “These ideas are amazing. I’ve never seen such details. Could you build these?”

“Yes, sir. All I would need is the materials and I could build everything in that book with ease.”

“Remarkable. Truly remarkable.” the captain praised, “I would very much like to sail on that ship you just mentioned. Have you thought of a name yet?”

“No, sir.” Nemo replied.

“Then how about…Nautilus?” he suggested, “The Sword of the Ocean.”

“It sounds perfect, sir. Thank you.” Nemo smiled, “Are we ready to depart?”

“Yes, we are; no thanks to your sketching, though.” he joked causing Nemo to fluster, “Weigh anchor! Get the main sails into the wind!”

“Aye, Captain!” the crew cried. As they all rushed to their stations, Nemo returned to his post at the helm and was ready to leave port before he caught a whiff of the air and looked to the sky.

“Something wrong, helmsman?” the captain asked growing impatient.

“Captain, I would advise not to leave port today.” Nemo warned, “A terrible storm awaits us.”

“Nemo,” he sighed, “You are an exceptional sailor, best I’ve seen in all my years. But your duties are to follow my orders and to steer the ship. Leave the weather predictions to the navigator.”

“But, sir-”

“That’s an order.” he snapped.

“…Aye, Captain.” Nemo sighed before muttering, “But don’t say I didn’t warn you when we end up in Davey Jones’ Locker.”

Sure enough, Nemo’s prediction was right. A terrible Maelstrom awaited them the evening they set out. The crew, or what was left after the waves sent them into the sea, fought hard to make it through the storm with Nemo as their one hope to steer them to safety. Unfortunately, the waves finally over powered him and sent him into the sea.

He survived, but as soon as he made it to the surface, he witnessed a heartbreaking sight. Lightning stuck the main mast of the ship and sent it crashing into the haul where the gun powder was kept for the cannons. Seconds after it fell, the fiery mast ignited the powder, and the ship blew sky high. And before he could weep for his friends, a piece of debris struck his head and rendered him unconscious.

Darkness and water took him; the end seemed near. But it never came. A pair of soft, delicate hands cupped his face before they grabbed his arms and pulled him up to the surface. He didn’t know how long he was out, but the next thing Nemo knew, he felt sand underneath him, air in his lungs, and the sound of a beautiful voice singing in his ears.

“ _What would I give to live where you are_

_What would I pay to stay here beside you_

_What would I do to see you smiling at me._

_Where would we walk?_

_Where would we run_

_If we could stay all day in the sun?_

_Just you and me, and I could be_

_Part of your world.”_

When the song was finally over, Nemo was fully awake and felt his heart long to hear more of that beautiful melody. And though he couldn’t see her, a beautiful dark skinned mermaid watched him fondly from behind the nearest rock holding onto his sketch book against her chest. Once he gained his bearings, he found himself along the beach near the port he left earlier that day with only a yellow seashell in his hand. He could never explain why when would tell this story, but something in him told him not to let go of the shell; and he never did.

**OUaT**

At the mansion, Nemo was staring out at the view of the sea from a balcony. With the wind blowing through his beard, he said nothing when Quartermain stepped out to join him.

“I just delivered that message for you, in case you were wondering.” he said breaking the silence.

“Thank you.” Nemo said curtly.

“If this is bothering you so much, then just go out there and confront her.” Quartermain suggested.

“You know I can’t, Allan.” Nemo replied.

“No, you can, you’re just choosing not to for Flamel’s sake.” Quartermain argued, “You know as well as I do that you can confront her and not risk our exposure.”

“I will go when the time is right. I will not rush this no matter how much I want to see her.”

“Fine.” Quartermain sighed, “Just don’t wait too long. We all know how much you’ve missed her. You may be the most subtle out of all of us, but we know you, Nemo.”

“Is this your way of telling me that your concerned?” Nemo joked.

“What do you think?” he asked with a smug yet playful smirk.

“Thank you. But I will wait until the right moment.” Nemo repeated.

“Fair enough.” Quartermain relented with his hands raised as headed inside before stopping, “We are concerned, though, Nemo. And whatever happens, you have our support.”

“Thank you, my friend. I know.” Nemo nodded before looking back to the sea. Back in the woods, Snow, David, Emma and Nicholas were scoping out the area around Gold’s cabin where the villains were keeping August.

“As long as he’s with Regina, August will be alright.” Snow assured.

“You don’t know that.” Emma sighed, “I just wish I hadn’t let her ditch me.”

“Hun, get used to it. I’ve known Regina for years and this is typical her.” Nicholas informed no less annoyed at his sister than she was.

“Maybe, but I let her talk me into thinking kidnapping him was a good idea.” Emma countered, “If anything happens to him, it’s my fault.”

Just then, a cloud of dark purple smoke came down towards them and enveloped Mary Margaret who looked unharmed.

“Mary Margaret?” David asked.

“What the hell was that? Are you okay?” Emma asked.

“I have to make this quick. We don’t have much time.” she said only in Regina’s voice.

“Sis?” Nicholas asked.

“Pinocchio’s fine. He’s back to his old self, or older self. But there’s something else you need to know. Gold is here.” Regina warned.

“Told ya.” Nicholas quipped.

“We’re hold up in his cabin, and he’s in town for more than just the Author. But he won’t tell me why, which makes whatever it is he’s planning, it’s bad.” Regina finished before exiting Snow’s body.

“We need to get to Belle and find out where she hid the dagger.” Nicholas advised. Once they made it back to town, they told Belle everything they knew.

“He’s here?” she asked, “But that’s impossible.”

“I can smell him all the way from here. Believe me, he’s back.” Nicholas assured, “Besides, did you really think he’d be gone forever? That midget’s resilient above all else, I’ll give him that.”

“We need you to give us the dagger so we can stop this fight before it starts.” Emma added.

“The dagger? I-I don’t have the dagger.” Belle replied, “Killian does. He came to me the other night and suggested that he should hide it somewhere else where no one could find it.”

“No, he didn’t.” Nicholas sighed as he put the pieces together, “Gold took a page from my book and disguised himself as Hook to get the dagger from you. Where is Hook anyway? He and Ariel are usually tagging along with us at this point.”

“Well, they are engaged. They’ve got a pretty good excuse to stay busy.” Snow reminded.

“They’re getting married on his ship, they’re both partial to fish and the guest list will mostly be his crew. What else is there to plan?” Nicholas asked bluntly.

“Can we get back on track, please?” Emma asked, “What are we gonna do about Gold and the others.”

“First things first. We need to know what the dark one’s planning, and I think I have a way.” Nicholas informed.

“How?” Belle asked.

“Well, I think I know a way how to get one of the Queens of Darkness to have a chat with me; Ursula.” he replied.

“You know her?” Emma asked.

“Not personally. I’ve only ever come across her once or twice back when Regina was terrorizing the Enchanted Forest. But I think I know how to figure out what her happy ending is and if I know that, I can use that a leverage over her. Plus, you’ll be down a villain to deal with when you go save August.”

“Are sure you know what you’re doing?” Emma asked.

“Not really, but I’ve been in worse situations. I’ll be fine.” he assured as he gave her a hug and headed outside where he made a phone call. “Hey, Mina. Nemo there?”

“No, you just missed him. He just jumped through a portal.” she replied.

. “Crap.” he muttered, “Well, then I’ll just have to adjust my plan. Say do you know whatever happened to Ursula?”

“Indeed. Come over to the mansion and I’ll explain everything Nemo told me.” she said only to see him transmute himself next to a second later.

“Well?” he asked.

“Damn, you’re getting quick with that.” she bluntly praised, “Anyway, you wanted to know what happened to Ursula, yes?”

“Yeah. Look, I know she’s Nemo’s wife, but things are escalating fast. I need to know how to handle her, especially since Nemo’s gone.”

“Alright.” she nodded, “Unfortunately, all Nemo ever told me was that Ursula had something taken from her when she was young by a pirate and that led to her becoming a villain bent on terrorizing the seas.”

“That’s it?” Nicholas flatly asked, “If that’s all you know, then why did I bother coming here?”

“Because you’ll need this,” Mina said sternly as she tossed him a conch shell, “to speak to Ursula. I’m starting to think we should call you the Impatient Alchemist.”

“What am I supposed to do with a conch shell?” he asked a bit more politely.

“Go outside in the woods, away from the mansion, blow it and Ursula will hear you; then you’ll be able to ask her yourself. It’s like a dog whistle for mermaids.” she replied.

“Magic never ceases to make absolutely no sense to me.” Nicholas sighed as he examined the shell before transmuting himself outside far away from the mansion. After seeing that the coast was clear, he blew into the shell and waited for the Queen of Darkness to show up. About five minutes later, he found that it worked when he felt a tentacle wrap tightly around his throat.

“Hello, Agent Flamel.” Ursula greeted as she choked him.

**OUaT**

A few months after the storm, Nemo finally began to work on building his dream ship with the compensation he received from the royal Navy. So far, with what he had and the few men who actually believe in him and his dream, he was only able begin building a smaller prototype than the final design he envisioned. Out of all his helpers, two of them believed in him the most, a man his age called Ishmael and a beautiful girl, who hadn’t given him her name yet, who would bring them food while they were working.

“Captain, she’s coming along splendidly.” Ishmael smiled as he stood next to his friend on the dock. So far, they managed to get at least ¼ done, but it was a start.

“Wait until we can build the real thing, my friend.” Nemo grinned in excitement, “The Nautilus will dive beneath the waves soon enough.”

“I wonder how the merfolk will react to seeing it.” the girl said as she approached them with her basket, “I hear they aren’t too fond of sailors these days.”

“I think they’ll be too stunned by her magnificence to even dare attack her.” Ishmael replied, “And if they do, we’ll show them what happens when they cross us.”

“Now, now,” Nemo eased, “No need for violence. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for the merfolk and neither would the Nautilus.”

“What do you mean?” the girl asked.

“The Captain claims that he was saved by a mermaid a few months ago after that terrible maelstrom took out his ship and crew where she sang a lovely song and left him with that shell he keeps in his turban.” Ishmael replied as he took a sandwich from the basket, “And I still say that it was just a dream.”

“So was this.” Nemo countered while pointing to the unfinished ship, “And look where we are now. And stop calling me captain. The ship’s not finished yet.”

“Must have been some song if it made you want to keep something from that night.” the girl smirked as Nemo at his lunch.

“It wasn’t just the song. The girl, it’s all I have to connect her with.” Nemo replied tapping the shell on his head, “I think she traded with me without my consent.”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“I lost my sketch book that night. Everything I’ve ever hoped to design is in those pages and I know for a fact that I had it on me when I washed ashore.” he informed causing her to shift.

“R-really?” she asked, “And what would you do to her if you found out she had it?”

“Politely ask for it back. What else would I do?” Nemo asked, “I’m not angry with her. Mermaids are known for pulling stunts like that. They collect more surface objects than any other known creature. I know she has it and that it’s still in good condition; the pages and ink aren’t effected by water.”

“What’d you say it looked like again?” Ishmael asked as he grabbed some tools.

“White cover, blue spine, torn top left corner on the back.” Nemo replied, “Why do you ask?”

“Cause she has it.” Ishmael replied pointing his hammer at the girl who blushed and looked panicked, “Have fun with that conversation, _Captain_.”

“You?” Nemo asked, “You were the one who saved me?”

“Yes.” she said with a sheepish smile as she handed him the book from her basket, “I-I was going to tell you when I first saw you, but I saw what you were building and didn’t want to keep you from it. Your-your ideas are amazing. I wanted to see one for myself.”

“Oh, this is nothing.” Nemo chuckled, “I only started building this one because I didn’t have the book. But now, we can actually build the true Nautilus! Ishmael! Stop what you’re doing! We’re scrapping this model and going for the original design!”

“Gods dammit!” Ishmael cried as he threw his tools into the water and slipped on a rock falling into the sand causing the others to laugh.

“Thank you, so much.” Nemo said looking the girl in her chocolate brown eyes, “You have done so much for me and I haven’t done a thing to repay you. I don’t even know your name.”

“I was happy to do it.” she smiled, “And it’s Ursula.”

“As in…the war goddess?” Nemo asked skeptically.

“Named after her.” she laughed, “But I am the daughter of Poseidon.”

“Oh, is that all?” Nemo laughed, “Hear that, Ishmael? We’ve been receiving our meals from the daughter of the sea God! Imagine that!”

“I think he’s unconscious.” Ursula said when he didn’t even move.

“Yeah, we should probably help.” Nemo nodded as they went over to help their friend.

**OUaT**

“You certainly are bold to call me here, aren’t you, little alchemist?” Ursula taunted as she continued to choke Nicholas, “What’s your game?”

“No game!” he croaked, “I want to offer you a deal.”

“You have nothing I want.” she scoffed.

“I can take you to your husband!” Nicholas offered gaining her attention.

“What?” she asked as she let him go, “Nemo’s here?”

“Well, not presently.” Nicholas coughed as air returned to his lungs, “But he does live here and will be back soon.”

“Well, isn’t that inconvenient?” Ursula asked as she tried to choke him again only to have her tentacle caught in his grip.

“Choke me once, shame you. Choke me twice, we’re gonna have an issue.” Nicholas warned as he tightened his grip, “Now I have some questions for you and I don’t plan on leaving you alone until you answer them.”

“You want to know why I stayed a villain even after I married Nemo.” she stated.

“You had the one thing every villain wants, love. And yet, you threw it away and deserted him.” Nicholas accused.

“I did not abandon him!” Ursula snarled in his face, “You think I wanted to come to this shit world? Cruella and I were sent here because of the Charmings and their stupidity.”

“I don’t care about your past with those two knuckleheads.” Nicholas dismissed, “What are _you_ after? What’s your end game?”

“You really want to know?” she asked, “Fine. My goal was once we found the Author, he’d send me to wherever Nemo was after I was given what was mine.”

“And that would be?”

“My voice. My singing voice.” she replied gaining his attention, “Not long after I saved Nemo, I ran into a pirate named Captain Hook.”

“Oh,” Nicholas groaned, “What did he do?”

“Originally, we started off well and I considered him a friend. Until he used my father’s magic to steal my singing voice because I refused to use it to kill sailors and my father cheated him in a deal they made.” she informed gritting her teeth at the memories, “After that, I used father’s trident to give me power and became a villain.”

“That’s what you’re after?” Nicholas asked finding it odd, “Your ability to sing?”

“You have no idea what it was like being the one mermaid in any ocean that couldn’t sing.” she hissed, “Or what it was like living all those years without it. A mermaid’s voice is everything to her.”

“Okay, okay, I get it.” he defended, “Well, as luck would have it, Hook’s here in Storybrooke, as well. Most likely onboard his ship as we speak.”

“Good. Now I can finally kill him.” Ursula said as she started walking to the harbor only to be stopped by Nicholas.

“And that’s where you and I have an issue.” Nicholas said as he shoved her back a little, “See, I consider Hook a good friend, and I’m very protective of my friends; especially since he’s engaged to a lovely girl who also happens to be a mermaid. We do things my way, or else.”

“Or else what?” she scoffed, “You wouldn’t harm one of your friends’ wife, would you?”

“No, I wouldn’t.” Nicholas admitted, “Doesn’t mean I wouldn’t trap you in a seven-layered dome made out of stone in the middle of the woods until either I or Nemo come to pick you up, though. Your husband may be the smartest in our branch, but I’m the cleverest; don’t forget it.”

“Noted.” Ursula nodded. Nicholas then took out one of the transport rocks his team used, crushed it, then tossed it at their feet which sent them to the Jolly Roger.

“I figured you would have preferred that over being transmuted over here.” Nicholas clarified as Hook came up from below deck.

“Nicholas?” he asked, “Mate, what are you…”

“Hook.” Ursula curtly nodded.

“Bloody hell.” he gasped as he reached for his sword.

“No need for that.” Nicholas said as he extended his spear to keep him from drawing, “We’re just here for something you hopefully have.”

“And what’s that?” Hook asked not taking his eyes off of Ursula.

“My singing voice. You still have it?” she asked.

“Why are you doing this?” Hook asked Nicholas.

“Call it a favor for an old friend. And, no, I don’t mean her.” Nicholas replied, “Do you have it, or not?”

“Aye.” he nodded, “In a safe in my quarters.”

“Excellent.” Nicholas grinned as he retracted his spear, “I’ll go get it. You two can stay up here and chat; and hopefully not try to kill each other.”

“No promises.” Ursula scoffed.

“Still don’t know what he sees in you.” Nicholas muttered as he went below. The two just stared at each other in silence as the sound of the sea filled the air. It was then that Ursula broke the silence.

“If you want to apologize, go ahead.” she said.

“I’m not sure I have the right.” he admitted, “What I did to you was unforgivable.”

“Perhaps.” she shrugged, “But do you know what it’s like to have the most precious thing in your life stolen from you by someone you trusted? Someone you thought was your friend?”

Hook said nothing. This was long overdue and he was going to take it like a man and let the lady express her anger.

“That hurt, too, you know. Do you know what I went through after what you did?” she asked, “I was only ever able to sing to my beloved one time and he barely conscious then. I couldn’t sing for him at our wedding. I couldn’t sing a single lullaby to my son or my daughter.”

Hook looked away in shame as he clenched his jaw. It was evident that he felt guilty and terrible for what he did and Ursula knew this. She continued to speak.

“Now, let me tell you all the good that came from the choice you made.” she said surprising him, “I learned the importance resilience, determination, humiliation, fortitude and humility. And after all I’ve been through, after all I’ve done because of you I can finally tell you, after all these years…that I forgive you.”

“…I’ve only ever dreamed of hearing you say that.” Hook whispered as he swallowed a large lump in his throat, “For what it’s worth, I truly am sorry for what I did, Ursula.”

“I know you are.” she nodded, “I am still angry at you, but someone very dear to me taught me long ago that while I’m a villain, I can forgive those who’ve wrong me; to an extent.”

“Hook, I know you don’t get many visitors, but I suggest maybe cleaning up a bit down there. Smells like a different kind of fish in your room, if you catch my drift.” Nicholas suggested as he came back up with the shell in his hand before handing it to its owner, “Now remember our deal, you get your voice back, you tell me what Gold’s planning.”

“Of course, unlike some people, I keep my word.” Ursula replied as she tried to reclaim her voice. Unfortunately, when it tried to return to her, it went back into the shell. “It didn’t work.”

“Oh, this won’t end well.” Nicholas muttered.

“Looks like you were wrong, Flamel.” Ursula said as anger filled her eyes, “Villains can’t get their happy endings. Oh, I never should have believed you when you said we could do this without the Author. You probably planned this, didn’t you? I bet my husband isn’t even this damn town.”

“I told you, he’s out of town.” Nicholas reminded as his anger and guard rose, “We had a deal, I got you your voice. It’s not my fault your magic can’t it out of the damn shell. Now tell me what Gold has planned.

“Our deal is over. You get nothing!” Ursula shouted as all eight of her tentacles came out and knocked out both men, “Have a nice swim, boys.”

And with that, the sea witch tossed both Nicholas and Hook into the water while she retreated back to Gold’s cabin. As luck would have it, Ariel was out swimming as this happened and was able to save them before Hook drowned. When Nicholas came to, he awoke to an angry mermaid glaring at him.

“You okay?” she asked.

“Yeah.” he groaned.

“Good.” she said before slapping him, “That’s for almost getting my fiancé killed.”

“I guess I had that coming.” he mumbled.

“Was that the real Ursula? Why did she throw you two overboard?” she asked as Hook came to.

“Because nothing ever wants to cooperate with me when I try to do something nice.” Nicholas replied bitterly, “You’re mermaid, how do you get a voice trapped inside a shell out?”

“That’s what this is about?” she asked.

“Crazy, right?” Nicholas bluntly asked as he dried himself off.

“Well, the only way to get a voice out is to have whoever enchanted the shell undo the magic on it.” Ariel replied, “Who did it to her?”

“That would be her father, King Poseidon.” Hook groaned, “No easy feat, I can assure you.”

“How many hoops am I gonna have to jump through for this?” Nicholas asked before thinking, “That actually may explain why Nemo up and left all of a sudden. Should’ve known.”

Sure enough, once he made it to the deck, a massive geyser of water erupted from the side of the ship. From it, Nemo and an older dark skinned man wearing bonze armor with a trident in his hand landed on the ship.

“You know, it would’ve been nice to know that you were going to see your father-in-law before I started this little excursion of mine, Nemo.” Nicholas sighed before directing his attention to Poseidon, “Lord Poseidon.”

“Pleasure as always, Agent Flamel.” the god nodded kindly, “Where is my daughter?”

“Well, before she knocked me out and threw me overboard, she was guarding a friend of my girlfriend’s, so she’s probably headed back there as we speak.” he replied, “If you would be so kind as to take us there?”

“Of course.” he nodded before slamming his trident on the ship and transporting them to Gold’s cabin.

“Uh, perhaps I should go in first.” Nicholas suggested, “Nemo you may want to wait somewhere else, I can smell Emma and her parents in there, too.”

“Very well. I will be waiting at the shore. Please hurry.” he begged before crushing a transport rock and poofing away. Once he headed towards the door, he could here Ursula speak.

“The Author is the only one who can give me what I want.” she said.

“Well, that’s not true.” Nicholas interjected.

“How are you still breathing?” she asked in annoyance.

“Well, I’m not known as the Immortal Alchemist for nothing; duh.” he replied, “Regardless, you don’t need the Author to get what you want. The reason why you couldn’t release your voice from that shell is because there’s only one person who can; the person who enchanted it to begin with.”

“Wait. You don’t mean-”

“Indeed, I do.” Nicholas smiled as he bowed his head in respect for Poseidon as he entered the cabin.

“Father?” Ursula asked, “How are you here in this land?”

“Your husband came to Atlantis and brought me here.” he replied careful not to blow Nemo’s cover, “And there’s something I need to say. I’m sorry, Ursula. I never should have forced you to use your voice as a weapon. It was just…every time I heard you sing, I heard your mother, and it was too painful. I let that pain fuel my desire for vengeance, but it shouldn’t have. It should have reminded me that I still had a piece of her; you. Let me return your voice so I can hear it one last time.”

With a wave of his hand over the shell, Ursula’s voice returned to her and allowed everyone to hear just how beautiful she could sing. For the first time in over thirty years, the princess of the sea had a genuine smile on her face and love in her heart for her father.

“Now that you are whole again, I’ll leave you in peace.” Poseidon said sadly even though he was happy for her.

“Wait.” she stopped, “My voice is all we have left of mother. You took it from me once, I don’t want to do the same thing to you.”

“What are you saying?” he asked.

“I’ve missed you.” she said before finally giving her father a hug that was long overdue.

“I’ve missed you, too.” he said letting a few tears of joy escape. As the father and daughter left arm in arm, Nicholas smiled at the sight feeling proud at what he accomplished.

“Why’d you do it?” Emma asked when everyone else left.

“Do what?” he asked.

“Go out of your way to help Ursula like that?”

“Well, I can’t give you all the details, but what can tell you is that Ursula’s actually married to very dear friend of mine and he hasn’t seen her since before the first curse. I did all this for him because he’s made plenty of sacrifices for me over the years. It was the least I could do.” Nicholas replied.

“Wow.” was all she could say.

“That’s it?” he playfully asked, “No further questions about who my friend is or how we know each other or why I haven’t even said his name?”

“Not this time.” she admitted, “I know you have a lot of secrets, secrets that you either can’t or won’t tell me and…and it’s okay.”

“It is?” he asked becoming serious.

“I know you’re just trying to protect me and you’ll tell me when you’re ready. And I’m okay with that. Your secrets are yours and I can live with that. What I can’t accept is you lying to me all the time; it really pisses me off when you do that.”

“Sweetheart, believe me, I hate when I have to do that to you, I really do.” Nicholas said honestly, “But…it’s complicated.”

“I know.” she replied, “And when you want to tell me, I’ll be ready. Just please stop lying to me.”

“I promise.” he said softly as he held her close, “There’s no way I’m gonna lose my happy ending. I love you too much.”

“I love you, too.” she whispered as happy tears escaped her eyes when he called her his happy ending.

“I have to protect her.” he thought, “At any cost. I can’t lose her.”

Later that night, Nemo waited on the beach to reunited with his beloved. A moment later, heard the soft sound of her humming the same song she sang when they first met. He turned and felt his heart stop when he gazed upon her beauty. He didn’t say a word, only flung his arms around her and gently kissed her as tears streamed down both their faces. Off to the side, Poseidon smiled fondly as his daughter while Nicholas and the rest of his branch smiled fondly at Nemo reuniting with his wife.

“You did good today, Flamel.” Quartermain praised, “You did good.”

“Thanks, boss.” Nicholas thanked, “This moment would better if Skinner wasn’t bawling, though.”

“Shut up!” Skinner wailed as he blew his nose loudly, “It’s a touching moment! Excuse me for having a heart!”

“It’s okay, Skinner. Some guys are just more sensitive than others.” Sawyer mocked.

“Oi! I ain’t sensitive!” Skinner defended hotly.

“Then why the hell are you crying?!” Sawyer, Mina and Nicholas exclaimed while Quartermain rolled his eyes. As they did this, Ursula came over to them with her arm around Nemo’s.

“I think it’s time for me to hold up my end of the deal.” she said to Nicholas gaining everyone’s serious attention, “Gold’s plan, I’m afraid it involves Emma. She’s the only way he can ensure happy endings for the villains.”

“I thought he was gonna get the Author to rewrite everyone’s stories.” Nicholas recalled.

“It’s not that simple. The Author can’t just change things in this world because he didn’t give everyone their happy endings here.” Ursula informed.

“Emma did.” Nicholas realized.

“She’s the Savior. And as long as there’s a Savior, the Author can’t give the villains what they really want. And the dark one knows this.”

“He’s going to try to kill the Savior?” Quartermain asked.

“Worse.” Ursula replied, “He plans to fill her heart with darkness; forever.”

“Like hell he will.” Nicholas growled as his anger sky rocketed.

**OUaT**

After a year of hard intense work, Ishmael, Ursula and Nemo stood proudly as they gazed upon the massive ship that was officially dubbed _Nautilus: Sword of the Ocean_. To commemorate the occasion, Ishmael went to fetch some ale for the three of them while the rest of the crew cheered and applauded. While he did, Nemo grabbed hold of Ursula with his left hand, which was crowned with a wedding ring, and felt two tentacles wrap around him while she kissed him repeatedly; one of which had a ring of its own. It was certainly a dream come true for the both of them.


	45. Best Laid Plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

The following morning, Emma made a phone call to the Mills’ house with surprising news for both siblings, news that she said could only be explained in person on account of how ridiculous it was. Sure enough, when they made it to the loft, Regina and Nicholas couldn’t believe what she told them.

“The Author is locked behind the illustration of a door?” Nicholas asked.

“How the hell is he trapped inside the book?” Regina asked.

“Don’t ask me. You’re the magic expert.” Emma retorted.

“Mom.” Henry said, though no one heard him.

“Well, this is insane. What are we supposed to do, draw a key?” Regina scoffed.

“What we need to do is figure it out before Gold does.” Nicholas stressed.

“Mom!” Henry said loudly.

“What is it?” Regina asked.

“There’s something wrong with August.” he said. Sure enough, the former puppet looked pale and weak.

“We need to get him help.” Emma said. With a wave of her hand, Regina transported them to the fairies for their help.

“He’s been through a lot.” Blue said while August rested in one of their beds.

“What’s happening?” Emma asked, “He was awake, and then he passed out.”

“Well, he’s been changed by magic many times. For him to survive this, he will have to be very strong.” Blue replied.

“We have a bigger problem.” Regina reminded as she led them into the hall, “Gold and these other witches are expecting me. They sent me on a mission to get that page from the book. And if I return empty-handed, whatever suspicions they have of me will be confirmed.”

“Then give them this.” Emma said as she made an exact replica of the page with her magic.

“Wow. You’re getting good.” Henry praised.

“I’ve been practicing.” Emma smirked.

“A forgery?” Regina asked unimpressed, “This is Gold we’re talking about.”

“Then pull out, and we’ll protect you.” Nicholas retorted.

“We still don’t know what they’re up to. It’s a bigger risk not to know.” Regina argued before her cell rang, “That’s them probably wondering where I am.”

“Mom, the forgery’s good.” Henry assured.

“Not good enough.” Regina replied as she snapped a picture of the real page with her phone, “But maybe what we need is a different kind of copy.”

“Because Gold and those witches don’t know that the page contains the actual door.” Nicholas reminded, “All they are about is what the door looks like. Smart thinking, sis.”

“Hopefully, this will be enough to keep them on their wild goose chase around town. I’ve got to get going. Bye.” she said as she hugged her brother and son tightly a little longer than expected.

“Okay, Mom.” Henry said when she wouldn’t let go.

“Sorry. Sorry. Just not sure if…when I’ll be back to see you two.” she admitted, “But don’t worry. I’ll be fine.”

“Now that we have that settled,” Nicholas said after his sister left and they made it back to the loft where her parents were, “There’s something I need to tell you, Emma. Something Ursula told me last night.”

“What is it?” she asked.

“Before she left, she told me what the villains have planned.” he replied, “In order to get their happy endings, they intend to darken your heart, to turn you into a villain so you’ll no longer be the Savior.”

“What?” Henry asked, “You can’t just un-savior the Savior.”

“Apparently, Gold thinks he’s found a way. By using the Author’s power.” Nicholas replied causing David and Snow to looked more worried than ever before.

“That’s insane.” Emma chuckled, “If that’s what their plan is, stop worrying. It’s ridiculous. Author or no Author, I am not going dark.”

“Maybe. But darkness is a funny thing. It creeps up in you. Twists your reasons, and makes you do things you never thought you could do. Trust me, I’ve had experience.” Nicholas warned with guilt in his voice.

“Hey.” Emma said softly looking into his eyes, “No one, not Rumplestiltskin or some Author, gets to decide who I am.”

After David and Snow slipped out of the loft, Henry resumed looking for clues in the book while his mother and uncle sat together by the window cuddling. Emma was wrapped up in her love for Nicholas, but he was clearly on edge due to what he knew about Gold’s plan.

“Nicky, are you still worried?” she asked.

“Of course I’m worried. How could I not be?” he asked as she rubbed his arm sweetly, “I know you won’t lose to the darkness, but I know how hard it can fight.”

“You talking about what you said earlier?” she asked, “When was that, when Cora died?”

“No, that wasn’t darkness, that was just anger.” he said softly, “A long time ago, I made a promise to help someone bear a dark and terrible burden; one that was capable of ensnaring people to do unspeakable things. And I fell to its temptation. I was willing to kill my friend just to keep it away from him because I was weak. That’s what darkness does, Emma…it makes you do terrible things, even to your friends and loved ones. Just look at everyone else in my family and what we’ve done.”

“Hey,” she soothed kissing his temple, “You are not weak and neither of us are gonna go dark. Just because you let one friend down doesn’t mean you’ll turn out like Gold and the others. Do you remember that video I showed you from the foster home?”

“With your friend when you were a girl?” he asked.

“Lily. Her name was Lily. She was my first and best friend, and I pushed her away forever. And after that, I just…wasn’t great at making friends. You were the rare exception.” Emma said kissing his cheek.

“Emma, look.” he said gazing out the window at a purple magic wave.

“What the hell is tha-” she began to say only be put to sleep with Nicholas the second it passed through them. Looking over the town, Regina, Cruella and Gold watched as Maleficent finished her spell on the residents of Storybrooke.

“It’s done. Now let’s get to work.” she said darkly. After they walked through town to make sure that everyone was indeed asleep, Regina led them to the loft where they found Emma sleeping against Nicholas’ chest as his face twisted and scrunched as though he were in pain. The minute she saw him like this, she knew her little brother was having another nightmare about his past so she went over to him to try and soothe him as he slept.

“I must say, your brother looks a lot less threatening in this state. Doesn’t he, Regina?” Maleficent taunted which earned her a glare.

“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t tempted wring both his and the Savior’s scrawny necks right now.” Cruella snarled as she glared at the couple.

“Go anywhere near him, and you lose those gin cup holders you call hands.” Regina threatened, “Besides, killing the Savior at this point would be ill-advised; not to mention, there’d be no stopping Nicholas’s rampage afterwards, either.”

“Your right about that.” Rumple agreed, “Yet wrong about the location of the page. It’s not here.”

“We just have to keep looking.” Regina, “The page was here two hours ago. It didn’t just grow legs and walk out of here on its own.”

“Then perhaps you should stop tending to the slave, and help us look.” Maleficent suggested which caused Regina to hurl the nearest knife at her “friend” and imbed it into the wall by her ear.

“Don’t ever call him a slave.” Regina hissed as her body wracked with a white hot anger.

“If the page isn’t here, it’s possible someone walked out of here with it.” Rumple suggested.

“I put the whole town to sleep, even Flamel’s sawing logs. No one could be awake.” Maleficent argued.

“Except those who have been under a sleeping curse and are immune.” he countered which alerted Regina, “I may know a resourceful young man who’s wide awake. One who’s very protective of the storybook and all its contents. One who’s gonna test his mother’s commitment towards helping me.”

“Henry.” Regina nodded as the others exited the loft. As they did, Regina rose from the couch only to be stopped by Nicholas holding onto her arm while he suffered his nightmare. She looked down at him with a sad smile and smoothed his hair before kissing his forehead. “I’ll be back soon. I promise.”

Outside in the streets, Regina warned her cohorts with yet another threat. “No one goes near Henry but me. If you have a problem with that, you can take it up with one of my fireballs.”

As the rest of the went on, Regina’s cover was blown after she gave the villains the fake page after they intercepted Henry. After they left, Snow and Charming arrived and convinced Henry to go back home and leave the real page and the key to the door he found with them; only they intended to to burn it. But before they could, Snow’s conscience got the better of her and she and David decided not only to keep the page, but to tell Emma the truth to what they had been keeping from her.

Back when Snow was pregnant with Emma, the two of them worked with the Queens of Darkness to seek out a way to prevent Regina’s curse from being cast. In the process, Maleficent revealed that Emma had the potential to not only become a brave hero, but an even worse villain than her, her friends, Regina or even Rumplestiltskin. This information terrified the royal couple so much that they decided to go to severe lengths to keep Emma from turning dark. As it turned out, Maleficent was also pregnant at the time, only her child was in a dragon’s egg.

When they learned of this, and with the help of a traveling peddler, they met the Apprentice who told them of how they could ensure that Emma would forever be a hero untouched by the darkness. All they would have to do was sacrifice Maleficent’s child for their own; and so they did thinking only of themselves. But all magic comes with a price and the price for this was the banishment of Maleficent’s baby to another realm despite their promise to return it to its mother. Cruella and Ursula discovered this and tried to save their friend’s child, but they were sent through the portal along with it; the portal that sent them to this realm with no means of ever returning home.

After they returned home, they woke Emma and Nicholas up and confessed to their daughter what they did. When they finished their tale, Emma looked at them in anger for not just lying to her, but for what they did to Maleficent and her baby. Nicholas was simply shocked when he realized that it was their fault that Nemo went the past thirty years without his wife and that they were even capable of doing such a terrible thing to an innocent baby of all things.

“This whole time, I was right. You were lying.” Emma whispered as tears of betrayal formed in her already puffy eyes, “I wanted to believe you. I wanted to believe in you.”

David and Snow looked more ashamed and scared than Nicholas had ever seen them in the time he knew them. Ashamed at what they did and scared for what Emma might feel towards them and whether she’d ever forgive them or not.

“We were just…trying to protect you.” David softly defended. It was clear that he couldn’t bear to see his baby girl look at him like that.

“Emma, are you alright?” Nicholas asked as he tried to hold her hand, but she swiftly pulled it away while glaring at her parents.

“No. I’m not okay.” she exhaled as she got out of her seat and headed to the door, “I’ve got to go.”

“Please, stop.” Snow begged as she tried to stop her, “I’m your mother.”

Emma then said three words that absolutely broke Snow’s heart. “I don’t care.”

And with that, she left her parents to wallow in their heartbreak and guilt. Nicholas rose from his seat to follow her. He couldn’t think of one single word that would have done justice to what he was feeling towards the two before him. All he could do was shake his head at them with hard glare of his own before he chased after the woman he loved. Sure enough, he found her sitting on the same bench at the docks where they rekindled their friendship and began to love each other.

“Hey.” he said as he approached her.

“I’m just gonna need some time.” she said as she held the page and key.

“I just got a call from your parents on my way here. August is awake.” he informed gaining her attention.

“Is he-”

“He’s gonna be fine.” Nicholas assured before pulling Emma into a much needed hug.

“Why did my parents send you?” she asked.

“They didn’t think you’d listen to them.” he replied as he rubbed her back.

“…They were right.” she sighed. After a quick drive over to the monastery, Emma rushed in to check on her friend but was disappointed to see her parents standing next to him. “August, how are you?”

“A bit tired, but better.” he said before stiffening up when he saw Nicholas enter the room, “What’s he doing here?”

“Relax, _Groot_ , I’m just here for Emma. And you’ll be happy to know that we found the key to the door.”

“You did it.” August said.

“That’s right. Now what do you say we let the Author out ‘cause I have some questions.” Emma nodded.

“Emma, please think about this.” Snow begged, “This isn’t just what Regina wanted. This is what Gold wanted, too. He was doing it to turn you dark.”

“I’m not worried about it. Are you?” Emma asked bitterly with a glare, “Because now I have some questions about me, and he can tell us everything.”

“If he’s the one who wrote your story.” August pointed out.

“What are you talking about?” Nicholas asked.

“There’s something you need to know about this Author. He wasn’t the only one.” he informed, “There have been many Authors throughout time. It’s a job. Not a person. And the one trapped in here was just the last tasked with the great responsibility.”

“Which is?” Emma asked.

“To record. To witness the greatest stories of all time and record them for posterity. The job has gone back eons, from the man who watched shadows dance across cave walls and entire philosophy, to playwrights who tell tales in poetry, to a man named Walt. Many have had this sacred job. Great men and women who took on the responsibility with the gravity that it deserved; until this last one. He started to manipulate rather than record. He did something, I don’t know exactly what, but something that pushed them over the edge. That’s why the Sorcerer and his apprentice put him in there. They’re the ones who choose the Author, and they took responsibility for their error.”

“If they did, and he’s still in there, he still has the ability to alter the book, to alter the course of things.” Emma realized.

“You sure have come a long way from the woman who wouldn’t believe.” August chuckled.

“Yeah, I have.” Emma said as she set the page down and unlocked the door. In a flash of bright yellow light, the Author, dressed in clothes from the Enchanted Forest that hugged his scrawny body, popped right out of the page and into the room.

“Oh. Whoo!” he exclaimed, “It was cramped in there! I couldn’t even reach this. And I was parched.” he said holding up an old flask that caught Snow and David’s attention.

“Where did you get that?” David asked.

“This?” he asked, “Uh, a nice young couple I met on the road gave it to me. You want some? It’s sort of nutmeg-y.”

“You.” Snow realized, “You’re the Author?”

“The peddler?” David asked.

“We have a lot of questions.” Emma said.

“I bet you do.” the Author kindly chuckled before throwing the curtain rod at them and tossing what was inside the flask at Nicholas. Instead of it being brandy, it was fairy dust which tore through his face like acid. As they were distracted, he made his escape into the woods.

“Hey!” Emma cried as she chased after him. But once she was outside, she couldn’t see him anywhere.

“The Author, where is he?” David asked as they joined up with her as Nicholas finally stopped healing.

“We lost him.” Emma said dryly, “How in the hell did he know to use fairy dust on you?”

“I guess I wasn’t as ignored when he wrote the book as I thought.” Nicholas gritted in anger.

“We know him, Emma.” Snow confessed.

“What?” she asked hotly.

“We met him a long time ago, before you were born.” Snow replied.

“He manipulated us.” David added, “It’s because of him we were put on the path to causing Maleficent to lose her child.”

“It’s true.” Snow nodded already believing in the excuse. Emma was certainly not happy with it, though.

“No. No, what’s true is no matter how you were manipulated, you still did what you did, and you lied to me about it! You’ve been lying to me about everything! About you, about me!” Emma shouted as tears started to form again.

“That’s not the case.” David interrupted, “It’s one incident from our past.”

“Don’t downplay it.” Emma snapped.

“Well, we’ve changed.” Snow defended, “We’ve tried to become the parents you deserve.”

“I am only the Savior because you altered the state of my entire being at the expense of someone else’s soul.” Emma spat.

“You’re right.” David agreed, “What we did, it was wrong. But we-we didn’t fully understand what we were doing. We acted out of fear. We’re human.”

“Yeah, well, right now I don’t care. None of that matters now. We have to find that Author before Gold does.” Emma said before storming off.

“You made a mistake, guys.” Nicholas said flatly to the couple, “You made a choice and it was the wrong one. Stop trying to make excuses to justify it and just accept that what you did was wrong. Emma’s never gonna forgive you if you keep doing that.”

As he tried to get away from the royals, Isaac, the Author, looked around for a suitable branch for him to use. Once he found one, he began to widdle the tip to make it a replacement quill for him to use.

“Well, I’m not much of a writer. But I do know a thing or two about magic quills.” Gold said -smugly as he appeared before Isaac.

“Such as?” he asked.

“That they can only be carved from the wood of enchanted trees and unfortunately for you, none of the timber that lies in Storybrooke meets that criteria.” Gold smirked.

“Dammit!” Isaac cursed as he snapped the branch and noticed the others searching for him, “I have to get away.”

“Yes, you do. Or you could come with me.” Gold offered knowing he would.

“And why would I do that?” Isaac asked, “You are by far the biggest pain in the ass I’ve ever had the displeasure of writing about.”

“Yes, there is that.” Gold chuckled as he pulled out Isaac’s actual Author quill, “But there’s also this.”

“What do you want from me?” Isaac asked now that he knew he had no other choice.

“You are gonna write me a whole bunch of new happy endings.” he smirked.

“Sigh…okay.” he relented.

“I thought so.” the dark one chuckled before poofing them away. After he dropped the Author off at his cabin, Rumple returned to Regina’s vault where she was bound in chains after finally waking up from Maleficent’s spell.

“Your hands are tied, I’m afraid.” he informed as she realized her situation, “No more magic for you today.”

“So now I’m your prisoner.” Regina stated.

“You and the Author.” he corrected, “Well, actually, he had the good sense to join the team, whereas you, you back the wrong one.”

“What about everything you said to me?” she asked, “You wanted me to find my happiness.”

“Well, that’s true. Just not at my expense.” Rumple replied, “You see, the affection I have for you, well, there are limits.”

“What happened to you?” Regina asked.

“I lost everything. Just as you will if you don’t do as I say.” he darkly replied as he pulled out a scrap of paper, “I found this in your pocket. Telephone number registered to a Robin of Loxley.”

“Give that back.” she demanded.

“I’m guessing you have this number because your worried about poor Robin Hood out there in the cold, harsh world. And so you should be.” Rumple warned.

“What do you know that I don’t?” Regina growled, “What happened to Robin?”

With a wave of his hand, Gold made the magic binding cuffs on Regina disappear as he gave her the number and his cell phone. “Ask him yourself. Call.” he ordered.

Even though she was confused, Regina dialed the number anyway and hoped that her beloved would answer. “Robin?” she asked.

“No, it’s not Robin.” Marian answered on the other line in New York.

“Marian?” Regina asked.

“Not exactly.” she chuckled before her voice changed to one Regina never thought she’s hear again, “Hello, sis.”

“No.” Regina said as he legs gave and she needed to sit down, “No, it can’t be.”

“Oh, but it is.” Zelena taunted wickedly.

“Zelena. But how? I saw you die.”

“You thought you saw me die.” Zelena corrected.

“Where’s Robin?” Regina asked hotly, “This is his phone. What have you done with him?”

“I haven’t done anything except love and honor him in sickness and in health, to have to hold and all that other wifely nonsense.” Zelena mocked in disgust.

“I-I don’t understand.” Regina stuttered.

“Well, you don’t have to. All you need to know is that while your precious Robin thinks it’s his wide-eyed wife cooking dinner for him every night, it’s actually me.” she chuckled, “Oh, I’ve got to run, sis. He’ll be home soon, and I’ve got a meatloaf in the oven.”

“No.” Regina denied as her world shattered and as she glared at Gold, “No.”

“Oh, you sound like you need a moment.” Zelena continued to taunt, “Take it. I’m sure we’ll see each other again very soon. Oh, and before I forget. Please, do send my regards to _Abba._ ”

When he sister hung up, Regina couldn’t take her eyes off of her former teacher as a maelstrom of emotions stormed through her very being. “You knew.” she hissed.

“And that’s why you will do everything I ask.” Rumple admitted, “Because one phone call from me and your beloved dies at the hands of your sister.”

“She murdered your son!” Regina reminded.

“Well, your brother had a hand in that, too. And Zelena and I have come to an understanding.” Rumple replied, “And now you and I have an understanding as well. Regina, you are vital to my plan to turn the Savior towards darkness.”

“You made me a monster. But I won’t let you do the same to Emma.” she defied.

“So you’ve made your choice, have you?” he asked, “You’re choosing the Savior over your beloved Robin Hood? Is that your final answer?”


	46. Sympathy for the De Vil

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

When morning came after searching all night for the Author, everyone returned to the loft to rethink their plans to catch him. “You have to remember something else about the Author, some way to find him. Now think.” Emma snapped at her parents.

“We told you everything we know.” David gently reminded.

“Are we sure about that? Because secrets just keep coming out.” Emma barked.

“Okay. You’re clearly still upset.” Snow began to say.

“Yes, I am still upset.” Emma spat, “You were the ones who taught me there is always a right way. A heroic way. And what you did to Maleficent’s child-”

“It was our only option to make sure you grew up good.” David stressed.

“I’m sorry, but if it were me, no matter what, I would not harm a defenseless person.” Emma in a raised voice.

“And that right there, that goodness is exactly why we did what we did. It was worth it.” Snow defended.

“Tell that to Maleficent and her child!” Nicholas finally snapped, he was having enough of their excuses almost as much as Emma. It was then that Regina entered the loft with an unhappy expression.

“Regina, where have you been?” Emma asked.

“In the middle of a very bad day.” she sighed, “I’ll tell you the whole story later, after I rescue Robin Hood.”

“Rescue Robin?” Nicholas asked, “What the hell are you talking about? From what?”

“Our sister.” Regina replied causing everyone to look at her with shocked looks. All the color drained from Nicholas’s face before he spoke.

“What?” he whispered.

“I called that number Emma gave me, but Marian answered the phone, only it was actually Zelena. I don’t know how it’s possible, but our sister has been masquerading as her this entire time. And she’s in league with Gold. Robin’s in danger, so I’m going to New York to find him and stop her.”

Nicholas hadn’t processed this, however. He stopped listening when he heard that his other sister was in fact alive and began to figure out what happened to her. He quickly remembered the security tape of her apparent suicide and realized that while that wasn’t exactly what happened, she now qualified as a candidate for human sacrifice just like him and the other four.

“I need a smoke.” he said interrupting the conversation he was ignoring before hurrying outside. Instead of pulling out his pipe, he pulled out his phone and went to a familiar group chat.

“This is an important message, guys. The most important one yet.” he texted, “I think we now know who the fifth sacrifice will be.”

“Who?” Sawyer asked.

“So soon?” Skinner asked, “They seem to popping up all of a sudden.”

“Who is it?” Mina asked.

“My sister.” Nicholas texted.

“Regina?!” Sawyer asked.

“No, Zelena.” he replied.

“WHAT?!” Skinner typed.

“How is that possible?!” Quartermain asked.

“I thought you said she was dead!” Nemo exclaimed.

“I think Gold may have altered that security tape we saw at the station.” Nicholas replied, “I don’t have all the details, but my gut tells me that Zelena has met the needed criteria to be a human sacrifice.”

“Where is she now?” Quartermain asked.

“That’s the bad news.” Nicolas said before sending another text, “Turns out she’s actually been disguised as Marian this entire time. Meaning she’s in New York with Robin as we speak. And I don’t think he knows it’s her, either.”

“Should we contact him and warn him?” Sawyer asked.

“She’s no threat to him outside of Storybrooke without her magic.” Mina reminded, “Plus he’s no greenhorn, either.”

“Don’t tell him, yet.” Nicholas interjected, “Regina’s the one who found out and is the only one who has Robin’s number; and she plans of going to New York to rescue him before Zelena tries anything. If he does anything to show that he knew about Zelena before Regina gets there, there will be holes in whatever lie he comes up with and that could come back to bite us in the ass.”

“I thought you said you wanted to tell the others about us once all five sacrifices were accounted for?” Nemo asked.

“Well, like I said, I don’t know for sure if Zelena is a candidate or not. Plus, the Author’s free from the book now and Gold’s already gotten to him.” Nicholas added, “Who knows what they might do if they find out about us this early in the game. Our safest bet is to wait until everything is dealt with before we go public.”

“Flamel’s right.” Quartermain agreed, “We must be patient and wait just a little longer. What do you plan to do next?”

“There’s only one thing I can do.” Nicholas texted, “I need to go to New York with Regina, find out whether or not Zelena is our last sacrifice and bring her back along with Robin. If she is, then we’re gonna need him here for when the Promised Day comes.”

“Yeah, that really is the only you can do.” Sawyer agreed, “But what if she isn’t sacrifice material? What then?”

“I’m still gonna bring her and Robin back. Robin only left because he thought his wife would die if she stayed here, so there’s no point in him staying in New York. If it turns out that Zelena is the final sacrifice, then we’ll finally have everything ready and we can proceed with our countermeasures against the Homunculi.” Nicholas replied.

“I take it that you’ll want to tell the others about all of this after you settle things with the Author and Dark One?” Quartermain asked.

“It’ll be as good a time as any to do so.” Nicholas replied while his sister and girlfriend came out of the loft. While they chatted next to the cars, they both received the same message from Henry Nicholas received after he sent his reply to Quartermain.

“A video message?” he asked himself as he pressed play and saw something that made his blood both freeze and boil.

“Moms, Uncle, Cruella has me.” Henry said on the recording, “If you ever wanna see me again, you have to do what she says.”

“Hello, darlings!” Cruella greeted as her face came on screen, “As you can see, I have your dreadful son and nephew. If you prefer him to remain intact, you’ll do exactly as I say; kill the Author. Then, bring me his broken little body, or your boy will meet a very unhappy ending. Oh, and, Flamel darling, if you come anywhere near me, I’ll be sure to let my dogs know what brat tastes like.”

“Great. Just great.” Nicholas spat. Back inside the loft, the three of them informed the Charmings of the video and replayed it for them in case they could spot something they missed.

“I recognize that trailhead marker.” David said as he pointed at a sign behind Cruella in the video, “Cruella is holding Henry a couple of miles south of the toll bridge. You’re not actually considering Cruella’s demand to kill the Author, are you?”

“Of course not.” Regina answered, “Even if we could find him, it wouldn’t be half the fun of killing Cruella. Let’s see how she likes being made into outerwear.”

“Regina!” Snow snapped.

“What? It’s Emma’s heart we’re trying to protect, not mine.” she defended.

“If we go in guns blazing, we risk hurting Henry. We have to find another way.” Emma pressed.

“And you heard what Cruella said, I go anywhere near her and Henry’s dead.” Nicholas reminded.

“Can’t you just disguise yourself as Regina or Emma and take care of her then?” David asked.

“No, it won’t work.” Snow replied before he could, “Whatever animal Cruella has at her side will know it’s him. They can sense his Stone, or something.”

“She’s right.” Nicholas nodded, “But there may be something else I can do. If Cruella and the Author are enemies, perhaps he knows the best way to defeat her. I can track his scent and go from there.”

“We can help with that.” Snow immediately offered, “We can give Nicholas a hand in case Gold or Maleficent shows up.”

“Sounds like the perfect job for you two.” Emma said coldly, “I’ll call Hook and have him meet up with me and Regina and we’ll scope the area where’s Cruella’s hold up with Henry.”

“Emma, I know you’re still angry, but avoiding us is not going to help.” Snow stressed.

“I’m not avoiding you.” Emma snapped, “With Henry’s life on the line, I need to be around people I trust, and right now, that’s not you.”

After the group split up and Hook joined the two ladies, Regina finally began her lecture for Emma as they walked through the rain and woods. “You’re acting like a petulant child. Your parents did a bad thing. They apologized. Now get over it.”

“Forgive me if I don’t take advice from the woman who held a grudge for half her life because a ten-year-old spilled a secret.” Emma shot back dryly.

“Swan, if you won’t listen to Regina, perhaps you’ll listen to me.” Hook offered his friend, “You were able to forgive both of us all because you found it in your heart to see past it.”

“The difference is that you never held yourself as some paragon of virtue. Neither of you did. You were honest about who you were. My parents weren’t. They said they were heroes.” Emma retorted.

“Even heroes make mistakes, love.” Hook pointed out, “Just take Nicholas, for example. The man’s full of secrets and yet you’ve been able to look past them and accept him for who he is; secrets and all.”

“I hate to agree with Captain Guy-liner here, but he’s right.” Regina nodded bluntly, “My brother keeps a lot of things from you, from all of us. What makes forgiving him so different from forgiving your parents?”

“I can think of several things, love.” Hook chuckled causing Emma to blush and Regina to glare at him.

“…Changing the subject.” Regina sighed in annoyance at the thought of her little brother’s sex life, “Not long ago, your mother gave me some advice. She said I needed to believe I could still earn forgiveness, that I had a chance at grace. I didn’t realize it then, but she was talking about herself. Emma, she’s been trying to make up for what she did for a long time.”

“If you two understand them so well, you forgive them. I can’t.” Emma retorted, “I have more important things to worry about right now, like saving Henry.”

“Hot-tempered and stubborn as a mule,” Regina thought bluntly, “She’s definitely perfect for Nicholas.”

As they pressed on into the woods, the sound of Henry crying for help rang through each of their ears. “Help me!” he cried, “Somebody!”

“It’s Henry.” Emma gasped in worry, “Quick, it’s coming from over there.”

“No, it’s this way.” Hook corrected pointing in another direction.

“Has cannon fire damaged your hearing? It clearly came from over there.” Regina snapped as Henry continued to yell.

“Split up. Go!” Emma ordered. 

While Emma went in the right direction, Hook and Regina found their trails ending with enchanted conch shells echoing Henry’s voice; obviously, it was meant to lead them away from Emma. When Henry found himself at the edge of a cliff after being chased down by Pongo, Cruella finally caught up and pointed her gun at him.

“You shouldn’t have run.” she snarled as Emma caught up.

“Henry!”

“Mom!” he exclaimed as Cruella grabbed him and pressed her gun to his head.

“Let him go!” Emma demanded.

“I’m afraid not.” Cruella denied hotly, “Come any closer, and he dies.”

As this was going on, Nicholas and the Charmings made it to Gold’s cabin where they found Isaac with a wood poker in his hands ready to defend himself.

“Oh!” he exclaimed in fear as they barged in, “Don’t come any closer! Stay back!”

“We’re not gonna hurt you.” David eased.

“We just want some information.” Snow added.

“Unh-unh. I want some guarantees, because if I tell you everything, you just might kill the messenger.” Isaac demanded.

“You’re safe. Trust us.” Snow assured.

“Trust you?” he asked baffled, “I’ve seen what you’ll do to protect your daughter.”

As soon as he said this, he pushed the wrong button on David and caused him to lash out in anger as he slammed him against the wall with his arm against his throat.

“Ow! Hey! You said you wouldn’t-”

“What have you done with Emma?” David asked, “Tell me, or else I’ll let the alchemist have his way with you.”

“W-what does want to do to me?” Isaac asked fearfully as Nicholas flicked his right index finger out like a doctor would for a prostate exam and covered it with his shield making it a razor sharp claw again.

“Okay, okay! I’ll talk!” he cried in fear, “I was just trying to protect the world from Cruella. I had no idea Gold would use her like this. Even I couldn’t see the end to the story.”

“What are you talking about?” Nicholas asked, “How does the damn story end?!”

“With the Savior…turning dark.” Isaac whispered as he trembled. When David let him go, he pulled out a small piece of paper from his belt and handed it to the prince.

“What is that?” Snow asked.

“Something I wrote. The truth.” he replied.

“Cruella De Vil can no longer take away the life of another.” David read aloud.

“Do you see now?” Isaac asked, “Henry’s in no danger.”

“Cruella can’t kill anyone.” Snow said, “She’s defenseless.”

“But Emma doesn’t know.” Nicholas pointed out, “Which means Gold wants her to kill her.”

“We have to stop this.” Snow said as they ran out and began to search for the blonde. Back with the Savior, she stared down the woman holding her son at gun point. 

“One small dead Author. That’s all I asked. Simple revenge, and you utterly failed.” Cruella spat as she shook with rage.

“Put the gun down, Cruella.” Emma ordered.

“Mom.” Henry pleaded.

“It’s gonna be okay, Henry.” she soothed.

“I’ll do it, Savior. Believe me, I will.” Cruella lied as Emma raised her glowing hands, “Put your hands down, Savior. We both know you’re bluffing.”

“That’s my son.” Emma argued as she prepared herself for what was coming.

“And you’re a hero, and heroes don’t kill.” Cruella taunted before she was proven wrong. 

In a blast of magic, Emma blasted Cruella over the edge while Henry was sent to his knees. She could hear the breaking of bones only a second after the yelling faded but she didn’t pay attention; all she cared about was making sure her son was alright.

“Henry?” she asked as she held him close.

“Mom.” he exhaled as the others joined them.

“Emma.” Snow whispered when she couldn’t see Cruella. Nicholas went over to check on his lover and girlfriend and gave them both a tight hug. As he did, he looked down and saw Cruella’s broken corpse on the ledge three stories down.


	47. Lily

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

The day after Cruella’s death, the group of “heroes” met up at Granny’s to discuss what they were going to do next now that they were down another enemy. Emma, on one hand, had a different thought in mind than some of the others; namely her parents.

“I’m going after Gold.” she informed, “He made this happen. He needs to answer for it.”

“Careful.” Nicholas warned, “Don’t go off half-cocked.”

“Nicholas is right. He wants you angry.” David reminded.

“Yeah, well, I am angry. That doesn’t mean he’s gonna get what he’s after.” Emma snapped, “Do I wish I could change what I did to Cruella? Yes. But that’s regret, not darkness. I think we’ve _all_ done things we regret. Right now, we need to focus on one thing, how to keep Gold and the Author from causing any more damage.”

“I might be able to help with that.” Maleficent said as she entered the diner, “It now appears we have a common foe; Rumplestiltskin.”

“He resurrected you.” David reminded finding this news surprising.

“To help himself, not me. Cruella’s death only confirmed that.” she replied.

“So you want to turn on him before he turns on you. How original.” Nicholas said with a fake smirk.

“I knew Gold couldn’t keep the dragon on her leash for long.” Regina smirked, clearly impressed by her old idol.

“What do you want?” Snow asked coldly with a glare.

“Nothing from _you._ ” Maleficent replied, “But your daughter, I hear, has a talent for finding people.”

“Yeah, I do. Who do you want found?” Emma asked.

“My daughter.” she replied surprising everyone.

“She’s alive?” Snow whispered.

“Yes. She survived the journey to this land, the journey you sent her on.” Maleficent nodded causing the couple to feel guilty again, “You want to prevent Rumplestiltskin from achieving whatever he wants. What better way than leaving this town and helping me?”

“I’m not running away from Gold.” Emma said bravely.

“It’s not running from him. It’s hindering him.” Maleficent corrected making Emma see her point.

“What do you know about her?” Emma asked.

“Just what the Dark One showed me, that she was banished to this world thirty years ago to a place called Minnesota, where she was adopted by a couple. They named her Lilith.”

“No.” Emma whispered in shock.

“Emma?” Nicholas asked when he saw her expression, “What is it?”

But she said nothing. All she did was storm out in a hurry leaving everyone confused and concerned. Surprisingly, it was Regina who followed her and found out what was wrong. Apparently, Maleficent’s daughter was the same Lilith, or Lily, that Emma met and befriended as a child. So with a chance to kill two birds with one stone, Regina offered to go with Emma in search of Lily while also heading over to New York to rescue Robin from Zelena. Once that was settled, the two women got everything ready and said their goodbyes; as they did, Nicholas pulled up in his car waiting on them.

“So, whose car are we taking. I say mine and that I drive.” he said as he got out.

“What are you talking about? You’re not coming with us.” Regina replied.

“Yeah, I am.” he corrected.

“Nicholas, hun, no offense, but this is something I need to take care of. Regina’s only coming because of Robin and Zelena.” Emma informed.

“Right, which is why I’m coming.” he nodded, “Need I remind you that Zelena is my sister, too? And that I’m your boyfriend so naturally, you’re stuck with me whenever something dangerous is going on. And let’s not forget that out of everyone in this town, I am, literally, the only one who can retain his powers pas the town line. Besides, if you leave me here with your parents, I’ll go insane. So for the sake of saving time, which we have little of, what’s say we just all hop in my car and get this show on the road, eh?”

Emma was about to further protest, but Regina stopped her. “Take it from someone whose dealt with him longer, there’s no stopping him when he makes a decision.”

“I’m beginning to see that stubbornness is a family trait.” Emma sighed.

“So is having a violent nature, holding grudges and a temper hotter than the flames of hell. All of which we’re gonna see when we deal with Zelena.” Nicholas pointed out bluntly as they got in his car, “Find anything on this Lily girl?”

“Yeah, one of my contacts gave me an address. But it’s five years old.” Emma replied as she read the message only to be further shocked.

“Emma, what is it?” Regina asked.

“This is in Lowell, Massachusetts, which is less than thirty miles outside of Boston, which is where I lived five years ago.” Emma replied, “Lily and I grew up in Minnesota, separated as kids, and ended up living less than an hour apart as adults?”

“Like I said, fate’s a bitch.” Regina reminded, “You’re connected. It’s been pushing you together.”

“It may have been pushing us together as kids, but last time I saw her, I’m the one who pushed her away.” Emma sighed.

“What exactly happened between you two?” Nicholas asked as he started the car, but once again, Emma didn’t say anything. When they got to the outskirts of town towards the line, he began to speed the car up; fast.

“Nicholas?” Emma asked growing worried as a crazy look was on his face.

“Nicholas?” Regina asked as he went faster, “Do you think you could slow down?”

“Nope.” he grinned wildly.

“Babe, you’re going 95 in a 55-mile lane, slow down!” Emma exclaimed.

“I can’t.” he replied.

“Why not?!” Regina asked as she clutched the handle like her life depended on it.

“It’s just like the song goes, sis.” he smirked.

“What song?!” she cried.

“Oh, my God!” Emma sighed loudly.

“ _I can’t drive 55!!!_ ” Nicholas sang before laughed like a maniac and driving even faster down the road, “Lowes, Massachusetts, here we come!”

“It’s Lowell! Lowell, Massachusetts!” Emma shouted.

“Whatever!” he laughed. After a very, very quick drive to their destination, the two ladies stumbled out of the car and waited for their stomachs to catch up with them.

“You,” Regina sighed as she glared at her smirking brother while resisting the urge to throw up, “You are never driving, again.”

“Ah, lighten up, sis. We’re here, aren’t we?” he asked as he pointed at the rundown apartment building. Once inside, they all stared at the horrible condition of the place in disgust.

“Why did I go through the trouble of creating Storybrooke when I could have cursed everyone to live here?” Regina asked in disgust while Emma knocked on one of the doors.

“Yeah?” an old fat guy asked from another door.

“Oh. Sorry to disturb you.” Emma apologized, “We’re just looking for Lilith Page. Is she around?”

“No, she ain’t around.” he rudely replied, “Not for years.”

“You know where she moved?” she asked.

“Lady, she ain’t moving nowhere. She’s dead.” he informed bluntly.

“What?” Emma asked.

“Car wreck a couple years back. Pretty sure she was drunk. Not that anyone missed her. I mean, she was a weird one. Kept to herself. ‘Course, she had one of those personalities that you wanted to stay far away from. A real loser.”

“She was my friend!” Emma shouted as she grabbed the slob’s collar and slammed him against the wall with her hand around his throat.

“Emma, stop!” Regina yelled as she and her brother stopped her.

“Em, it’s not worth it.” Nicholas coached as she finally dropped the man, “You okay?”

“I’m fine. I’m absolutely fine.” she lied as she left the building. On the drive back, with Nicholas driving a bit more sanely, Regina finally broke the awkward silence.

“You want to talk about what happened back there?” she asked.

“Nope.” Emma instantly replied.

“You nearly put that guy through a wall.” Nicholas reminded.

“Look, I know what you two are thinking, but what happened back there wasn’t me turning dark. It was mourning a friend. Can you understand that?” Emma asked.

“More than you know.” Nicholas thought sadly.

“Emma, you know you’re not responsible for what happened to her.” Regina reminded.

“You sure?” she snapped, “You heard what that guy said. Her life wasn’t pretty. It was dark. That darkness was meant for me.”

“Well, to be honest, Em,” Nicholas said looking at her in his mirror instead of the road, “He wasn’t exactly in better shape.”

“Nicholas!” Regina shouted when she saw a wolf in the road. He looked and stepped on the break while steering off to the side.

“You guys okay?” he asked as they got out.

“This has happened before.” Emma said, “The wolf in the road and an accident the first time I tried to leave Storybrooke.”

“Stop overthinking.” Regina lectured, “It’s not fate. It’s just a flat. Brother dear, if you please?”

“Look, I can fix the tire, but getting air into is another issue.” he replied as he mended it while Emma stared at where the wolf ran off to.

“You’re telling me, that while you can create a fiery inferno with a snap of your fingers, transform into a giant green monster, rebuild the entire world as we know it and heal any wound you receive instantly, you are incapable of filling a tire with air?” Regina asked bluntly.

“I’m an alchemist, not _Tim the Tool Man Taylor_.” he retorted, “I can’t do everything with alchemy. I’d probably pop the tire and ruin my hubcaps.”

“There’s a gas station down the road.” Emma informed the bickering siblings, “A diner down there, too.”

“Alright,” Nicholas sighed, “Sis and I’ll get a new tire. You mind grabbing us some coffee?”

“Sure.” she nodded. After the siblings purchased the new tire and payed for the tow truck, they joined Emma inside the diner who once again, looked shocked.

“What’s wrong? See another wolf?” Nicholas teased.

“It’s…it’s her.” Emma said.

“Who? Who’s her?” Regina asked.

“That waitress outside,” Emma said pointing to the one who left as they walked in, “That’s Lily.”

“I thought she was dead?” Nicholas asked as they looked out the window at her.

“I guess she never stopped running.” Emma shrugged.

“Huh.” Regina said, “There’s not much of a resemblance between her and Mal; none that I can see, at least. How do you know it’s her?”

“Her birthmark.” Emma replied, “She has the same star birthmark on her wrist that Lily showed me when we were kids.”

“Well,” Nicholas said in surprise, “This turned out to be easier than I thought. What now?”

“I-I guess I should go talk to her.” Emma said still surprised as she got up and headed outside. After her confrontation with her old friend, Emma watched as Lily greeted a cute little girl that came off a school bus.

“So it was her.” Regina said as she joined her friend, “Well, Emma, looks like you didn’t ruin her life after all. Out of curiosity, what did she tell you?”

“That she hadn’t thought of me in years, that she’s got a daughter and a loving husband and that she’s happy.” Emma replied, “Where’s Nicholas?”

“Getting a refill. Apparently, he enjoys cheap, stale coffee.” Regina replied as they watched Lily and her daughter head towards the diner while Nicholas came out. As soon as he did, they watched as Lily let her daughter run along while she said a few words to Nicholas and tried to kiss him only to see him back off and look at her like she was crazy.

“Oh, hell no.” Emma growled, “Lily!”

“E-Emma?” she stammered, “What is it? I was just saying hi to my husband.”

“Your husband my ass, that’s my boyfriend!” she exclaimed hotly.

“Really?” Lily asked before checking Nicholas out, “Damn.”

“Why is it that every woman who looks at you instantly wants to jump on you?” Regina asked her flustered brother.

“I don’t know!” Nicholas exclaimed in embarrassment. Next thing anyone knew, Lily smacked Nicholas’s coffee out of his hand towards Emma causing them to back away and gave her the chance to run.

“Hey!” Emma shouted as she ran after her old friend. Unfortunately, she managed to give them the slip bringing them back to square one.

“Well, that escalated quickly.” Regina commented. After Lily ran off, Emma went inside the diner and swiped her time card which gave her an address. After a short drive, they made it to an old mobile home with an impala parked in front. Thankfully, the door was unlocked so they were able to get in.

“No kid stuff.” Emma observed, “At least we know that was a lie, too.”

“Well, if you want me to admit you were right, well, you were right.” Regina admitted as they searched the place.

“Can’t blame her for running off. I was about to tell her she was Maleficent’s daughter.” Emma joked.

“Yeah, that might have been tough to swallow.” Regina agreed.

“Yeah, well, you know how long it took for me to believe, and that was in Storybrooke. For her, it’s not gonna be simple.” Emma pointed out.

“It might be simpler than you think, Emma. Look.” Nicholas said as he stared at a wall in another room. On it were multiple illustrations of the people Emma knew in Storybrooke, specifically her parents, Regina, Nicholas, and several others along with a map covered with possible locations for Storybrooke; all of which was connected in red tape.

“Son of a…” Emma carried as she gazed upon the wall, “She knew.”

“And she was looking for you.” Regina added as she pointed at a picture of a younger Emma.

“No. My parents.” she corrected when she spotted their illustrations with red Xs covering them.

“I think she was after all of us.” Nicholas added as he looked at his illustration and Regina’s, “Wait, is that what people think I look like?”

“Nicholas, now’s not the time.” Regina scolded.

“Easy for you to say.” he retorted as he grabbed his picture, “Look at this. I look like the guy who played Slughorn in _The Half-Blood Prince_.”

“She knew everything.” Emma repeated, “She wants revenge.”

Just then, they all heard the sound of a car engine start outside letting them know that Lily was waiting for them.

“Really?!” Emma growled as they ran out and saw Lily drive away in Nicholas’ BMW.

“Emma, the Apprentice’s scroll, it was in my bag in the car!” Regina alerted.

“She wanted a way into Storybrooke. Now she’s got one.” Emma spat as she grabbed a nearby wrench.

“What are you doing?” Regina asked.

“That girl destroyed my life with one family. I’m not letting her do it again.” she declared as she smashed the Impala’s window. After hotwiring it, they sped off after her.

“She’s doing it again, guys.” Emma growled as they chased Lily, “Every time I let Lily in, she rips apart my life. Now she’s going after my parents. I have to stop her.”

“You will, but you can’t go in with a head of steam. You’ll end up doing something you regret.” Regina coached.

“Really?” Emma snapped, “Tell me, Your Majesty, what are your plans for Zelena? A nice chat over tea?”

“That’s different.” Regina retorted.

“How?” Emma asked, “If Zelena lays a hand on Robin Hood, you’ll destroy her, right? Right. So I’ll do the same thing to Lily.”

“Careful, Emma. You’re starting to sound like-” Nicholas began.

“Like what? A villain?” Emma interrupted, “This is the real world, guys. There are no heroes and villains, just real people with real problems. So if you’re gonna try to stop me, you two can find your own way back to New York.”

“There she is.” Nicholas alerted as they caught up to the BMW. When Emma got ahead of her, she swerved the Impala in front of the BMW causing Lily to stop and exit the car.

“Hey!” Emma said as she caught up to Maleficent’s daughter, “Hey! You know. You know everything. Did you know when we were kids?”

“Of course not.” Lily snapped.

“But now?” she asked.

“Yeah. I learned it all.” Lily nodded.

“How?” Emma asked.

“Does it really matter?” she asked, “It doesn’t change anything. You screwed me over before we were even born.”

“I had no more say in what happened than you did.” Emma retorted.

“But your parents did. And the minute I get to Storybrooke-”

“You lay a hand on them, I end you!” Emma roared as she shoved Lily to the ground.

“Emma, stop!” Nicholas yelled, but he was ignored.

“Yeah?” Lily asked as she got up, “And how you gonna do that without your magic, Savior?”

As she got up, she slugged Emma across the face which caused a boom of thunder and the Impala’s headlights to shatter.

“Your parents are monsters, Emma. They banished me and threw you in a wardrobe. And now here you are, ready to die for them, because you’re so perfect. The Savior. Well, they deserved to be punished. And there’s only one way to stop me, and you know it.” Lily threatened as she tried to fight Emma again only to find herself on the ground with a gun pointed at her, “Of course it ends this way. This just makes too much sense.”

“I’m just trying to stop you from doing something you’ll regret.” Emma defended.

“You can’t. Thanks to you, I’m hardwired for bad decisions.” Lily argued, “So come on. Just put me out of my misery. You know the truth. We both know my life isn’t worth saving. And if you let me go, I will destroy everything. It’s what I do. So come on; be the hero. End this right here before it even starts.”

“Swan.” Regina said trying to snap her friend out of it.

“Put the gun down.” Nicholas ordered with a hard glare.

“If you pull that trigger, you will be the one who ruins your life this time. And Henry’s, and Nicholas’, and your parents’ and everyone else’s.” Regina warned.

“I have to protect them.” Emma countered.

“Then lower the gun.” Nicholas ordered, “Your parents need a hero, not a murderer like us.”

“I’m already like you.” she reminded as the previous day replayed in her head.

“Cruella made her choice and so did you. But if you do this, you will wrong both Lily and Maleficent far worse than your parents did. Killing someone in order to protect another is one thing, but killing someone out of hatred isn’t so easy to come back from. Regina and I know that better than anyone. You kill her, and you do exactly what Gold wants you to do.” Nicholas warned.

“Emma. You’re better than this.” Regina said. After a moment of hesitation, Emma hardened her heart and lowered the gun. Rising to her feet, Lily gave her old friend an emotionless look before walking over to take a seat on some nearby logs. While they did that, Regina answered a call from Maleficent.

“Bad news from home.” she alerted, “I just lost my leverage over Gold. We need to get to Robin Hood, now.”

“Oh, this is not gonna end well, I just know it.” Nicholas muttered as he hopped into the BMW with Regina while Emma and Lily rode in the Impala. It took them until later that evening, but they reached Neal’s old apartment where Robin was staying.

“Robin?” Regina called as she knocked on the door, “Robin, open up!”

When he opened the door, Robin looked at the people in front of him with wide eyes and an opened mouth. “Regina?” he asked before pulling her into a hug, “W-what are you doing here?”

“I missed you.” Regina whispered.

“And I you.” he replied, “What’s going on? W-why are you and Nicholas here?”

“Unfortunately, old friend, it’s not for good reasons.” Nicholas replied as Robin’s eyes widened.

“…Is it ti-”

“No.” Nicholas cut off, “But this may involve it. Where’s Marian?”

“She’s at the store. Why?” Robin asked.

“Good. Then there’s time.” Regine exhaled, “But we have to act fast.”

“Wh-what’s this about?” he asked.

“Marian. We have to leave before she gets back. She is not who she says she is.” Regina warned.

“What?” Robin asked.

“She’s our sister, Zelena.” Nicholas informed.

“The Wicked Witch?” he asked, “But she’s dead. We all saw that.”

“Somehow she tricked us and went back in time.” Regina explained, “Robin, she went back, and she killed Marian. She took her place to get back at me.”

“No.” he denied, “This is madness.”

“Robin?” Marian asked as she walked with bags in her hands, “What’s going on? And what is she doing here?”

“It’s over, Zelena.” Nicholas said as he hardened his shield on his arm, “We told him everything. Drop the act.”

“What’s he talking about?” Marian asked as she went to Robin’s side, “And who’s Zelena?”

“Nicholas, Regina, you’re scaring Marian.” Robin pleaded.

“Good.” Regina spat, “Where’s the magic? You must’ve brought something to make this glamour work. Where is it, Zelena? Show me, or will rip you apart until I find it!”

“Regina, that’s enough!” Robin shouted, “Look, I know that this is hard, for all of us. But this is the new reality. I’m with her. I’m with Marian.”

“Actually, not exactly.” Marian said before taking on her true appearance as Zelena causing Robin to stumble back, “Hello, dear husband.”

“No.” Robin denied.

“Come on, Robin. We have to get you and Roland out of here.” Regina said only to see Robin looked both conflicted and angry, “Robin. Get Roland and let’s go.”

“I think he still wants to stay.” Zelena grinned.

“Loxley, get your head out of your ass, grab your son and let’s go.” Nicholas barked letting his League side show a little.

“I can’t.” Robin replied.

“Yes, you can.” Regina assured, “Come on. Let’s go.”

“I’m sorry.” he apologized, “I can’t leave her here.”

“What?!” the siblings asked.

“Do you want to tell them? Or should I?” Zelena asked tauntingly.

“Tell us what?” Regina asked hotly, “Robin?”

“…She’s pregnant.” Robin confessed.

“Oh, no.” Nicholas thought as he looked at his two sisters, “Oh, no, no, no.”


	48. Operation Mongoose Pt. 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Many years ago, in the Enchanted Forest, the Evil Queen, her father and her brother rode through the woods to their castle. As they did, Her Majesty saw something that made her blood boil so much, she wanted to intervene.

“Stop the carriage.” she ordered. When they got out, they found a small group of people gathered for a small wedding in front of the palace; or rather, far beyond the palace but still within the royal borders.

“Good day, citizens.” she greeted with a fake smile, “Enjoying the meadow?”

“Indeed. It seemed perfect for our wedding ceremony.” the preacher said kindly.

“It is lovely.” Regina agreed, “But see, the thing is, these are part of the royal lands, and I don’t recall giving you permission to marry here.”

“We didn’t know.” the groom explained nervously before Regina tore his heart out and created a panic.

“Your Majesty,” Henry said gently to his daughter, “Could you be overreacting because of what day it is?”

“Don’t talk to me about this day, Daddy.” she warned.

“But you need the support of your citizens, Your Majesty.” Flamel added, “To alienate them would be shortsighted and weak.”

“I’m not weak, brother!” she screamed before calming herself and spoke to the groom, “I was going to spare you, but some people just made me angry.”

With a strong clench of her fist, Regina rendered the heart to dust like she had done so many times before and watched as the man fell dead with everyone surrounding him in distraught.

“Next time there’s a wedding, book the church.” she suggested darkly to the preacher as she stormed off to the carriage. As her father and brother were about to climb in with her, she stopped them. “Make your way home. I have someplace to be.”

“Father, she’s getting worse by the day.” Flamel said sadly.

“I know, son.” Henry sighed, “But we just need to hope that one day, she will see the error of her ways.”

“Hope?” Flamel asked, “Hope isn’t going to stop her from tearing out people’s hearts; if anything, it’ll make her want to do that more. Father, she is making more and more people despise her and want to kill her with each passing moment. It won’t be long before someone takes action against her.”

As he said this, he caught a whiff of a familiar scent nearby, one Henry was not allowed to know the source of. “Father, head home; now.”

Knowing better than to argue with either of his children when serious, Henry walked home as fast as he could while Flamel headed into the woods. Once he made it to the nearest clearing, he saw a familiar face widdle a branch with a hunting knife while sitting on a fallen tree.

“Hey, boss.” Flamel greeted unhappily.

“Flamel.” Quartermain sighed, “You know why I’m here, don’t you?”

“I take it that it involves my sister?” he asked knowing the answer.

“Correct.” Quartermain nodded as he put away his knife and threw the branch like a dart and watched it imbed itself deep within a tree, “Walk with me.”

“Boss, I know Regina is getting out of hand, but I can handle her.” Flamel assured as they walked through the woods.

“I can see that.” Quartermain said sarcastically.

“Okay, she’s-look, what is, is that-”

“What it is, is that the Director, and a large majority of other agents, are very unhappy with your sister’s methods in ruling her kingdom and the way she treats her subjects.” Quartermain cut off, “Tell me, when was the last time you saw her murder someone?”

“…Not five minutes ago.” Flamel muttered.

“Exactly.” he replied, “You can’t keep protecting her from us forever.”

“I’ll call in every favor and make as many deals and promises it takes in order to keep Regina safe from the League, boss.” Flamel snapped, “I’m not going to let her become another target. And in case you’ve forgotten, there are a lot of members in the League that have done far worse than Regina has; some of us in our branch in particular.”

“True.” Quartermain agreed, “But the more people she kills, the more attention your sister draws to herself and the more League agents who want to kill her.”

“What do you want me to do? I can’t warn her that there’s a secret organization out there that I’ve secretly been a part of filled with people who want to, and are very much capable of killing her.”

“I want you to do your damn job!” Quartermain barked as they came to a stop, “Now I understand that she’s your family, I do. But unless you stop acting like your father and do nothing but coddle her before and after she kills someone, the situation will only get worse!”

“So what? The Director’s giving me a warning, now?” Flamel asked.

“No, dammit, I am!” he snapped, “But you best be ready for when he does, because he will. And when that time comes, your sister will face judgement for her crimes against this realm.”

And with that, Allan Quartermain disappeared before Flamel’s eyes leaving him to his thoughts and heavy heart.

**OUaT**

Once everyone returned to Storybrooke, things became a little bumpy. First, Regina locked Zelena up in the mental ward at the hospital and managed to snatch the Author away from a weakening Rumplestiltskin. As that happened, Emma’s parents helped Maleficent look for Lily after she ditched her mother when she learned she didn’t want to waste time with revenge against the Charmings; and thanks to Regina, who took some of Lily’s blood to power the ink, the young woman turned into a dragon and nearly killed Snow. Thankfully, she was alright and Emma, who found her bleeding against a rock, finally decided to let go of her anger and forgive her parents before she risked losing them again.

Everything seemed to be going in the heroes’ direction. That is until Isaac decided to go back to Gold’s side and agreed to write for him the stories he had in mind for each and every character in Storybrooke. After gathering everyone at the mansion, Regina and the others searched through every single book they could find as they expected whatever Isaac was writing to appear in at least one of them. Nicholas and Robin were the only ones who didn’t bother to look on account of being the only ones who could actually read them.

“Whatever the Author is writing, it’s not appearing in any of these books.” Regina sighed as she tossed aside one of the books.

“Easy.” Robin soothed, “This is not your fault.”

“Even so, tomorrow, thanks to Gold and the Author, I can wake up a talking frog.”

“At least you’ll wake up.” Hook said dryly as he and Ariel looked through more books, “I don’t doubt whatever the Dark One has in store for me is a far worse fate.”

“You think you’ve got it bad?” Nicholas asked looking scared, “Imagine what’s he gonna do to me. I’m the one who’s kicked his ass almost ten times and he blames me for what happened to his son. It’s obvious what my story’s gonna be when their all finished. He’s gonna make me a slave again!”

“No one is going to put you through that again, Nicholas.” Regina assured her frightened brother as Emma tried to soothe him.

“There’s no use speculating what he wants.” David said hoping to change the subject, “If we can’t find anything here, we might as well look someplace else.”

“We don’t need to.” Robin informed, “Nicholas and I contacted someone we know who can help; the Apprentice.”

“How do you know him?” Snow asked.

“We’ve done business before.” Nicholas replied, “He’ll help us. And after we’ve settled things with the Author and Gold, I’ll tell you all about it, and everything else.”

“Nicholas, are you sure?” Robin asked as everyone looked at the alchemist.

“If we wait any longer, things will only get more complicated.” he replied, “Everyone’s gathered. All that’s left is to get everything ready.”

“Ready for what?” Emma asked as the Apprentice entered the room.

“That, my dear, will have to wait.” he said, “Isaac has abused his power for too long. He and the Dark One must be dealt with first. The time has come to set things right.”

“How?” Regina asked.

“By putting the Author back where he can’t harm anyone; in the book. I will need the page with the painted door and the key. We shall return him to his prison. And this time, I would wager, none of you will set him free again.” he said, “Where is the page?”

“It’s back at the loft.” Henry replied.

“Mom, Dad, Nicholas, watch Henry.” Emma ordered, “If Gold’s smart, he’ll go after the page, too.”

While everyone split up to take care of their assignments, in Gold’s shop, Isaac said two simple words that would change everything everyone knew in a matter of both seconds and years. “The End.” In an indescribable magical event, the entire town of Storybrooke was turned into a complete ghost town with only one single person in it; Henry.

“Grandma?” he called as he searched for everyone in the loft, “Grandpa! Uncle?!”

But no one was there, not even his baby uncle. He did manage to find the page and key, but both were useless to him seeing as like everyone else, the Author was nowhere to be found. With no other option, he took his mother’s car and decided to drive to wherever he could find people that could help him. When he tried his luck at a nearby diner, he found nothing. Nothing except a book titled “Heroes and Villains.”

But it wasn’t just the title that caught his eye, or the interesting cover illustration. What made Henry interested in it so much was the name of the author, Isaac Heller. Trusting his gut, he grabbed the copy, turned it over and saw the face of the very man he had been searching for the last two months; the Author. With a little help from the internet, he found out that his foe was closer than he thought, in New York for a book signing.

“Thank you! Thank you!” he said over the massive crowd’s cheering, “Please, I-I-I’m not worthy. You know? Someone once told me, I don’t tell stories people want. But I say, write what you’re passionate about. That’s what matters most. ‘Heroes and Villains’ is close to my heart. It’s been a passion project for longer than you would believe. I wrote it because I think folks are sick of heroes getting everything in these classic fairytales. Hence, the radically different endings for Snow White, Prince Charming, and all the rest. Something different for a modern audience. What happens when villains win the day? But an even better question, what happens when new characters enter the stories we think we know?”

After his speech, at the signing table, Henry confronted Isaac with the page in front of him. “What are you doing here?” he asked nervously.

“What did you do to my family?” Henry demanded, “Where are they?”

“I, uh, I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Isaac lied.

“Unh-unh, you’re lying. Now you know what this does,” Henry threatened as he showed the key, “So you either give me some answers or I open this door and you get a whole new ending.”

Making the obvious choice, Isaac led Henry to a secure location away from the public. “Okay, you have my undivided attention.”

“Where’s my family?” Henry asked again.

“You really want to know? Look around you.” he said indicating to the copies of his book, “They’re all right here in my best-selling book.”

“What does that mean? Are they still alive?” Henry asked holding up the page and key.

“Easy with the key, cowboy. Your family is fine. If you want to get technical, they’re in here.” Isaac informed as he pulled out the original copy of Heroes and Villains, “The original copy of my book, the one I always wanted to write. They all live in here now in kind of an alternate reality.”

“You made them miserable.” Henry hissed.

“I see that you’ve read some of my book. Good. Good. Then you know that everyone got the ending they deserve. Except Emma, of course. You won’t find her in the book. There was no room for a Savior in my world. I hate to toot my own horn, though, but I am especially proud of what I did with your uncle. And before you ask, no, I did not make him a slave again. I may have done business with the Dark One, but even I wouldn’t go so low as to make a man a slave. After all, I’m Jewish.”

“What did you do to him?” Henry asked.

“Well, he was a tricky one to write about. With as many secrets as he has, or rather had, his character was hard to develop. In the end, I had no other choice but to make him more of a minor, supporting character.” Isaac explained.

“What does that mean?” he asked.

“Hmph. It means he’s not… _Extraordinary_ anymore.” Isaac smirked only to see the boy’s confused face, “Oh. He never told any of you, did he?”

“Tell us what?” Henry snapped.

“Well, I guess it doesn’t matter now, does it? Not while he and the others are all locked up tight within the pages of my masterpiece.” Isaac said mysteriously.

“Bring them back, or I use this.” he threatened with the page.

“I can’t.” Isaac replied, “I don’t have the power. The cardinal rule of the Authors is, ‘don’t write your own happy ending.’ And as you can see, I broke that rule. So this, it’s just a pen now. And me? Well, I’m nothing more than a best-selling writer with legions of fans and a penthouse over Central Park.”

“If you can’t get them out, then give me the book and I will.” Henry demanded as he tried to take the original copy.

“You?” Isaac scoffed as he took it back and laughed, “Do you know why you’re still out here, kid? Because you’re not from a magical world. So take it from me. You will never be a knight in shining armor. You’re just a poor, innocent child who needs saving. So why don’t you put the key away and, uh, stick to the role you’re best at?”

But as soon as he started to walk away, Henry tackled the arrogant writer and snatched the book away.

“Now what? You’re gonna tear up the book?” he asked as Henry flipped through the pages. When he found one that only had an illustration, he used the key to unlock it. “Wait! Don’t be stupid!”

With a flash of yellow light, the two of them were sucked into the pages and spat out into the fake world created by the former Author.

“Feel like a read hero now?” Isaac asked as Henry took in the replica of his family’s home world, “Don’t get used to it.”

Without any warning, he stuck the boy with a wooden shield and knocked him out. When Henry came to, he realized he was tied to a tipped over cart. “So now we’re both trapped in the book. Congratulations.” Isaac said sarcastically, “Let me tell you about this place. It’s cold, there’s no running water, and things are always trying to kill you.”

“Let me go!” Henry grunted.

“Not a chance. This book we’re in, it’s worked out quite nicely for me. I don’t need you running around changing things. This is my story. And no hero gets a happy ending.”

“Why?” he asked, “Would that somehow destroy the book? That’s what you’re afraid of. Isn’t it?”

“Doesn’t matter. You brought us into the final chapter.”

“How do you know?”

“I know because I wrote it. And I know how it ends, with the loud tolling of bells at sunset. When you hear that sound, it’ll mean we’ve reached the last page. The book will end, and everything will remain exactly how I wrote it.” Isaac explained before an ogre suddenly appeared with a terrifying roar, “There we are. Right on time.”

“What is that?” Henry asked.

“Oh, the inciting incident of this chapter, an ogre attack.” he smirked, “And you know what they say, you don’t have to be faster than the ogre. You just have to be faster than the next guy.”

“Wait!” Henry yelled as the ogre roared in his face. When all hope seemed lost, a lone knight in gold armor on a white stallion rode up behind the cart and stopped the ogre with a blast of light magic.

“The monster is dead!” a villager cheered as they all came out of hiding, “The ogre slayer saved us! Thank you. If there’s anything my family and I can do to repay you…”

“Good deeds,” the knight said as he lifted his helm to reveal the face of Rumplestiltskin, “Have their own reward. This comes with no price.”

With a wave of his hand, Henry watched as his grandfather released him of his bonds. “Are you alright, boy?” he asked kindly and nobly, “What’s your name?”

“Uh, Henry.” he stuttered.

“I am Rumplestiltskin, a knight at your service. Do you have any family around here?” he asked.

“Uh, yeah. I think so. Yeah.” he replied.

“Then I suggest you run home for your supper, Henry, because I have another village to save.” Rumple smirked before riding off like the gallant hero he now was. After wrapping his mind around what he just saw, Henry decided to look for his family, and as luck would have it, two of them were nearby in the woods. With the help of the copy he had, he maneuvered his way past a series of traps before coming to a hollow log that was meant to be “home.”

“Hello?” he called, “Is anyone here?”

“Turn around slowly.” a woman’s voice threatened as he felt something long and harp press against the back of his neck. When he turned around, Henry saw the two people he was looking for, his mother, Regina dressed in the same clothes Snow actually wore as a bandit with an arrow aimed at him. And his uncle dressed in black leather boots, pants, and a matching vest underneath a long, crimson red coat with a hood with white gloves as his sword was pointed at him.

“Who are you?” Regina asked.

“My name’s Henry. I’m your son and his nephew.” he greeted.

“…Bull shit.” his uncle bluntly denied as he lowered his sword. Seeing that the boy was no threat, the siblings allowed him into their home and gave him something hot to eat. Given the chance, Henry tried to explain everything only to see the people who raised him shrug him off.

“But I’m telling you-”

“That we’re all trapped in a book?” Regina asked.

“Yeah.” he nodded only to see her scoff while his uncle watched them as he ate his soup.

“And we’re supposed to live in a place called Maine? Where we became you’re adopted mother and uncle after someone named Emma gave you up? And that I’m in love with her?” he asked.

“Come on, Mom. You and Uncle Nicholas can rem-”

As soon as Henry said that name, his uncle threw a knife from his boot at him and watched as it struck the table between the boy’s fingers.

“Don’t ever call me that name.” he hissed, “My name is _Abba_ , kid. Even think about calling me anything else, and I won’t aim so low next time.”

“This does make me wonder one thing.” Regina said as she looked closely at Henry, got up from her seat, yanked out the knife and held it against his throat, “Who sent you?”

“Mom, please.” he begged, “Nobody sent me.”

“Stop calling me that!” she snapped.

“He may be working for the queen.” Abba suggested.

“No. I’m trying to help you.”

“Help us what?” Regina asked.

“Find your happy endings. In my world, we called it Operation Mongoose.” Henry explained. It took her a moment, but Regina chuckled lightly and tossed the knife back to her brother.

“That is a very silly name.” she laughed.

“Well, it was your idea.” he replied.

“Now that I can believe.” Abba joked causing his sister to smack him playfully, “He’s telling us the truth, though. Or he thinks he is. Must be crazy.”

“I’m not, and I can prove it.” Henry argued as he pulled out the book, “This is a copy of the book we’re trapped in.”

“Ha! This,” Regina began to say as she read it with Abba reading over her shoulder who looked just as surprised as she did, “This says we’re…going to rob a royal tax carriage today to buy passage out of the kingdom.”

“How did the book know all that?” Abba asked as Regina slammed it shut, “It can see our future?”

“Something like that.” Henry nodded.

“Then neither of us want any part of it.” Regina said as she tossed it into the fire pit as Henry went after it only to get a page while the siblings went outside.

“Don’t follow us!” Abba said in annoyance, “Whatever world you think you’re from, go back there.”

“I can’t, not until you two find true love.” Henry argued.

“Ha! Then you’re stuck.” Regina laughed, “Never gonna happen for us. Unless Abba tries his luck with another werewolf.”

“Don’t even joke about that!” he exclaimed, “That ended in all kinds of bad.”

“Look, we just need to find my other mom and Robin Hood. Then you’ll see.” Henry stressed, “If we find them both, or at least one of them and you kiss one of them, we might get out of here. True Love’s Kiss, it can fix anything.”

“Kid,” Abba said while Regina laughed again, “Do you have any idea how weird it sounds when you say that me, you’re supposed uncle, is supposed to kiss your mother and that she’s his true love? I don’t know how it works in…wherever you come from, but I’m not really into the whole _incest_ thing.”

“Maybe he’s an inbred?” Regina asked under her breath causing Henry to blush.

“Either that or just plain crazy.” Abba muttered back, “Besides, if Regina ever did meet Robin Hood, the poor bastard would probably end up with a broken nose.”

“Wait, what are you talking about?” Henry asked as he continued to follow them.

“He’s our competition. Every robbery we plan, he beats us to it.” Regina replied bitterly, “He’s the reason we’re stuck in this kingdom. Why are we even talking to you?”

“Cause we’re family.” Henry said sincerely.

“Look, kid.” Abba said gently, “If you read about us in that book, you know that Regina and I got to go. The queen wants us dead. She thinks I failed her.”

“And that I ruined her life.” Regina added.

“Did you?” he asked.

“…Yes, we did.” Regina nodded in guilt, “So if it’s happy endings you’re after, look someplace else.”

After ditching Henry, the bandit siblings readied themselves for their robbery of the tax carriage. Hidden in the bushes, Regina used her slingshot to knock out the driver while Abba hurried over to unlock the carriage. But when he did and Regina joined him, they found something, or rather, someone besides tax money.

“Snow White.” Regina whispered in fear. Dressed in a red, royal dress with an evil look on her face, the alternate Snow stepped out of the carriage with Charming dressed in black ready to do her dark bidding behind them.

“Surprised to see me?” she asked, “Charming, disarm them.”

He complied and smacked Abba’s sword out of his hand before grabbing Regina’s knife. Snow then gently caressed their cheeks even though they knew she’d rather have her hands around their throats.

“I’ve waited so long for this moment.” she said in her soft, evil voice, “Your heads are going to look so lovely in my trophy room.”

“Please, Snow,” Regina begged, “How many times do we have to say we’re sorry?”

“Once more. From your graves.” she replied.

“Let her go and take me instead.” Abba bargained, “I was the one who killed James the second time. We just wanted to help you.”

“Your sister broke a promise.” Snow gently reminded, “And you failed to keep yours. Because of her poor, poor judgement, and your incompetence, my true love died _twice_.”

With a thrust of her hands, Snow White clenched the siblings’ hearts in their chests causing them to gasp in pain and fear. It was then that Charming intervened.

“Your Majesty, before you rip their hearts out, perhaps you should ask them about the boy.” he suggested.

“So you do have a brain somewhere in that pretty head.” Snow jabbed before releasing her captives, “Where’s the boy? Where, is, he?”

“When does this end, Snow?” Regina asked, “This blood feud, when does it stop?”

“When I’ve killed you both and every one of your followers.” she said darkly.

“You lost one happy ending, and we’re sorry for that,” Abba apologized, “But all this killing will only bring more hatred into your life, and all you’ll be left with is a hole in your heart and no hope of ever finding true happiness.”

“Neither of you,” Snow softly said as she formed a ball of fire in her hand, “Know nothing of my happiness.”

“Then you leave us no choice.” Abba said before kicking her in the stomach and punching Charming across the face; both strikes, to the alter egos, felt like metal struck them. Just then, an arrow struck the carriage as a man on a horse rode towards them.

Regina grabbed the money in the carriage as the man scooped her onto the horse while Abba freed the carriage horse and rode towards them.

“We had the situation under control.” Regina said stubbornly.

“A simple thank you would suffice.” the stranger retorted as they rode away. Once they were far enough out of danger, the man led the siblings to the nearest pub.

“I believe my sister already told you, we didn’t need rescuing.” Abba said as they entered the pub and he ordered them some drinks.

“Believe me, I’m already questioning helping the competition.” he scoffed.

“…Robin Hood?” Regina asked as she took a good look at the man.

“Well, I’m not Friar Tuck.” he smirked as he held Regina’s hand to bandage it from the cut Charming gave her, “Hold still.”

“Why?” she asked.

“Cause this may sting a little.” he replied as he poured some grog on her hand, “Here. Sit down before you pass out.”

While he may have been joking, Regina was still too stubborn to thank the man who helped her and her brother escape. So instead, she slammed a gold coin on the table as they sat down.

“What’s this?” Robin asked.

“Your cut.” she stiffly replied.

“You still can’t say thank you, can you?” he teased as he tightened the bandage.

“Thank you.” she said glaring at him as their drinks came.

“So, to new friends and old rivals.” Robin said as they clinked their mugs together in a toast. He then noticed Regina stare at him, “What?”

“Just thought you’d be…dirtier.” she said causing him to laugh.

“Well, thank you. I’ll choose to take that as a compliment.” he smirked, “Regina, while we may have never have met, I always admired you and your brother’s skills. I’m getting out of this game, and I have a proposition for you both. I’m in search of someone to take my place as leader of the Merry Men.”

“We just cheated death and now we’re offered a step up in the bandit community. Ain’t that a kick in the head?” Abba joked.

“We’re flattered, but we can’t accept.” Regina denied, “This forest isn’t the place for either of us anymore.”

“Well, that’s a shame.” Robin said in polite disappointment.

“So, what’s driving you out of the business?” Abba asked.

“Have you ever met someone that you would change your entire world for?” Robin asked them, “Someone whose eyes you just knew you were born to gaze into?”

Regina paused for a second as she did just that into Robin’s eyes. Abba noticed this and smirked into his mug. “Looks like you do now, sister dear.” he thought.

“Because I have.” Robin continued, “And that’s why I can’t be a thief anymore. It wouldn’t be fair to my new bride.”

“Bride?” Regina asked as Abba choked in his mug.

“Well, she will be when we marry later today.” Robin said as a happy redhead in pink practically skipped towards him.

“Hello, darling.” she said happily as she pulled him in for a kiss, “So who’s this?”

“Regina, Abba, I’d like you to meet my fiancé.” Robin said kindly, “This is Zelena.”

“Well, so much for that.” Abba bluntly thought as he continued to drink.

“I just can’t believe I’m finally meeting _the_ Bandit Siblings, Regina and Abba.” Zelena said happily as she joined them.

“Thank you, but we should go.” Regina said as something new stirred in her heart.

“Oh, w-well, why don’t you stay for the ceremony?” Zelena offered sweetly, “I mean, it’ll be a simple affair, but we’d love to have you two there, wouldn’t we, darling?”

“Of course.” Robin nodded, “It would be our honor.”

“Oh, uh, we should try to get a head start on Snow White. She’s gonna be even more angry after Abba beat her and Charming. I’m sure she has the entire black guard on duty.” Regina said with an excuse before awkwardly shaking Robin’s hand, “Thank you, for saving our lives.”

“Congratulations again.” Abba said kindly as they left. When they exited the pub, Abba put his hand on his sister’s should in sympathy just as Henry showed up again.

“Mom! Uncle!” he said.

“You have to stop calling us that.” Regina sighed, “How do you keep following us, anyway?”

“I figured if my plan worked, you’d be in Sherwood Forest with Robin Hood.” he replied.

“I hate to break it to you, but Robin’s already found his true love. And they’re getting married; today.” Regina emphasized as she showed him the happy couple through the window before storming off with Abba.

“No, no, no. This is all wrong. That’s Zelena, your sister.” Henry said as he caught up with them, “Wait. You have to listen to me.”

“Oh, we’ve heard enough.” Abba said, “The only sibling either of us has is each other. Regina is my only sister. Our mother abandoned us when Regina was four and I was a baby until I was…captured and sold off as a slave in Xerxes.”

“No, your mother abandoned Zelena.” Henry stressed, “Yes, you were a slave in Xerxes, but that’s where you became the Immortal Alchemist.”

“Puh!” Abba scoffed, “Immortal? Please. The only one who’s immortal around here is the Light One, Rumplestiltskin. I’m just a regular alchemist, who learned too much after playing God.”

“No, you became the Immortal Alchemist when you got your Philosopher’s Stone.” Henry stressed.

“No one’s made a Philosopher’s Stone, kid.” Abba said unamused, “It’s an old alchemist pipe dream. A fantasy, nothing more.”

“It isn’t.” Henry stressed, “It’s what allows you to heal instantly. You’d lose a limb, and it’d grow back; I’ve seen it!”

“Well, then explain to me why it didn’t work and why I had to build these.” Abba said as he rolled up left pants sleeve and took off his right glove to show Henry a metal hand and leg.

“…What happened to you?” he asked feeling sorry for his uncle.

“I told you.” he said bitterly as he put the glove back on and fixed his pants, “I played God.”

“Look, we’ve gotta go.” Regina said bringing the attention off of her brother, “And you should, too. Snow White’s looking for you.”

“Wait. You can’t tell me that you didn’t feel anything when you met Robin Hood.” Henry said which caused Regina to hesitate, “See? That’s proof. He’s your true love.”

“No. It’s proof that I’m not the kind of person that gets a happy ending.” Regina argued, “The only love in my life is Abba.”

“And Regina is the only love in mine.” Abba added sadly, “But you gave us the worst thing you can give anyone. Hope. Now, if you don’t mind, my sister and I would like to get far enough away so that Regina doesn’t have to be reminded of the pain hope brings by Robin and Zelena’s wedding bells proclaim their love.”

“Wait, did you say wedding bells?” Henry asked.

“Yes, now please leave us be.” Regina sighed.

“The bells, from the end of the book. That’s what he was talking about. Those bells, this wedding, it’s our last chance to stop this from becoming real forever!”

“It already is real.” Regina said sadly.

“Not yet.” Henry denied vigorously, “We have to stop this wedding.”

“Look,” Abba sighed, “You seem like a nice boy. And clearly, you believe all this nonsense. But didn’t you say we were your adopted family? That you have another mother out there, name, uh, Emma? Who I’m supposedly in love with? If you want help, maybe you should start by finding her.”

“I tried. She wasn’t in the book. And if she were, believe me, you’d know. She’s the most powerful sorceress there is.”

“The only sorceress in this land is Snow White.” Regina replied in distaste.

“She’s more powerful than her.” he argued, “She has, uh, special magic. In our world, she was called the Savior.”

“…Never heard of her.” Regina lied as two looks crossed their faces.

“Mom, Uncle, I know that face. What aren’t you telling me?” Henry asked. Regina sighed and gave her explanation.

“There were rumors of a woman who called herself that. The Savior.”

“Isaac lied.” Henry whispered, “He couldn’t write her out of the story. Where can I find her?”

“You can’t.” Abba replied, “Snow White locked her up years ago. No one has set eyes on her since. The prison she’s in is impenetrable.”

In the farthest region of the sea, on a small island rested a single tower. In the very top of it, a woman with blonde curls in a dark blue dress struggled in her chains as she tried to break free, screaming hysterically.


	49. Operation Mongoose Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

“Please, you have to help me save her.” Henry begged.

“We’re not heroes, kid.” Regina sighed, “Find someone else to rescue your damsel in distress of a mother.”

“Regina,” Abba said making her stop in her tracks, “Maybe…we should help him out.”

“What?” she asked not believing her ears, “Abba, are you insane?!”

“Look,” he said as he took her off to the side to speak in private, “I know the kid is nuts. But he’s telling the truth, at least about his mother. Maybe we should help him.”

“Are you just suggesting this because you think it’s the right thing to do? Or because you think you’ve got a shot with his mother?” Regina asked skeptically.

“…I’m curious as to what she looks like.” he admitted, “ _And_ it’s the right thing to do. Look we both know what it’s like to grow up without a mother, and this kid is on his own with Snow White chasing after him. The whole ‘other world’ thing might be nonsense, but what if the stuff he said about his mother is true? I was able to save myself back in Xerxes. But he may not be able to save himself. I don’t know why, but I just don’t like the idea of leaving him to fend for himself like this.”

“Sigh…alright.” Regina relented, “But I’m staying here.”

“What?” he asked.

“If we both go and Snow finds out, we’re just gonna back ourselves into a corner at that island.” she explained, “But if we split up, I can shake her knights off your tail and give you the chance to get to the island, grab the kid’s mother, and get back here so we can leave before Snow mounts us on her wall, dead or alive.”

“Okay, that makes more sense.” Abba nodded before they faced Henry, “Good news, kid, I’ll help you find your mother.”

“Really?” he asked in hope before hugging him tightly, “Awesome! Thanks, Uncle!”

“Still not your uncle, kid.” Abba sighed as he awkwardly patted the boy while Regina chuckled.

“So how are we gonna get to my mom?” he asked.

“Well, I happen to know a certain pirate captain, who’d be more than happy to help me.” he replied, “Fair warning though, she’s a bit of a flirt.”

“Wait, did you say she?” Henry asked as he followed his uncle to the docks.

“Get back to scrubbing, Jones!” a hot tempered redhead shouted from the helm of a pirate ship at her one-handed deckhand. She was dressed as a pirate but made no effort to cover up her impressive cleavage behind her blouse. As Abba and Henry approached her ship, she felt the fires of lust ignite inside upon looking at the red wearing alchemist.

“Ahoy, Captain!” Abba greeted trying not to cringe.

“Well, well, today must be my lucky day.” she smirked as she seductively approached Abba, while stepping on Hook’s hand in the process, “And what brings my favorite alchemist aboard the Jolly Roger?”

“I need you to take me and the boy to the bottomless sea, Ariel.” Abba dryly informed as she puffed out her chest and pouted cutely.

“Is that all?” she asked as she pressed her bosom against his toned chest, “There isn’t anything else I can do for you?”

“You can stop pressing your breasts against me in front of the boy, for one thing.” Abba said while looking away as he blushed.

“Aw. And I was hoping we could have some fun. Make you earn your…sea legs.” she whispered in his ear.

“I think your deckhand would be more willing than I.” Abba replied as he walked away leaving Henry looking at the sight with a bewildered look.

“I hope Hook and Ariel won’t remember this after we make things right, or else things are gonna be awkward the next time they see Uncle.” he thought bluntly. As Ariel sailed the ship to their destination, with the additional harsh order towards Hook, Henry couldn’t help but look at his uncle.

“If you’ve got something on your mind, spit it out.” Abba said flatly.

“I was just wondering…how you…you know.” Henry awkwardly replied as he gestured to Abba’s arm and leg.

“I figured as much.” he sighed, “Well, since you’ve told me so much about the ‘other’ me, I might as well tell you about this version. A long time ago, Snow White fell in love with King George’s son, Prince James even though their kingdoms were at war with each other for power. Regina and I were working for Snow’s father as stable hands at the time. One night, when we were feeding the horses, we found them in an…awkward position. Snow explained it to us that she was in love with James because he understood her and was just as cruel as she was. Instead of killing us, she let us live, but only if we kept their secret. Unfortunately, King Leopold became suspicious whenever he noticed his daughter randomly disappearing and since Regina tended to her horse, he confronted her. He tricked her into telling him about Snow and James. Needless to say, it didn’t end well.”

“He killed James.” Henry nodded.

“Right in front of his own daughter.” Abba nodded, “Snow was heartbroken, and beyond angry. She was going to kill Regina. And she would have if I hadn’t stepped in.”

“What’d you do?” he asked.

“Well, amongst alchemy, there are some procedures that others would advise against. One of which is considered the greatest taboo that no alchemist should ever attempt; Human Transmutation. Trying to bring someone back from the dead with alchemy. I convinced Snow that I could succeed and bring James back to life, but only if she would spare my sister. In her grief and heartache, she agreed to the deal without a second thought. It went against my better judgement, but I gathered everything necessary for the transmutation not long after. Every known element that makes up the human body, perfectly calculated and measured with the necessary transmutation circle containing the formula needed for it to work. It was just me and Snow that night.

“When I activated the circle, that’s when everything went wrong. Instead bringing James back, the room turned red and a giant eye opened in the floor as multiple, little, black hands rose from the circle. Next thing I knew, I was in some white void with nothing but a stone gate behind me and strange outline of a man standing before me, grinning madly. The gate opened and revealed the eye and those hands again before they pulled me in. Then my head began to fill with knowledge, knowledge I never knew could be learned to the point where it felt like my head was going to explode. And before it did, I found myself outside the gate and realized I was back with Snow. Only thing different was that my entire left leg was gone below my thigh. Blood was everywhere. And when I looked up, hoping to see James so that my sister would be safe from Snow, I saw a mangled body choking on whatever life it had left reach out its hand towards Snow as she cried.

“After that, I passed out from the blood loss and woke up the next day in the dungeon with my leg stump patched up while Snow glared at me with tears rolling down her red face. It was then that I knew that I only made things worse for me and Regina. She said that I managed to make myself guilty of the same crime as my sister. Before I could say anything, she grabbed a nearby sword, screamed as loud as she could and cut off my right arm. I guess she thought I was dead after I passed out again because I woke up in the woods sometime later. Some old hermit found me and helped me recuperate before Regina found me. Took me almost three years, but I managed to build these replacement limbs. Trust me, it’s not easy building stuff like this with only one arm. Once I got used to them, Regina and started our lives as bandits on the run from Snow White and her army. The only upside to it all was I don’t need a transmutation circle to perform my alchemy anymore; I just need to clap my hands together and that’s it. I also learned something else, two things actually. Human Transmutation can never be performed, and the dead, no matter what anyone does, don’t come back to life.”

Henry didn’t say anything after Abba was done. The world he was in may not have been real, but for his uncle, everything that he just said sounded more real than anything else he had ever heard. It may have actually happened earlier in the book or it could all just be one great, big fake memory in his head. But the way Abba told the story, Henry couldn’t help but believe him. The funny thing, though, is that story was nothing compared to what actually happened to his real uncle. About an hour later, the Jolly Roger reached her destination.

“Look!” Henry called as he spotted the island, “We found it!”

“There’s a black knight standing guard.” Hook said nervously.

“Only one.” Abba chuckled, “I’ve dealt with worse. You and Ariel wait here while the boy and I fetch his mother.”

When the two of them made it inside, Abba snuck behind the black knight and slammed his head against the wall rendering him unconscious. “Not much security you have here, Snow.” he muttered in disappointment as Henry grabbed the keys, “Be quick, he won’t be out for long.”

“Okay. You wait here and keep watch while I get my mom.” Henry nodded as he made it to where Emma was being held. When he unlocked the door, he found her in a dress on the floor looking fatigued and dazed.

“Hi.” he greeted thinking she didn’t remember him, “My name is-”

“Henry.” Emma said weakly.

“Mom?” he asked as she rose to her feet.

“Henry.” she said again.

“You-you remember.” he said as he hugged her.

“I knew you’d find me.” she whispered happily in her son’s embrace.

“I don’t understand. How do you remember when no one else does?” he asked as he unshackled her.

“Must have been part of Gold’s plan. My punishment in this world is that I know the truth but I’m powerless to do anything about it. In this world, I’m no longer the Savior. I’ve got no magic.” she explained weakly.

“That’s alright. I think I know what to do. Now come on.” Henry said as they headed downstairs, when Emma made it down first, she bumped into Abba and found herself holding on to him as she gazed into the light-chocolate brown eyes she adored. When he caught her, Abba thought as though an angel fell into his arms as he stared into her jade-green eyes while the sunlight shined in her golden hair.

“Uh, this is my mom.” Henry introduced feeling awkward watching them.

“Uh.” Abba replied feeling speechless as he continued to stare before awkwardly shaking her hand, “Yeah, um, nice to m-meet you.”

“Uh, yeah. Thanks.” she replied realizing he didn’t remember her, “Look, we need to get going. We’ve got a wedding to stop.”

“Wow.” he mouthed as he followed her out to the ship.

“Thanks for the help.” Emma thanked as the ship sailed away.

“Uh, yeah, of course.” Abba said nervously, “I’m pleased you regained your, uh, your freedom.”

“Unfortunately, it’s not gonna last unless we put some distance between that tower and us before the guard wakes up.” she replied.

“Why?” he asked.

“Because that was not any ordinary black knight. Her name is Lily. She’s dangerous.” Emma warned.

“I don’t understand. What’s the problem with this Lily person?” Abba asked as Lily in her dragon form flew out of the tower and headed straight towards them, “Okay. I see what you mean now.”

“Henry, get below deck, now!” Emma told her son, “Ever fight a dragon before?”

“I wanna say, no.” Abba replied as he helped her load the nearest mortar with a chain shot while Ariel steered the ship.

“Hold your fire till I tell you!” she said as he readied the flint stick, “Lily, over here! Come on, Lily! Come on! Now!”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Abba ignited the fuse and watched as the chain shot made the dragon crash into the sea.

“That was close!” he laughed as she did, “You’ve got guts, Milady.”

“I guess somebody I know back home’s rubbed off on me.” she laughed thinking about the real version of him.

“If I may ask, what made you trust me with your life, like that?” he asked.

“It’s complicated. Might take a while.” she replied.

“Well, I think I can make plenty of time for a lovely lady like yourself.” he smirked making her blush a little.

“Wow. You’re smoother here than you were back home.” she chuckled under her breath. As they sailed back to port, Abba listened as Emma told him a lot of what Henry said earlier that day. After changing into some of Ariel’s spare clothes, Emma left the Jolly Roger with her son and boyfriend and headed into the port. While Henry was off looking for food, Emma finished telling Abba her tale.

“So, in this other reality, are we really as close as your son says?” he asked.

“Well, you did travel across the realms just to be with me.” she smirked playfully, “So, yeah, I’d say we’re _very_ close.”

“Hmm. I’m starting to get jealous of this other me.” he chuckled feeling proud of himself.

“Let’s see what food Henry’s discovered. I’m starving.” Emma said still smiling at him. As they began to go look for Henry, Lily came around the corner with the evil version of the dwarves and Emma’s parents.

“There they are.” she said, “It’s as I told you, my queen. The alchemist helped her escape, and the boy was with them, as well.”

“Tell us where the child is hiding!” Grumpy snarled as he tried to grab Emma only kicked into his brothers’ arm by Abba.

“Back off, dwarf! Or I’ll change your name to Stumpy!” he threatened.

“I know you.” Snow White said looking at Emma, “You’re…Emma. The mad hag who was locked in the tower. I almost didn’t recognize you out of your chains.”

“You’re the one that’s hard to recognize; both of you. This isn’t who you are.” Emma said hoping to get through to Snow and Charming.

“Tell me, who are we?” she asked.

“You’re my parents.” she said shocking everyone but Henry, “I’m the product of your true love. You taught me how to be a hero, you taught me how to believe in hope. And I do. And now I need you to believe in it, too.”

“You’re right, Emma.” Snow agreed, “Hope is a very powerful thing. Which is why I’m going to have to snuff it out of you and that awful son of yours. Kill them.”

“Wait!” Charming halted as Henry came around the corner, “There he is.”

“My, my. I am going to enjoy watching him die in front of his mother.” Snow smiled darkly.

“Get out of here.” Abba whispered to Emma.

“You can’t beat them.” Emma argued.

“Look at this way, if what you say is true, and I die here, then once you fix everything, I’ll be fine. Besides,” he said glaring at Snow and Charming, “I have a score to settle. Now go. Save your boy. Find my sister and wait for me at our hideout. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

As Emma reluctantly headed over to Henry, Abba skillfully knocked down a pile of cargo over the knights, rendering them unconscious. Now, it was just Abba and the two monsters he helped create.

“You willing to die for her, alchemist?” Charming asked as Abba clapped his hands together and made a blade form on his metal arm over his hand.

“Dying is the day worth living for.” he coolly replied as Henry and Emma got away. Charming, in his arrogance, tried to psyche Abba out by striking his blade only to see it be fended off easily. Growing frustrated, he tried again repeatedly which resulted in Abba striking back forcing him to go on the defensive side. With little effort, Abba knocked him to the ground with an elbow strike to the face, leaving him dazed while the other knights picked themselves up.

“Why don’t you lot stay down?” he asked softly as he raised his left knee and pointed it at them. In a split second, a small version of a mortar fired a shot at them from his prosthetic limb. Those that weren’t dead were either unconscious or too injured to get back up again. As this happened, Charming got up from behind Abba with his knife drawn with every intent to do this dishonorable thing and stab him in the back; literally.

But Abba knew this, and in one swift motion, he quickly turned and slit Charming’s throat with the blade on his arm. With fresh blood splattered against the side of his face, Abba turned back around to see the queen stand alone with fear and shock plastered on her soft, white face. In a feeble attempt, she tried to kill the alchemist with a ball of fire only to watch it be deflected by his metal arm as he approached her.

“Snow White of Misthaven,” he said in a terrifying tone as Snow stumbled back to the ground in fear, “You and your followers have devastated the balance of this realm. And now, you shall pay the ultimate price.”

Before she could even so much as scream, he grabbed her face with his real arm, lifted her so she was but an inch off the ground, and used his alchemy to kill her. He knew when the lights stopped flashing and her eyes were rolled back in her head that she was dead; but he didn’t take pride in it. He gently laid her down on the ground, closed her eyes, and bowed his head.

“The queen,” he said as he walked away with his back facing the carnage he made, “Is dead.”

It didn’t take him very long, but Abba was able to meet up with the others back at his home. “You made it.” Emma said happily before hugging him tightly which he didn’t mind.

“…Brother?” Regina asked hesitantly, “Wh-who’s blood is that?”

He could’ve kicked himself for not cleaning off the blood on his faced and gloves. It was then that Emma released him from the hug and looked at him with an unreadable expression. Not wanting to beat around the bush, Abba told them who the blood belonged to.

“Snow White and Charming are dead.” he admitted solemnly causing them all, Emma especially, to look shocked, “I’m sorry. I know that they were your parents, but it was either them or me. But if we succeed in ending this reality, they just come back in the other one.”

After swallowing, or at least attempting to try, the death of her parents, Emma and the others raced out of the woods to the church where Robin and Zelena’s wedding was being held.

“We haven’t heard the wedding bells yet. There’s still time.” Henry said as they reached the church.

“I don’t even know what to say to him.” Regina argued nervously.

“Sister, in this case, actions seem to be louder than words.” Abba countered.

“Once you and Robin share true love’s kiss, everything should be great again.” Henry stressed.

“Okay.” Regina nodded while Emma lightly chuckled, “What?”

“You don’t remember this, but I promised you once I’d help you find your happy ending. I’m just glad I’m here to see it.” she smiled, “You got this, Regina.”

“I’m afraid none of you are crashing this wedding, dearies.” Rumplestiltskin denied as he approached them with his sword drawn.

“Go.” Emma said glaring at the man responsible for it all, “We’ve got the Dark One.”

“Dark One?” he scoffed as Emma and Abba pointed their blades at him, “I’m afraid you have the wrong name, dearie.”

“We’ll see about that.” she coolly retorted.

“No idea why, but I feel the strangest sense of Déjà vu and…enjoyment towards what comes next.” Abba smirked.

“Unfortunately for you, nothing comes next.” Rumple denied as the fight began.

“Regina, go!” Abba urged as he fought. Rumple proved to be a more skilled opponent than the others he fought today, so Abba struggled to keep him from staying on the offensive. In a cheap shot, the Light One used his magic to knock Emma and Abba back several feet rending him in a daze and her unconscious.

“Mom, Uncle!” Henry cried as he grabbed Emma’s sword.

“Out of my way, boy.” Rumple warned.

“You have to get through me to get to her!” Henry declared while Regina struggled between stopping the wedding and helping the others, “Go! You have to stop that wedding!”

But Rumple got the upper hand and knocked the boy’s sword away. “You won’t hurt me.” he said standing his ground, “You’re supposed to be a hero here.”

“And that’s exactly why I must do this; to ensure I remain one.” Rumple replied as he swung his sword. But as he did, the flesh the blade cut through didn’t belong to Henry, instead, it was Regina’s. 

“Sister!” Abba cried as he ran over to Regina.

“It’s done.” he whispered before flashing away.

“Mom?” Henry asked as his voice broke.

“Regina?” Emma asked as she joined them.

“Mom. Why didn’t you go into the church?” Henry asked.

“I…I couldn’t let you die.” she said weakly as the bells rung.

“We’re at the end of the book. We’re not gonna be able to change anything now.” Emma said in defeat as the newlyweds exited the church.

“Regina?” Robin asked when he saw his friend bleeding on the ground, “Regina!”

“Robin? What’s going on?” Zelena asked as she joined him, “Oh, now I’ve got blood on my dress!”

“Can’t you see she’s injured?” he asked his wife in bewilderment.

“This is supposed to be my day! And she’s ruined it!” she whined as he skin began to literally turn green with envy. As she ran off, Isaac watched the sight in the crowd.

“It’s okay. You’re gonna be alright.” Robin soothed as he cradled her head.

“Gina, please.” Abba begged chocking his tears.

“No. I’m not.” she whispered, “I’m sorry, Abby.”

“At least I can promise you, you won’t die alone.” Robin swore gently.

“Too little, too late.” Isaac smirked before Emma clocked him in the face, knocking the pen out of his bag.

“Then you’re gonna change things. Return them to the way they were.” Emma barked as he clutched his jaw, “Bring back my parents, save Regina.”

“I can’t.” he said as Henry heard something come from the pen before picking it up, “I’m not the Author anymore. I can’t change a thing.”

“Whoa.” Emma said as the pen shined in her son’s hand, “Kid, what the hell?”

“No.” Isaac whispered.

“What’s happening?” Emma asked.

“He’s the next Author.” Isaac said in disbelief.

“I-I can feel it.” Henry said.

“Henry. Fix it. Write everything the way it was.” Emma said.

“Without ink, he’s not writing anything.” Isaac spat while Emma grabbed her sword.

“My blood. It was supposed to work last time.” she said ready to slice her hand only to have her son stop her.

“Yes, when mixed with darkness, but you’re not the Savior here.” Henry reminded, “But that doesn’t mean we didn’t find one. And in this world, we don’t need a dark Savior. We need a light one.”

“No, don’t!” Isaac yelled as Henry knelt by his dying mother.

“Henry, do it!” Emma yelled as she held him back. Dipping the ink in her blood, Henry used his newfound powers to fix everything.

“With the hero Regina’s sacrifice,” he wrote, “Isaac’s villainous work was undone.”

In a quick flash, Henry found himself standing over Regina as she rose to her feet with Emma and the Apprentice rising up behind them as they hugged.

“You did it.” Regina said proudly.

“No, Mom. We did.” he corrected as Robin ran over to Regina and hugged her tightly while Henry went over to Emma, “Mom!”

“Henry.” she said hugging him before her eyes widened, “My parents.”

Without a minute to waste, Emma ran as fast as she could to the loft hoping to find her family there alive. Although, when she burst through the door, what she found was, in a word, just plain _weird_.

“Come on! It’s only fair!” Nicholas stressed to Snow and David as he held a gun, “I killed you guys, you guys shoot me!”

“For the last time!” Snow said sternly, “We are _not_ going to shoot you!”

“Mom! Dad!” Emma cried as she rushed over to hug them tightly. Nicholas smiled at the touching sight as his nephew and sister came in. As soon as he saw Regina, he walked over to her and instead of hugging, he thumped her forehead with the palm of his hand.

“Ow!” she said, “What’d you do that for?”

It was then that he pulled her into a very tight hug. “Don’t ever do something stupid like that again.” he whispered harshly even though he was very happy to see his big sister alright.

“Okay, Abby.” she whispered back with a smile as she hugged him too.

Later that evening, as per usual with the defeat of a villain, a party celebrating victory was thrown at Granny’s with everyone invited. As music, chatter, laughter and the clinking of mugs filled the air, everything seemed to be going well.

“Again,” Nicholas said sheepishly to the Charmings with his arm around Emma, “I’m sorry I killed you guys. Though, in my defense, you didn’t leave me much choice.”

“Eh, you don’t need to be sorry.” David waved off, “Although, I’m probably gonna hold it over your head for a very, very long time.” 

“I think we can all agree that what happened in that world was not real.” Emma threw in, “Although, see you guys as real villains makes me feel sorry for holding a grudge against you for so long.”

“Which reminds me,” Nicholas said nodding at Robin, “I promised you guys something once we were done with Gold and the Author. Now may be as good a time as any.”

“Well, it’s about damn time.” Regina said bluntly with a smirk as she, Robin, Hook, Ariel, and Henry joined them to hear what he had to say.

“Okay,” he said taking a deep breath, “Well, as you guys know, I’ve kept a lot of secrets from you over the years. That day I mysteriously disappeared, the reason why I went to New York besides wanting to be with Emma and Henry, who shot me repeatedly when…my mother died; even that mystery guy at the boathouse. All those things are connected to something…well, something very big that you wouldn’t believe. The truth is, I’m-”

Everyone was waiting anxiously for him to finally come clean after being in the dark for so long. But as soon as he was about to tell them, Belle came bursting through the door with a panicked look on her face.

“Rumple,” she panted gaining their attention, “His heart. He said it’s almost gone. He said we’re in danger.”

After everyone, including the Apprentice, went over to the pawn shop, they found Gold laying on the ground unconscious. Knowing what to do, the Apprentice took out the Hat box and placed it next to him.

“He tried to use the Hat to free himself from the dagger.” Hook recalled as he caught on to the plan.

“This is not unlike that.” the Apprentice replied, “We’re pulling the darkness from him and containing it.”

“Does that mean his heart will be healed?” Belle asked.

“Perhaps. If the strength is there. This is more dark power than the Hat has ever been asked to contain.” he informed before looking at the two agents, “I’m sorry, but this may interfere with what you originally had planned for him.”

“Do what you need to do.” Nicholas replied stoically.

“We’ll handle whatever takes his place.” Robin nodded confusing the others even more as the Apprentice began to cast his spell.

“Purest evil, blackest bloom, darkness, too, can find its doom.” he chanted as he pulled out the black heart and unlocked the Hat, “Never dying, but contained, bound inside the falcon’s chamber, shorn of anger, thornless danger, there forever to remain.”

With the spell completed, the Hat absorbed the centuries of darkness collected in Rumple’s heart and stripped him of his Dark One powers, making him an ordinary man once again. With his name no longer on the dagger, and his heart white as snow, neither dark or light, Rumplestiltskin laid on the floor with no signs of waking up.

“He’s barely breathing.” Belle said in her worry.

“Rumplestiltskin was the Dark One for centuries. His return to the man he used to be will not be easy.” the Apprentice replied as he cast a preservation spell on the man, “This will preserve him until we discern if we can help him.”

“And now, we’re back down to four.” Robin sighed while Nicholas shook his head.

“Four?” David asked as the Hat began to act up.

“Everybody step back.” Emma warned as the box shook and unleashed the darkness it contained. In retaliation towards the one who sealed it, the darkness lunged at the Apprentice and tried to fuse itself within him. But thanks to Emma’s magic, it left the old man’s body as quickly as it entered him and fled outside into the night looking for a new host.

“Mom, Dad! Go after it! Go! I’ll be right there.” Emma said.

“Contact the others.” Nicholas said to Robin, “They need to know what’s happened.”

“I left my shell at the camp!” he alerted in panic as he patted down his jacket.

“Dammit! Go out and help them!” Nicholas ordered as Regina followed her lover outside with Hook and Ariel following them, “What was that?”

“Long before your stories began,” the Apprentice said weakly, “The Sorcerer battled the Darkness. He was able to keep it from consuming the realms. He tethered it to a human soul that could be controlled with a dagger.”

“The Dark One.” Emma realized as she held the dagger.

“The Sorcerer is the only one with the power to destroy the darkness once and for all before it destroys everything.” he continued.

“Where is he? Who is he?” she asked.

“He’s far, far from here. Find him. His name is…Merlin.” he informed shocking Emma and Henry, “You must stop…the Darkness. Find Merlin.”

Outside in the town square, the three of them met up with the others as they looked around for the darkness. “Where is it?!” Emma asked.

“We don’t know.” David replied.

“It just disappeared into the night.” Snow added.

“I’ve got a bad feeling about this.” Regina said as they all looked around.

“…It hasn’t gone anywhere.” Emma spoke up, “The darkness, it’s surrounding us.”

And then, like vulture diving from the sky to catch its prey, the darkness pounced Regina and pulled her away from the others.

“Regina!” Nicholas and Robin shouted.

“What’s it doing?!” Robin asked.

“It’s doing what darkness does.” Emma replied clutching the dagger in her hand, “Snuffing out the light.”

“I’m not gonna let it.” he growled as he tried to pull his soul mate out of the black vortex only to be sent back to the ground.

“That’s not gonna work on this thing! The Apprentice told me we have to do what the Sorcerer did! We have to tether it to a person to contain it!” Emma yelled as she approached the darkness with the dagger.

“Emma! No!” Regina shouted, “There has to be another way!”

“There isn’t.” Emma said ready to make the sacrifice, “You’ve worked too hard to have your happiness destroyed.”

“No!” David cried as his precious daughter was about to strike the darkness.

“You figured out how to take the darkness out of me once.” she said to her parents on the verge of tears, “You need to do it again, as heroes.”

“Emma! Emma, please!” Nicholas yelled trying to stop her, “Don’t do this.”

Looking the man she loved in the eyes, possibly for the last time as herself, she gently caressed his face and said three simple, yet important words. “I love you.”

She then pushed him back and pierced the black vortex with the dagger and let it consume her instead of her friend. Before it finally took her over, Emma looked at her loved ones one last time before the darkness lifted her in the air, consumed itself, and disappeared leaving only the dagger behind.

And for the first time in over three hundred years, instead of reading the name “Rumplestiltskin” on the blade, it now read “Emma Swan.”


	50. The Dark Swan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

If Nicholas Flamel still had a heart beating in his chest, by now, after watching the woman he loved get swept away in a swirling dark vortex turning her into the newest Dark One, it would be shattered. All he could do was stare at the blade that now had his beloved’s name carved into it.

“How could she be so stupid?!” Regina exclaimed in frustration.

“Regina!” David snapped.

“Well, there had to be another way.” she argued.

“There wasn’t.” Snow said not knowing what to feel at the moment, “That thing was going to kill you. She saved your life.”

“Don’t you think I know that?” she asked hotly.

“And now she’s the Dark One.” Henry said still not fully believing it.

“Bloody hell.” Hook exhaled as he held Ariel as they both thought of their friend.

“Now she’s a problem; for all of us.” Regina sighed.

“She’s still good.” Snow argued.

“I hope so. It’s not like she rode off on a unicorn. She got sucked up by a vortex of evil.” Regina retorted while her brother slowly walked over to the dagger and fell to his knees as he loosely held it, “Oh, God. Nicholas, brother, I’m sorry.”

But he didn’t respond to her, he probably didn’t hear a word any of them were saying. As his grip tightened on the dagger, his whole body began to tremble as his eye twitched and his teeth grinded together in anger.

“Nicholas? Are you okay?” Ariel asked in concern. But instead of replying, sparks of red alchemic lightning began to surge on his body; even the ground began to shake because of his rage. Seething and panting in anger, with his eyes glowing red, he turned to look back at the pawn shop where his anger was focused.

“GOLD!!!” he roared as he scrambled to his feet. Knowing what his blinded comrade wanted to do, Robin pulled out a transport rock, crushed it, tackled his friend, and threw the dust where they landed allowing it to teleport them away from the others. In an instant, they landed on one of the coffee tables back in the debriefing room at the mansion.

“Activate emergency lockdown sequence!” Robin yelled as he struggled to hold down his friend, “Code: S4, N.F.A.!”

“EMERGENCY LOCKDOWN: COMENCING.” the computer’s voice said throughout the mansion as the lights went red and all the windows, doors, and walls were covered by thick metal covers.

“Get off me!” Nicholas shouted over the sirens as he zapped Robin with his lightning.

“What the bloody hell is going on?!” Skinner yelled as he and the others stormed into the room.

“And why are we under lockdown?!” Sawyer shouted.

“Take it down, now!” Nicholas ordered Robin.

“What’s happening here?!” Mina asked covering her ears.

“Terrible news, that’s what!” Robin shouted as Nicholas tried and failed to transmute himself out, “I had no choice but to bring him here! He was about to go on a bloody rampage!”

“Whatever for?!” Nemo asked as Quartermain turned off the sirens.

“Emma just became the new Dark One.” Robin exhaled sadly.

“What?!” Mina asked, “You mean she killed Gold?!”

“No, no. Gold’s alive, just barely.” he informed.

“Flamel!” Quartermain shouted startling them, “Stop jumping around! You know you can’t get through these walls!”

“Take them down, now!” he shouted in his anger before he was shot in the head by his superior.

“Now, what happened?!” Quartermain asked Robin hotly.

“It’s not good, Allan. Not good at all.” he replied gravely, “After we returned from the book, everyone threw a celebration party at Granny’s. Everything was fine, Nicholas was actually about to tell everyone about us since the threat was over with. But just before he could tell them, Belle came in and told us that Gold was about to lose control of the Dark One’s spirit. We all went to his shop with the Apprentice, he tried to seal the darkness into the Hat but it didn’t work. One thing led to another, and then it tried to kill Regina but Emma stepped in and tethered it to herself before it took her away. Now she’s not only the Dark One, but she’s just taken Gold’s place as one of the sacrifices. That’s what’s got Nicholas all riled up.”

“The dagger?” Quartermain asked gritting his teeth.

“It-it got left behind as Emma was taken away.” Robin replied, “Nicholas had it, but he must’ve dropped it when I tackled him before poofing us here.”

“Boss,” Nicholas growled as the last of the shrapnel left his head.

“You cooled down, yet?” he asked matching his glare with his own.

“Let, me, out!” he shouted.

“Apparently, not.” Quartermain sighed as he shot him again.

“Stop it!” Mina interjected, “You shooting him isn’t making this any easier for Nicholas!”

“Buddy, are you okay?” Sawyer asked as he tried to help Nicholas only be shrugged off.

“Get off me!” he snapped which made Quartermain shoot him in the head again.

“Boss!” Sawyer shouted.

“Either he calms down, or I keep shooting.” Quartermain barked, “I’m not letting him out there with his head full of steam, like this. It won’t do him or Swan any good.”

“You have no idea why I’m so angry, do you?” Nicholas asked as he healed.

“Boy,” he sighed, “We know you’re hurting, but you can’t charge into this blinded by your anger; that’s not how we operate. Take a breath.”

“I can’t take a breath, boss!” he shouted, “I can’t even breathe knowing what’s waiting for Emma out there!”

“Mate, what are you talking about?” Skinner asked in concern which made Nicholas look at them all baffled.

“You guys really don’t remember?” he asked, “She’s going to be reborn as the Dark One from the Well of the Dark One in the Enchanted Forest. Don’t you know whose territory that is?!”

Realization dawned upon the other agents as they each remembered the specific detail Nicholas was implying. Now they had a better understanding of why he was so desperate to get back out there and find his true love.

**OUaT**

In the darkest parts of the Enchanted Forest, the Well of the Dark One unlocked itself and let a pool of dark sludge poor out into the world. From this, now wearing tattered gray robes, the new Dark One, Emma Swan emerged.

“Where am I?” she asked herself before the sound of whistling could be heard, “Who’s there?!”

When she threw up her hood and turned around, she saw Rumplestiltskin, only his appearance was that of what he looked like before the first curse. “You’re supposed to be in Storybrooke. You were in a coma.”

“Ah, yes, I am.” he giggled, “Or, uh, rather, he is.”

“What are you?” she asked.

“I am many things. I’m the voice in your head, the Dark One’s powers inside you, inside all the Dark Ones. Rumplestiltskin is but one of many. Perhaps I can be another. How about Gorgon the Invincible?” he asked before turning into a very large, fire-breathing boar before turning back to Rumple, “Yes, probably easier this way. Now, are you ready to begin?”

“Begin what?” she asked.

“Well, learning to be the Dark One, of course. Think of me as your guide, but only till you’ve learned to embrace your powers.” he replied.

“I will never embrace the darkness.” she calmly argued.

“Ah, they all say that!” he humorously waved off, “Everyone who sips from this well enjoys the taste too much. The only way to stop is to be stopped. This is the fate of all Dark Ones.”

Emma scoffed at the ghost before her and tried to walk away. Of course, there was no avoiding him, because, in a manner of speaking, he was her. “You can’t just walk away from it.”

“I’m in the Enchanted Forest now, which means Merlin can’t be far from here, and the Apprentice told me he can destroy the darkness, so I’m going to find him.”

“Merlin?” Rumple asked, “Oh, you’re better off with me.”

“No, I’ll never be like all of you!” she shouted, “I’ll never hurt the people I love; the people who love me.”

After making it out of the woods and to the nearest road, Emma thought she might catch a break when she saw a man pushing a cart while another man watched her from the trees. He had graying brown, curly hair that reached his neck with a matching full, bushy beard and blue eyes and he wore a dark blue coat over a brown shirt and black pants with boots, gray fingerless gloves, and a tattered dark blue scarf around his neck like a bandana.

“Hey! Excuse me! I need help!” she called startling him as she ran up to him, “I need directions to Camelot. Do you know the way?”

“Of course.” he said, “It will only cost you two pieces of silver.”

“Oh, uh, I don’t have any silver.” she replied.

“Three pieces now.” he said.

“I’m in a hurry.” she said losing her patience.

“Four.”

“Just tell me!” she snapped as he began to choke and rise into the air. From the trees, the mystery man looked both surprised and intrigued at the sight.

“What are you doing?” he choked.

“I’m not doing anything.” she said.

“But of course you are.” Rumple said appearing beside her with his hand raised.

“Stop.” she pleaded.

“It’s not me doing this, dearie. It’s you.” he smirked as Emma realized it was her hand raised choking the man. When she let him go, it couldn’t stop shaking as her fear controlled her. “So, did you enjoy it? Your first taste of darkness?”

“Excuse me.” the other man said as he came up behind Emma with a welcoming smile, “Correct me if I’m wrong, it-it was hard to hear down the road, but did you say you were looking for Camelot?”

“Yes.” Emma said desperately, “Yes, I am. Do you know how to get there?”

“As a matter of fact, I do.” he nodded, “If I may ask, what happened to the gentlemen who ran off?”

“He learned what happens when he tries to take advantage of a woman in need of help.” Emma partially lied.

“Ah.” he nodded, “I see. Shame on him, then. I take back the ‘gentlemen’ comment in that case.”

“Yeah.” Emma nodded, “I’m Emma, by the way.”

“Pleased to meet you, Emma.” he nodded kindly, “My name is Giles.”

**OUaT**

Back in Storybrooke the following morning, after having been explained the last bit of information the Apprentice gave the others before he died, Robin and Nicholas formulated a plan of their own with Regina after she explained that, even with the Apprentice’s wand, she couldn’t open a portal to the Enchanted Forest. With no other choice, they went to the last person they wanted to see, Zelena.

“Well, if it isn’t my dear little brother and sister?” she asked sarcastically as they entered her cell, “Sorry, dears, I’m trying to meditate. It’s good for the baby. Please go. You’re ruining my chi.”

“We need your help.” Nicholas stiffly informed.

“Wow.” she laughed standing up, “You must be really desperate.”

“We are.” he replied before anyone else could speak, “Something’s happened to Emma. She’s the Dark One now and is in the Enchanted Forest. We need your help to get us there.”

“Well, now, that is quite the pickle.” she smirked, “And why should I help you lot?”

“Because out of the two of us, you don’t hate me as much as you do Regina. And, whether you’ll admit it or not, you actually have a soft spot for me.” he replied catching everyone off guard, “That day when we defeated you, when you pulled me against your cell, you felt a connection to me like you’ve never felt before. Because unlike Regina, I know better than anyone what you went through growing up because I went through the same thing. You felt something. I know you did. I could see it in your eyes. So I’m not demanding you to help me because I’m with the ‘heroes,’ I’m asking you to help me, as your brother.”

Like Nicholas said, she wouldn’t admit it, but Zelena agreed to everything he just said. In fact, she knew what Nicholas went through, or most of it at least, back when she was spying on him and Regina back in Oz and felt connected to him instead of being jealous and bitter like she felt towards her. In fact, knowing Regina was able to be loved by such a kind and caring brother like him was just one of the many things that made Zelena jealous of her. Not only that, but that day in the station, when she stared into his eyes as she spilled out her heart, she felt it again, stronger than ever. 

So instead of making any further attempts to irritate him by not helping, Zelena sighed and said, “What do I get out of it?”

“How does giving a demonstration in front of everyone that your powers are superior to Regina’s by using the wand she can’t use to take us to Emma sound?” he asked dryly.

“Hmph.” she chuckled, “Sounds like you’ve got yourself a deal, brother dear. When do we leave?”

**OUaT**

“So why exactly do you want to go to Camelot?” Giles asked Emma as they walked through the woods.

“I’m looking for…someone. I think he might be there.” she replied making sure to give out too much information.

“Might?” he asked, “Wouldn’t you rather know for sure?”

“Of course, but I don’t know how. I’m not exactly from around here.” Emma replied as he chuckled.

“I gathered that the last three times you almost went in the wrong direction.” he said in a friendly manner, “But what if I told you there was a definite way to find out where the person you’re looking is?”

“I’m listening.” she said as they came to a stop.

“Well, around these parts, there’s this spirt known to guide people to what they desire. It’s called the Will-O’-the-Wisp.”

“Rather smart fellow, despite how he dresses.” Rumple giggled beside Emma.

“Where can I find it?” she asked.

“If we continue along this way, we’ll come across a small lake where wisps are known to appear, but there’s a catch.” Giles warned, “You have to catch it first.”

“I think I can handle that.” she said as she started walking again.

“I hope so. They are fairly quick little things.” he added before pointing in the direction opposite of where Emma was going, “And they’re also this way.”

“Right.” she said trying not to look embarrassed, “So what made you decide to help me?”

“Can a man not simply want to help a person in need?” he asked with a smile, “Besides, believe it or not, I’m actually a servant of the Lord.”

“Wait, you mean like a priest?” Emma asked.

“Of sorts.” Giles said mysteriously.

“So then, what kind of god do you worship?” she asked causing him to chuckle.

“Oh, there’s only one God, my dear.” he smiled.

“But I thought people here worshipped multiple gods, or something?” she asked.

“Perhaps,” he shrugged, “But where I come from, people have learned that there is only one almighty God. Although, it has not been easy convincing people I meet that is what I believe; I don’t know how many times my Bible has been thrown in the mud this past month.”

“Sounds rough.” she remarked.

“Not as rough as what others have gone through because of their belief in Him.” Giles sighed before they both saw a little blue ball of fire dart around their heads. It didn’t take more than a second for Emma to realize it was the wisp her new companion was talking about and began to chase after it with Giles following her. But just as she was about to grab it, someone else beat her to it and ran off with it.

“Hey! Hey, I need that! Stop!” Emma shouted unintentionally using her magic to make the running girl stop and fall. When she rushed over to try and take the wisp, the girl took off her hood and pointed her bow at her.

“Back off, lassie.” she warned with a heavy Scottish accent, “My aim’s true. Don’t test me.”

“I wasn’t trying to hurt you.” Emma reasoned.

“So that was just a wee magical love tap?” she asked not buying it, “Oh, I’ve met my share of witches. I know one when I see one, witch.”

“No, I’m not a witch.” Emma assured, “I was just cursed with dark magic.”

“And the difference is?” she asked.

“She wants to be rid of it.” Giles replied, “Right?”

“Right.” Emma nodded, “The Will-O’-the-Wisp is the only way.”

“You want to be rid of it?” she asked as Emma reached for the wisp in her bag.

“Desperately.” she nodded.

“Aye. I know what that’s like.” the girl nodded, “It’s a terrible fate to be cursed. Just be glad you’re not a bear.”

“That’s oddly specific.” Giles muttered as he and Emma found that last part odd.

“Oh, never mind. Look, I wish I could help you, but I need the wisp, too, for my kingdom, for my family. So I’m afraid you’re gonna have to fight me for it.” the girl said as she raised her fists.

“What?” Emma asked.

“I’m willing to fight fair if you are. No magic.”

“I like her spunk.” Rumple said appearing again, “Break her neck.”

“I’m not going to fight you.” Emma said trying to ignore the Dark One.

“You’re not?” she and Giles asked.

“Why not?” Rumple asked in disappointment.

“Magic or no, that’s giving in to the darkness, and I won’t do it.” Emma said holding herself back, “Go on, take it and get on your way. It’s yours.”

“Don’t be trying to sucker-punch me.” she warned.

“I’m not going to. Just go.”

“Thank you. I’m Merida.” she introduced while lowering her fists.

“Emma.”

“Giles.”

“You’re in dire straits, aren’t you, Emma?” Merida asked.

“You could say that.” she admitted.

“Well, it wouldn’t be fair to leave you two. I can help.” the redhead offered.

“I don’t think so.” Emma disagreed.

“Well, now wait, she just might, Emma.” Giles intervened.

“That’s right. I take it you don’t know much about the wisp, do you?” Merida asked.

“He does. I don’t.” she replied.

“Well, they’re born in a magical place, the Hill of Stones. They answer your question when you bring them back home. It’s about a day’s trek from here. If we all go together, I can get my help from the wisp, and maybe, I can give it to you and you can get yours.” Merida offered kindly causing Emma to smile at the gesture. As the newly formed trio continued on their journey, Merida led them in a rushed pace.

“Not to sound rude, but have you ever heard the phrase, ‘slow and steady wins the race’?” Giles asked.

“I don’t have time for slow.” Merida replied.

“What exactly is your hurry?” Emma asked, “Why do you need the wisp?”

“My brothers.” she said coming to a stop, “They were kidnapped by the united clans of my country. Just three wee, innocent boys. Savages. ‘Cause of me. My father is-was the king. And when he passed, the clans no longer approved of me being queen. In my land, people, well, men don’t think a woman can lead.”

“Oh, not just in your land.” Emma replied understanding.

“Well, I’m gonna show them. I need the wisp to take me to my brothers, and when it does, I will save them, no matter the cost. If it’s war the clans want, it’s war they’ll get.” Merida threatened before tripping over a rock.

“You won’t do your brothers any good passed out from exhaustion.” Emma said helping her up.

“When’s the last time you slept?” Giles asked.

“What month is it?” Merida asked earning a pair of looks, “Fine. We can make camp. But just until first light.”

After they made camp and night fell, Emma found herself tossing and turning on the ground after being up for hours through the night. “Can’t sleep?” Rumple taunted beside her, “Worry not. Dark Ones don’t need sleep.”

In an attempt to ignore the image of her predecessor, Emma turned to the other side but saw him once again lying beside her. “That’s why I spun straw. Passes the time. You need a hobby, something to take your mind off all the terrible things you’re gonna do. Do you like knitting?”

“Nicky, I’m starting to understand what you go through at night.” she muttered before looking at Rumple, “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m doing good here. I’ve made a friend with Giles, I’m helping Merida, and when she’s done with the wisp, it’ll be my turn.”

“Yes, there’s one thing your ‘friend’ neglected to tell you.” he giggled, “The wisp isn’t a toy you can share. She can’t just give it to you. The person who whispers to it becomes its owner forever.”

“So if I let her use it, I can never use it?” Emma asked.

“Not while her heart beats.” he darkly replied.

“You want me to take it for myself.”

“I want you to start behaving like a Dark One!” he snapped.

“You knew this would happen. You wanted me to betray Merida and Giles.” Emma said not knowing her companions were awake and listening.

“No, no. Not betray them. _Kill them_.” Rumple giggled before hissing, “Come now, dearie. You can’t fool me. There’s no denying that prickling sensation every time you see our bushy bearded priest; and no, it’s not because Dark One’s dislike religion. Call it whatever you like, but deep down you know that that man is a threat. And as a Dark One, you must do what all Dark Ones do when threatened, end it.”

“I’m not going to kill him.” she whispered. Little did she know as she said this, Giles was smirking while he pretended to sleep. When the sun rose several hours later, Emma decided to look for some berries for breakfast while the others slept. When she returned, she found out that they ditched her.

“No. No, no, no, no.” she muttered in panic.

“Oh, yes.” Rumple smirked against a tree.

“Where are they?” Emma asked.

“Doing what you should be doing, taking care of themselves first. If the girl gets to the Hill of Stones and whispers into that wisp, it’s all over for you, dearie. Unless you kill her.” he warned.

“I’m not killing anyone.” she argued.

“Ah, you don’t really mean that.” he waved off.

“…What does the Hill of Stones look like?” Emma asked.

“You’re not thinking of magicing there, are you?” Rumple asked tauntingly.

“Tell me.”

“I thought you didn’t want to use Dark One magic.”

“What does it look like?” she snapped in desperation.

“Well, if you insist.” he “gave in.”

**OUaT**

Back in Storybrooke, everyone stood in the town square to keep an eye on Zelena as she readied the Apprentice’s wand for them. Nicholas watched his eldest sister carefully in case she tried anything foolish while his friends stood by him.

“You think we can trust her?” David asked him.

“I can.” he replied, “But I would advise against any of you doing so. Out of all of us, I’m the only one she wants to have on her side. She couldn’t care less about the rest of you.”

“You know, that really doesn’t bother me.” David sighed before Zelena spoke to them.

“Alright, now all we need is something to direct us to Emma.”

“Here.” Nicholas said tossing her the watch Emma gave him for their anniversary.

“Oh, yes.” Zelena grinned wickedly, “This will work perfectly.”

Waving the wand under the watch, Zelena gathered a massive amount of her magic and sent a single blast of green energy towards the clouds out by the docks, creating a green, magical twister. But as soon as this happened, the wand zapped her and left her feeling weak giving Regina the chance to put the magic-binding cuff back on her.

“What happened?” Hook asked in confusion.

“What happened is that I’m not stupid.” Regina smirked at Zelena, “I knew you’d be able to open that portal, but I also knew it’d weaken you. No more magic for you, sis.”

“I guess you’re more like Regina than I thought, brother dear.” Zelena sneered at Nicholas.

“I had no idea she was going to do that, I swear.” he defended feeling sorry for her.

“He’s right. He didn’t.” Regina smirked, “But it doesn’t matter, because now, now we have a way to Emma.”

“I just hope it’s not too late.” Nicholas gravely thought.

**OUaT**

After transporting herself to the Hill of Stones, Emma made it just in time to watch Merida run off with the wisp while Giles stared her down in the circle of tall stones.

“No! Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” Emma asked the man.

“As a matter of fact,” Giles calmly said before pulling out a small double-barrel shotgun and aimed it at her, “I do. See, we may not have been able to hear who was talking to you last night, but Merida and I heard every word you said.”

“I knew I forgot to mention that.” Rumple joked with a lie, “Though, it’s not very priest-like to point a gun at a young lady, no?”

“You don’t know what you what you heard. I can explain.” Emma reasoned.

“Oh, there’s no need, _Dark One_.” Giles replied shocking her.

“You knew?” she whispered.

“The whole time.” he nodded with a faint smirk, “See, I’m actually in charge of patrolling the area where the Dark One’s well is. And by the Lord’s guiding wisdom, I came across the well the exact moment you emerged from it. From there, it was just a simple matter of telling a lie here and there.”

Without a chance for warning, Giles fired the gun and shot Emma in the stomach making her feel a world of pain before her newfound immortality and magic healed her. When she looked up at him in shock, she didn’t see a look of hate, or remorse, or even a blank expression. Instead, it looked like Giles was enjoying what he was doing.

“I though you said you were a priest!” Emma growled. Pretending to put some thought in next choice of words, Giles hummed and nodded his head before darkly smiling at her.

“ _Of sorts_.” he reminded smirking, “The truth is, Emma, I’m much more than just a wondering priest. No, no, I’m much more special than that. See, I’m actually a professional witch hunter; that and among other things.”

“What?” she asked not believing her ears.

“Well, well, this is becoming interesting.” Rumple said giddily.

“I’ve been waiting a long time for this moment. To finally have a chance at taking on a Dark One other than Rumplestiltskin. Once I take you in, my promotion is guaranteed.” he explained happily before taking another shot which was caught by her magic.

“Not sure what he’s talking about, but I think we can both agree the second shot was a bit uncalled for.” Rumple commented, “Go on. Use your anger. Use your power.”

“I can talk to him.” Emma whispered to the ghost.

“Talk is cheap. And I get paid upon delivery.” Giles remarked as he reloaded and fired his gun again only to watch Emma catch the bullets in the air and drop them to the ground again.

“Well, that’ll make things interesting.” he deadpanned before quickly pulling out a handgun and firing at her. This time, however, she wasn’t able to stop it and as soon as it hit her face, it popped like a paint ball and made her skin burn like acid.

“Stings, doesn’t it?” Giles asked standing over her before squatting down and grabbing her hair, “It’s squid ink mixed with holy water; standard issue. I told you, didn’t I? I’m a professional.”

He then punched her right in the face repeatedly as he hoisted her up. With a blast of magic, Emma was able to stop him by knocking him to the ground only to see him flip backwards, land on his feet and take cover behind one of the stones.

“You’re embarrassing yourself, dearie.” Rumple lectured watching the fight, “More importantly, you’re embarrassing me. This is how it’s done.”

Taking control for a moment, Rumple willed Emma to flick her hand in an attempt to snap Giles’ neck only to see a ripple of magic do nothing to him.

“Ah, the old magical neck snap trick. A classic.” he said with a fond smirk while pulling out his shotgun and pointing it at her, “Unfortunately for you, that doesn’t work on me.”

“You-you’re immortal?” Emma asked growing more confused and afraid.

“Ha! No, no.” he chuckled, “I just know how to handle magic users.”

“Well, now, this is an intriguing ordeal.” Rumple giggled as Giles tried his luck shooting her again, “You need that wisp, Dark One. Kill him, then kill the girl.”

“No.” Emma whispered as she kept stopping the bullets.

“Kill him.” Rumple advised as they repeated their actions, “Kill him. What are you waiting for?”

“Stop!” she bellowed before using her magic to stop Giles and drag him over to her. When she pulled her hand back and tried to rip out his heart, her hand hit some sort of metal under his shirt which prevented her from tearing out his heart.

“Good try.” he praised as he revealed a black chest-guard before striking the sides of her head in her baffled state which discombobulated her, “But that doesn’t work on me either. Now then,” he said in a soft terrifying voice as he slowly drew a shiny hunting knife, “Let’s end this and be on our way, Dark One.”

“STOP!!!” a voice cried as a blur came in between the fighters. As Emma’s head cleared, she saw Nicholas stand between her and Giles with his arms reached out towards both of them to end the fighting.

“Emma, Giles, please stop!” he begged with a worried look on his face as the others came up the hill to join them.

“Nicholas?” Giles asked surprised to see the immortal before looking beyond happy, “As I live and breathe!”

“Lower the knife, Giles.” Robin calmly ordered as he aimed his dragon-bone bow at the priest.

“And Robin, too. This is just fantastic.” he said smiling as he misunderstood what was going on, “While I am very happy to see you both again, I’m afraid you caught me at a bad time. I’m just about ready to take the Dark One back with me.”

“Bluey, please, you understand.” Nicholas pleaded as he continued to defend Emma, “You can’t take her!”

“And why not?” he asked in disappointment.

“Put down the knife, and let me explain everything.” Nicholas pleaded. Giles paused for a second while staring at Emma before he sighed and sheathed his blade.

“Oh, alright.” he relented. While the rest of Emma’s loved ones hugged her and explained how and why they came, the two League agents informed the priest of the situation at hand.

“And then we came here in a tornado.” Nicholas finished.

“So, Rumplestiltskin isn’t dead?” Giles asked, “And yet, there’s a new Dark One. Well, that is a first.”

“Look,” Robin began, “We know that you’ve been wanting to take down the Dark One for a long time, but this woman hasn’t done anyone any harm.”

“Yet.” Giles countered dropping his usual friendly disposition, “People who become the Dark One aren’t exactly known to be the most peaceful of souls. How long before that one starts tearing out the hearts of innocents just for fun? You can’t do this again, Nicholas. Not like after all the things your sister did.”

“It won’t come to that.” Nicholas defended, “You can’t take her in, anyway.”

“And why is that?” he asked.

“Because, as of last night, she’s a Human Sacrifice.” Nicholas replied causing the priest’s eyes to widen, “She’s under my protection and jurisdiction.”

“…Yes, it would seem so.” Giles reluctantly acknowledged, “You do understand that I have to report this, yes?”

“Go ahead.” Nicholas replied without a care, “Tell them everything we just told you. It doesn’t change things.”

“Maybe not. But it does mean that so long as that woman is the Dark One, all eyes will be on her.” Giles reminded, “Despite how so many people wanted to get rid of Rumplestiltskin, we at least knew how to deal with him. Who’s to say how she’ll operate?”

“I do.” he retorted.

“We actually hope to find a way to rid her of the darkness and put an end to the Dark One once and for all.” Robin informed, “We’re looking for Merlin.”

“Good luck with that.” Giles scoffed, “No one’s seen him for over a thousand years.”

“Doesn’t mean we don’t have a shot.” Nicholas argued.

“Sigh…she really means a lot to you, doesn’t she?” he asked.

“More than you could ever understand.” he sincerely replied.

“I suppose…I could wait awhile before reporting all this.” Giles informed his apparent friends.

“Really?” Nicholas asked in hope.

“You get one month.” he warned raising his finger, “That’s it. You can’t get the darkness out of her before then, and-and I will tell the higher-ups so fast, a bullet couldn’t keep up.”

“Thank you!” Nicholas said happily as he hugged the priest, “Oh, thank you, Bluey! You’re the best!”

“Oh, well, I know.” he grinned bashfully waving him off before heading into the woods, “Good luck, my friends.”

“So long, Bluebeard.” Robin smiled at their fellow League agent. As they joined the others, they walked in on their conversation.

“Mom, Dad, this is too dangerous. You shouldn’t have come.” Emma said to her parents.

“We had to.” David said hugging his little girl.

“You’re our daughter.” Snow reminded.

“Well, at least you don’t look like a crocodile.” Hook joked at his friend which earned him a jab from his fiancé.

“I guess I lucked out.” Emma smirked finding the joke funny.

“Here.” Snow said showing her daughter her dagger, “We think you should have this.”

“Take it. You’ll be able to control yourself.” David nodded while Emma spotted Rumple again.

“No.” she said.

“Emma, think about this.” Nicholas advised, “If it falls into the wrong hands, what it could do, what you could do.”

“The fight to control my darkness has just begun. It’s too much power. Someone needs to watch me.” Emma reasoned as she took the dagger and presented it to Regina.

“Are you serious?” she asked.

“I saved you. Now save me.” Emma said, “And if you can’t save me, do what no one else will willingly do. You’re the only one who will get past their feelings and do what is necessary; destroy me.”

“It won’t come to that.” Henry assured.

“I know, kid.” she nodded as she hugged her son, “So, are you guys gonna tell me how you all got here?”

“Uh, that might be easier to show rather than tell.” Nicholas chuckled taking her hand as he led her to their crash site.

“You brought Granny’s?” she asked as the door opened.

“Backup generator’s working, but the fryers are shot.” Granny informed as she came outside.

“And Granny.”

“Terrible news!” Leroy complained as he, Happy and Doc came out with him, “No onion rings!”

“And Leroy.” Emma chuckled.

“There’s no shortage of people who want to help you.” Snow replied.

“Emma!” Belle cried as she came out with a dome covered rose in her arms. Just then, the sound of horses galloping towards them could be heard.

“What now?” Leroy asked as the riders came before them.

“Who are you, and what do you want?” Nicholas asked defending his true love.

“I’m King Arthur of Camelot.” the leader introduced, “We’ve come to find you.”

“Find us?” Hook asked.

“My lord, they think their arrival is a surprise.” one of the knights said.

“You were expecting us.” Snow realized.

“It was Merlin.” Arthur replied, “He prophesized your coming here a long time ago, just as he prophesized many things.”

“Merlin? Where is he?” Emma asked, “We were told that he’s been missing.”

“For years, yes.” Arthur nodded, “But not for much longer because according to his prophecy, you’re destined to reunite him with us. Now then, if you’ll all follow me.”

“Where?” she asked.

“Why, Camelot, of course.” he grinned. After a short journey to the marvelous castle, everyone walked in with hope and smiles in their hearts for the lucky break they had found. And just as they were about to walk through the mighty gates, they-

**OUaT**

**(Six Weeks Later)**

CRASH! That was the first thing that went through everyone as they awoke in a daze on the floor of Granny’s in the middle of the night in Storybrooke. Everyone inside was confused for various reasons, why they were back, why they were no longer entering Camelot and why they were all wearing the clothes they would have normally worn back in their realm.

“What are you guys doing here?” Sneezy asked as he and Sleepy walked into the diner; though for some reason, he was wearing Emma’s red jacket and one of her stalking hats.

“What happened?” Snow asked as she and David held their son.

“We’re back.” David exhaled.

“Bloody hell.” Hook cursed as he helped Ariel up.

“This doesn’t make any sense.” Regina said in a daze, “We were just walking into Camelot.”

“What the hell are we wearing?” Leroy asked just as confused as everyone else, “Sneezy, what happened? How long were we gone?”

“Six weeks.” he replied.

“What?” Regina whispered.

“Our memories, they’re gone.” David finally realized.

“Again?” Snow asked.

“Where’s Emma?” Ariel asked, “I don’t see her or Nicholas anywhere.”

“Relax. I’m right here.” Emma said frightening everyone. When they turned around, they couldn’t believe it was her. Instead of her normal appearance, Emma had taken on her form as the Dark One. No longer was her golden hair let loose behind her back, now it was a sickly, pale white almost matching her skin color tied in an overly tight bun. And instead of wearing her casual clothes or anything like what the other ladies were wearing, she wore a tight black coat made out of what the others assumed to be dragon scales.

“Mom?” Henry asked, “What happened to you?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” she asked, her voice now dark and hoarse, “You went to Camelot to get the darkness out of me. And you failed.” she said caressing her mother’s cheek as Sneezy sneezed.

“What the hell are you supposed to be?” she asked before turning him into a statue, “There’s no Savior in this town anymore.”

“Emma, stop.” Regina pleaded, “That’s enough.”

“Or what?” she asked.

“Or I’ll do exactly what you asked me to.” she replied trying to find the dagger, only to realize she didn’t have it anymore.

“Looking for this?” Emma asked raising it in the queen’s face, “Nobody’s gonna touch this dagger but me. Now, for what you all did to me, you’re about to be punished.”

“Emma,” David asked trying not to show his growing fear, “Where’s Nicholas?” But the fear only grew when he saw his daughter smirk at the question.

“Where is my brother, Swan?” Regina asked.

“Don’t worry about him. He’s already been punished. He’s where he’s always been.” she calmly replied as she pulled out a long chain necklace with a glowing red stone attached to it, “Right here. Close to my heart.”

It was then that everyone realized what she meant. The stone around Emma’s neck was Nicholas’s Philosopher’s Stone and by extension, Nicholas himself!

“Why are you doing this?” Regina asked as she stared at her brother’s life source.

“Because…I am the Dark One.” Emma replied before poofing away in a cloud of black smoke.


	51. The Price

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

The day after the heroes’ worst fears came to life, the dwarves decided to do what normally came after a new curse was cast on the town: check the town line and the consequences upon crossing it.

“Come on.” Leroy scolded, “Someone’s got to see what this new curse does. Any volunteers?”

“I don’t want to turn into a monkey.” Happy defended.

“I like remembering who I am.” Sleepy added.

“I’m afraid one of us is gonna have to dig down deep and find the courage to see what happens when we step over that line.” Leroy stressed.

“Not it.”

“Not it.”

“Not it.”

“Not it.”

“Dopey.” Leroy decided while his mute brother held up a notepad saying what the others said, “I’ll take your silence as bravery. Good for you.”

Just before Dopey could get his foot past the border, David, Snow and Regina sped over to them in the patrol car. “Stop!” Regina shouted as they got out.

“Sorry, sister. We can’t stay in Storybrooke as long as Emma’s the Dark One.” Leroy defended, “Snow Queen, Pan, Trio of Terror. We can handle villains like that. But Emma? She was one of us. She knows how we beat bad guys. Hell, she beat most of the for us. So tell me, how do we stand against her, especially now that Flamel’s out of the picture, too?”

“If you’re dumb enough to cross the line, be my guest.” Regina relented.

“Who’s gonna save us if we stay? You?” he asked rudely before turning back to Dopey, “Go on. Do it.”

Bracing himself, the mute dwarf stepped over the line and realized that he remembered everything and felt fine and even though he couldn’t see them, he gave everyone a thumbs up.”

“Now, if you’ll excuse us.” Leroy smirked before Dopey suddenly turned into a tree.

“Well, that’s new.” Regina remarked as everyone looked at the tree sadly.

**OUaT**

Six weeks ago in Camelot, everyone looked around in awe at the castle’s beauty. “Wow.” Henry said.

“Wow, is right.” David agreed.

“I am so not dressed for this.” Snow muttered to her husband.

“His Royal Highness, King Arthur.” one of the squires announced.

“And now allow me to introduce the loveliest creature in all of Camelot.” Arthur said proudly to his guests, “My queen, Guinevere.”

“Your Majesty.” Snow bowed along with everyone else as the beautiful queen joined her husband.

“The pleasure is ours. We have been awaiting your arrival from the moment we heard Merlin’s prophecy.” Guinevere said kindly.

“Well, we hope you haven’t been waiting too long.” David joked.

“Only a decade or so.” Arthur replied humorously.

“Ah, sorry.” David chuckled.

“I’ll wager it’s been worth the wait. And as a bonus, it’s given us more than enough time to prepare a ball in your honor tonight.” he informed.

“Oh, see, told you we should come.” Leroy said to Doc and Happy in excitement, “Look what we’ve been missing out on.”

“I like any party I don’t have to cater.” Granny commented.

“So do we.” Leroy agreed dryly.

“Is this really necessary?” Zelena asked Regina gripping the cuff.

“You’re lucky you’re not locked in Granny’s freezer.” she replied.

“Take it off.” Zelena demanded, “Or I tell Arthur he just welcomed the Dark One into his-”

“What’s that, sis?” Regina asked with a swift wave of her hand making her sister mute, “I can’t hear you. No one here knows who we are, and it’s gonna stay that way. So you can either behave and pretend to be my mute handmaiden or go back to Granny’s where you can rely on Doc for prenatal care.”

“We don’t have time to waste on a stupid dance.” Nicholas grumbled to Robin, “We need to get the darkness out of Emma and get back home as fast as possible. We’ve got less than three months left before the Promised Day.”

“She’s not going to go dark overnight. Relax.” Robin muttered back, “Quartermain and the others will keep an eye on things while we’re here. If we rush things, they may catch on to Emma being the you-know-what.”

“We can’t take the risk.” Nicholas mumbled before addressing Arthur, “Your Majesty, when are we going to begin our quest to find Merlin?”

“Find him?” he asked, “We don’t need to find him. We know exactly where he is.”

Once they were led outside, the visitors tried to wrap their heads around what the monarchs of Camelot just told them.

“So, the most powerful sorcerer in all the realms is stuck inside a bloody tree?” Hook bluntly asked as they all stared at the large willow tree in the courtyard.

“I said the same exact thing the first time I stood there.” Arthur nodded.

“And you think we can get him out?” Emma asked.

“We don’t think. We know. Merlin’s prophecies are never wrong. Why are you so eager to free him?” he asked.

“Our home is being threatened.” David began to lie, “It’s called the Dark One.”

“The Dark One. Yes, we’re well aware of that demon.” Arthur nodded while Nicholas suppressed his anger and the unintentional insult towards Emma, “That is bad. Well, I pray Merlin can help. But, first, we must free him from his prison. It is said that one of you is the Savior. So which of you is it?”

“I-” Emma began only to be cut off and silence by Regina.

“I am the Savior.” she lied while discreetly holding the dagger, “I’m the one who’s going to free Merlin from that tree, and then we can take care of the Dark One. And all go home.”

**OUaT**

Out by the docks of Storybrooke all on his own, Henry mentally and emotionally prepared himself for what he was about to do. Taking a deep breath, he used the only way he could bring his mother to him without using her dagger.

“Emma Swan. Emma Swan. Emma Swan.” he recited. Sure enough, as soon as he said her name the third time, she appeared next to him.

“Henry.” she softly greeted trying to take his hand in hers only to see him pull away, “You don’t have to be scared of me.”

“What happened?” he asked, “Why are you like this now?”

“It’s complicated.” she replied.

“I’m sorry, Mom. Whatever happened in Camelot, I’m sorry we failed you.” Henry apologized.

“I know what I said last night, but, Henry, you didn’t fail me. Everyone else did.” Emma softly corrected.

“Get away from my son.” Regina demanded as she approached them.

“What’s the matter, Regina? Are you afraid Henry will learn the truth about what happened in Camelot?” Emma asked darkly.

“If the truth is so important to you, why did you erase our memories? More importantly, why take my brother’s Stone and make it an accessory?” she asked.

“It’s a curse, Regina.” Emma simply replied.

“I know, but what I can’t figure out is why for either question.”

“If I wanted you to know, I wouldn’t have erased your memories and Nicholas would be at your side asking similar questions.” Emma countered.

“You know we won’t stop until we get them back.” Regina pointed out.

“It’s not going to happen, Regina, because I did learn from you, and I built this curse without the one thing you need to break it; or rather, two things. A Savior and a meddlesome alchemist.”

“Hmm.” she calmly hummed, “Well, we’ll find a way. We always have.”

“Yes, with me and Nicholas.” Emma reminded, “Now you’re on your own.”

“You can do it, Mom.” Henry said to Regina in support, “You can be the Savior.”

“It’s not going to happen.” Emma disagreed.

“You don’t thing I have it in me?” Regina asked.

“I know you don’t.”

“Well, you’re wrong.” she disagreed, “I can protect this town.”

“We’ll see about that, because there’s a problem headed to Storybrooke that only a Savior can solve. Too bad there isn’t one.” Emma taunted.

Elsewhere in Storybrooke, Robin met up with the other LXG agents and told them about what Emma said to everyone the previous night. Obviously, none of them were happy to hear that one of their own was now around the Dark One’s neck or that they had just lost six weeks and the Promised Day was rapidly approaching. Seeing as Robin wasn’t an official member of this team, he felt out of place as he stood in the room awkwardly while the other members sat in their respective chairs.

“Are you absolutely sure you saw Nicholas’s Stone around her neck?” Nemo asked breaking the heavy silence, “Was it slightly glowing and looked as though there was a churning liquid inside? About the size of a small egg?”

“Yes.” Robin nodded.

“That’s his Stone, alright.” Sawyer commented, “And you don’t have a clue about what happened these past six weeks?”

“All any of us remember is approaching the gates of Camelot after Nicholas and I said our goodbyes to Bluebeard before Arthur showed up.” he replied.

“There’s no point in asking him to remember.” Quartermain sighed, “It’s a curse. We can ask him as many questions as we want, he’s not going to remember anything.”

“What are we supposed to do, then?” Skinner asked, “We can’t just very well leave Nicholas like this.”

“Then what do you suggest, _Rodney_?” Mina hotly asked, “He may have intended to tell everyone about us before Swan became the Dark One, but now that she is, and he’s out of commission with the others’ memories wiped in addition to an entire kingdom’s population arriving here as well, how are we supposed to keep everything under control and get him back all at once?”

“Wait, what’s this about a kingdom’s population?” Robin asked.

“Your scouts contacted us this morning after having spotted a massive number of newcomers show up in the woods.” she replied no less agitated, “Who happened to bear the coat of arms of Camelot on their persons. Having said that, there is also a very good chance at King Arthur being here, as well.”

“I fail to see the issue with that, Dr. Harker.” Robin replied.

“It’s bad because Arthur has a small army of knights at his disposal. Knights he may order to help him take control if he feels his people are under threat because of Emma and her loved ones’ choice not to harm her.” Quartermain replied, “He’s a leader. Worst of all, a king. And kings are easily provoked when it comes to their people’s safety. Trust me, I know how they think. If given the choice between peace and war, they will choose war because they believe it will lead to peace.”

“Here’s a thought,” Sawyer said, “Why don’t we contact Bluebeard and see if he knows anything? His territory covers a bit of Camelot’s borders. Maybe you guys ran into him again after you stopped him from taking Emma back to HQ.”

“It’s possible.” Robin shrugged, “He is rather fond of Nicholas and if we tell him what’s happened he’ll-”

“No.” Quartermain interrupted flatly, “No one is contacting anyone.”

“But, Allan-” Nemo interjected only to be cut off.

“If anyone finds out that one of our own has been taken by the Dark One, things will escalate and we may no longer have any say in the decisions to come. Or worse, Nicholas will be seen as a liability and we might lose point in handling the Promised Day. There are plenty of other branches in the League who want that assignment and we only got it in the first place because of him.”

“Well, at the very least, we can continue to prepare everything for when it does come and be ready for it.” Robin reminded which made the others pause and look around at each other, “Guys? I don’t like those looks. What aren’t you telling me?”

“Well, uh…see, Nicholas was actually the one who took care of all that stuff.” Sawyer sheepishly replied.

“What?!” he asked in shock.

“He wouldn’t bother to explain everything to us because he said that it was alchemy stuff.” Skinner defended, “Not to mention, since this whole ordeal is happening because of that Homunculus he befriended, he felt as though he should be the one to take care of the more complicated details. He was actually a bit of a control freak during that time.”

“Is there anything he did let you do?” Robin asked losing his patience.

“Yeah, we can go as murderously crazy as we want against the enemy when the fighting starts.” Sawyer bluntly replied, “Look, the situation involves alchemy, and Nicholas is _literally_ the only alchemist in the entire League. We couldn’t step in to help him out because none of us has the knowledge or skills to pick up the pieces where he left off in case something like this happened. Besides, he’s already gotten everything ready. All we need to do is keep our eyes peeled for the new fifth sacrifice and make sure that the others stay where we can see them and make sure that Nicholas is back before the fighting starts.”

“Which is why I say that we should figure out a way to get him back and release him.” Skinner stressed, “There’s no telling how long this crisis will take and we’re running out of time as it is. If we just sit around here twiddling our thumbs and wait for the ‘heroes’ to take care of things, the Promised Day will have already come and gone!”

“And how exactly do you think we should go about making his entire body form from that Stone, Skinner?” Mina asked, “Do you even know how the Dark One managed to do that in the first place?”

“Regina did say it was possible that Emma cast a preservation spell on it after taking it from him.” Robin informed, “Only problem is, if that is the case, is that the spell was cast by a Dark One who also has Savior magic. Releasing him might prove to be difficult.”

“What if we use water from Lake Nostos?” Nemo suggested, “Cora and Hook were able to revive it before they came here and our sources say it’s still there. If we have headquarters send us some, we may be able to free Nicholas once we get the Stone away from Emma. All we would need to do is pour it on the Stone and the magic, if that’s what’s keeping him from regenerating, will be gone.”

“I thought we just went through why we can’t contact headquarters?” Sawyer asked reminding the captain.

“One of us could go.” Robin suggested, “We have more than enough beans for a trip there and back. We don’t necessarily need to tell anyone.”

“Seems like this is our best option.” Quartermain nodded, “Skinner’s right. We can’t leave Flamel as the Dark One’s prisoner just so we can remain discreet for another month. He’s one of us. Skinner, you’ll be the one to head to Lake Nostos. You are to remain there until we send word that we have retrieved the Stone. If anyone tied to the League finds you and asks why you’re there, tell them Flamel sent you to fetch the water for an experiment regarding a counter measure for the Promised Day.”

“Right then.” the Invisible Man nodded as he got up from his chair and left.

“Sawyer, take a team of Nemo’s surveillance crew. Study the Dark One’s patterns, _from a distance_. Report back regularly from the laboratories. Nemo, continue preparations for our counter attack for the Promised Day; make sure we have plenty of weapons and ammo. Harker, find any weaponized methods we can use that will be effective against Swan. If we don’t have it, make it.”

“With pleasure, Mr. Q.” she calmly nodded as she and the others rose from their seats.

“Loxley, you’ll have to pick up the slack now that Flamel’s out of the game. If you see anything the others cannot handle, take it out. Anything related to the Homunculi, do not engage and report back to me immediately.” he said to Robin.

“Understood, sir.” the archer nodded, “What about you?”

“I’m keeping an eye on Arthur. I don’t like that he’s here at a time like this.” he replied as he got up and grabbed his old duster coat, hat and riffle.

“What makes you say that?” Robin asked as he left.

“Hunter’s intuition.” he replied as the elevator took him up.

After informing the others what the Merry Men told Quartermain’s team him about the newcomers, Robin joined them in providing the people of Camelot with tents, water and provisions in a clearing out by the woods.

“We covered the forest.” Robin informed Regina as he carried a package of water, “I think we found everyone who came over. Regina. Regina?”

“Hmm?” she asked, “Oh, I’m sorry. I was just…”

“Thinking about Nicholas?” he asked, “Regina, everything will be fine. We’ll get him back.”

“That’s not what I’m worried about.” she replied, “What’s got me thinking is how Emma managed to reduce him to his Stone in the first place. She said that he’d already been punished. Question is, what did he do? And why did she decide to go ahead and make him a piece of jewelry instead of making him run around in circles like she wants to do to us? It doesn’t make any sense. And then there’s what she told me earlier.”

“What? What did she say?” he asked.

“She said nobody believes I can protect this town.” she replied.

“That’s not true.” he denied, “Everybody knows how far you’ve come.”

“Well, they may not see me as the Evil Queen anymore, but I need to prove to them I can be more. Forgiving me is one thing, but it doesn’t mean they’re ready to be led by me, ready to trust me. I need to show these people I can help them without my brother’s help, and that, I’m not sure I can do.”

“You can.” Robin assured gently cupping her face, “Just have faith in yourself and others will, too.”

He then pulled her in for a much needed hug. After he managed to console her, he went with his son to go find more firewood for the camps. As he did, even though his back was turned, he could tell something was behind him with the intent to kill. As Roland was about to cry out at his father, Robin skillfully drew his bow and shot the she-demon behind him in the eye with a cold glare.

“Robin?!” Regina asked as she, David, Snow, Hook, Ariel and Arthur went over to him.

“Stay back!” he barked surprising his friends, “I’m the one it’s after. Get Roland out of here!”

“I’ve got him.” Ariel nodded as she held the little boy. When the demon tried to swoop down at him again, Robin swung his bow and managed to cut the beast’s face with the bow’s dragon fang. Unfortunately, this only made it even more mad.

“Come on, then.” he said his voice going dark as he disconnected the hooks and began to twirl one, “Let’s dance.”

As it made another attempt to strike, Robin flung the hook and watched as it missed first but pierced its shoulder as he pulled it back, sending the monster to the ground. Yanking his weapon out, Robin tucked them away as he began to run around the creature while shooting it with his smaller crossbows. However, the demon was able to ignore the pain and lunged at him, but just as it was about to grab hold of him, Robin released a blade from his boot and pierced the demon’s chest while performing a backflip.

Everyone watched him in both amazement and shock. Never before had any of his friends seen him fight like this; clearly they underestimated him since he arrived in Storybrooke. When it flew back, he managed to surprise them even more by grabbing its arm, flipping it to the ground and delivered a powerful punch to its face. But no matter what he did, Robin was still nowhere near bringing the creature down. Instead of continuing to shoot or punch the creature that was after him for some reason, Robin made the smart choice in pulling out his hooks again and began to hack at the creature in almost a blur, roaring at it as he did so.

Finally coming out of her shocked daze, Regina threw several fireballs at the demon before using her magic to force it away so it could heal. One thing was certain, however, it was sure to be back soon.

“Mate,” Hook said as he and the others stared at Robin, “How did you bloody do that?”

“Oh, you’ll find I can do more than just shoot a bow.” he smirked before looking serious, “We better get away from these people before it comes back. It may have been after me, but the last thing we need is to get them caught in the crossfire.”

“I don’t understand.” Arthur interjected, “Why was that creature after you?”

“Something tells me,” Regina said as she looked to Snow and David, “That your daughter might just have the answer.”

**OUaT**

When night fell back in Camelot, everyone readied themselves for the ball being thrown. In the tower they were staying in, Snow and David tucked their baby into his crib with Doc standing next to them.

“Now, if he gets fussy later, be probably just needs to be changed.” Snow informed while she was wearing a ball gown and golden circlet while David was wearing a princely tunic that matched his wife’s dress and black pants.

“Are you sure you don’t want us to get Granny?” David asked the dwarf.

“If I go to the ball, I’ll just get stuck being Grumpy’s wingman.” Doc waved off not liking the idea as Regina came in.

“I can watch him. I’m not going.” she informed.

“But you have to. Everyone’s expecting you.” Snow argued.

“I should be figuring out how to free Merlin, not fox-totting my way across Club Medieval.” Regina retorted stubbornly.

“Regina.” Snow scolded like she did to her students.

“What?” she asked.

“The truth.” Snow said.

“I can’t go, alright? I can’t.”

“Because why?” Snow asked.

“Because…because I don’t know how to dance.” she admitted.

“Well, that can’t be possible. You, Nicholas and I went to dozens of balls together.” Snow debated.

“Where your father was more interested in dancing with his precious daughter than his wife. And every time Nicholas would try to ask me to dance when he saw me just sitting there, some horny noble would snatch him away so they try to get into his pants.” Regina reminded in disgust.

“Oh,” Snow realized, “That’s why he always ended up looking freaked out by the end of the ball. That happened to him a lot, now that I think about it.”

“I doubt Robin Hood will mind if you step on a few toes.” David assured kindly.

“This isn’t about Robin, is it?” Snow asked.

“People are expecting a Savior tonight, not an ex-evil queen.” Regina admitted, “How will they ever believe I can free Merlin if I can’t even convince them I know how to dance?”

“You can if we teach you.” Snow smiled while David smirked.

“No.” she denied.

“Doc.” David ordered pointing at a nearby music box, “Your Majesty.”

“Wait, sorry.” Snow interrupted as he offered his hand, “The first thing my mother taught me about dancing, you have to learn to move in a dress; not a sensible pantsuit.”

“Fine.” Regina relented before dressing herself in one of her Evil Queen dresses. This of course earned some looks from the couple. “What?”

“It’s a little…scary.” David replied.

“What he means is,” Snow clarified with a better choice of words, “If you want people to see you as the Savior, maybe you should go for something a bit less evil?”

Realizing her step-daughter had a point, Regina relented and poofed herself a lavender dress similar to Snow’s.

“Now, that is perfect.” Snow complimented.

“Alright, follow me. Just feel it. Step back with your left, alright?” David instructed before Regina bumped into him, “Oh, that’s okay. That’s alright. You’re fine, you’re fine. Ready? And, one, two, three.” 

“There you go.” he praised as they both chuckled and danced, “Now, when we’re done, everyone in Camelot will believe you’re the Savior.”

After Regina was all taken care of, Snow went on to help someone else prepare for the ball, someone she had been dying to help for the past thirty years; her precious golden-haired daughter. Now wearing a long dress that was pure white, Emma sat in front of a mirror as her mother put the final touches on a circlet made of white flowers for her as she reminisced about her past.

“I remember my first ball. I was eight years old when my mother said I was finally old enough to go. It was magical. All the lights, the music. And I remember thinking, ‘I can’t wait to someday share all of this with a daughter of my own’.” Snow said fondly as Emma grabbed her hand.

“I’m glad I get to share it with you, too, Mom.” she said sincerely. 

“Alright,” Ariel said happily as she joined her friends, “Let’s get this show on the road.”

As custom for a ball, the female guests were announced as their respective partners awaited them. Standing next to David were Robin, Hook and Nicholas. Robin decided to go for a more casual appearance and decided to settle for a white shirt under a green vest and black pants. No longer wearing his black leather from Storybrooke, Hook returned to his pirate’s clothing with a long, black, leather coat over a blood-red vest and black leather pants; as an added bonus, he gave his namesake a polish and shine for his mermaid tonight. But when it came to Nicholas, everyone was impressed at how well he cleaned up. Instead of wearing his usual semi-casual clothes or what he had worn on adventures and in the book, he decided to dress properly for his first ball with Emma. He wore black pants and white gloves, as usual, but this time wore a royal red jacket with a touch of silver here and there proving to everyone his title as a lord. But he wouldn’t be Nicholas if he hadn’t decided to add an officer’s sword to his appearance at his side.

“Presenting Lady Emma, Lady Mary Margaret and Lady Ariel.” one of the squires announced as the three ladies walked down the grand staircase to their partners

“Emma, you look-” Nicholas began as he bowed to her.

“I know.” she smirked having a hard time realizing it was her goofy alchemist under all that “properness” in front of her.

“Presenting the Savior.” the squire announced as Regina revealed herself causing everyone to applaud, something that Regina hadn’t been given in a very long time.

**OUaT**

After managing to avoid the creature for the rest of the day, Robin found himself in Gold’s shop after Belle contacted Regina and had her bring him over. It took some time, but the pretty bookworm was able to find out what it was that attacked the archer earlier.

“A fury?” Regina asked as Belle showed them an identical illustration.

“A demon sent from the Underworld to collect the unpaid price of magic.” Belle explained.

“Someone use magic in Camelot and didn’t pay up.” Regina speculated.

“Then why is it after me?” Robin asked.

“The fury doesn’t come for just any price. It comes when the price for magic is a life.” Belle continued.

“You mean that demon has come to drag me down to the Underworld?” Robin asked, “Oh, how wonderful.”

“Yeah, but the portal only opens when the moon reached the zenith. And there’s only one way for it to stop coming after you. Someone else has to give their life in your place.” Belle informed. This, of course, as many things do, made Regina’s blood boil. So much that she decided to pay a visit to the Dark One’s new home.

“Swan!” she bellowed storming in, “Where the hell are you?”

“You know, it’s customary to bring a gift for a housewarming.” Emma smirked from the doorway, “Maybe a nice bottle of wine.”

“We need to talk.” Regina spat.

“I suppose we could bottle that rage and drink it instead.” she quipped.

“You’re right, I’m not the Savior.” the queen admitted.

“Glad you finally caught up with the rest of us.” Emma remarked.

“I don’t have a choice.” she snapped, “I know the only way to stop the fury is to pay its price.”

“Then why aren’t you off paying it?” Emma asked sternly.

“Because I know what it is. A life. I won’t sacrifice someone else to save Robin.”

“Now you’re going to be heroic?” Emma asked hotly, “Now life is precious to you?”

“Emma,” Regina said shaking her head in pity, “Listen to me. I know you. The good you. It’s still in there.”

“You of all people know there are no good or bad versions of ourselves. It is just me.” she spat angrily.

“Then call the fury off.” Regina said calmly, “It’s your test.”

“No.” Emma said flatly.

“No?”

“Let me make myself clear, Regina. I am done fixing your problems.” Emma snapped.

“My problems?! You started this. You called it here.” she accused.

“Oh, you think I did this?” Emma softly asked even though she was still angry.

“Would I be here otherwise?” she asked.

“That’s your problem, Regina. You’re always looking for someone else to blame. I did not summon that monster. The price is not mine to pay.” snapped the former Savior.

“Then whose is it?” Regina scoffed thinking it was a lie.

“Yours.” Emma growled making Regina back up with each step she took, “You were the one who did not pay the price of magic in Camelot. You want to save Robin Hood? You want everyone to believe you’re the Savior? Then step up and do what needs to be done!”

**OUaT**

As music and laughter filled the air of Camelot, all the happy couples danced through the night. For the first time in so many years, Nicholas could feel himself relax and not worry about the Promised Day. All he could think about right now was how beautiful his Swan looked as he held her close and danced with her. But as always, things couldn’t be that simple for him, or anyone else for that matter. 

As he danced with Emma, he heard Robin cry out his sister’s name as he tackled one of Arthur’s knights to the ground. At first, Emma was going to use her magic to stop it all, but Nicholas stopped her before he decided to use his shadows and kill the knight by impaling his chest. Unfortunately, he realized his comrade had injured himself during his scuffle. In order to keep prying eyes off of them, they took Robin into Merlin’s tower so they could fix him.

“Can you heal him?” Snow asked trying to remain calm. Regina gave it a try, but for some reason, nothing happened when she used her magic.

“Why didn’t it work?” David asked as Regina took a closer look at the sword originally intended for her.

“This sword was enchanted to kill me. My magic can’t heal him.” she said on the verge of tears.

“Let me take a shot.” Nicholas offered as he took of his gloves. For a second, as his hands sparked with alchemic lightning, it seemed as though it was going to work. Unfortunately, it rebounded and ended up harming Nicholas instead.

“Gah!” he cried out in pain as he clutched his hand, “Okay. Magical blades make magical wounds. Guess my alchemy can’t heal him either.”

“But your magic can.” Regina said looking at Emma.

“No.” Nicholas interjected, “No, we can’t let her use dark magic.”

“Regina, this was the whole point of your pretending to be the Savior.” Snow reminded.

“The whole point was not for Robin to die.” she argued, “And I’m not asking you. I’m asking her.”

“I don’t know what will happen if I use my powers again.” Emma argued looking afraid.

“I can use that dagger to make you do this, but I’m not. I’m asking you. I’ve lost love before, and I won’t again. Please. Save him.” she begged.

“Alright.” Emma nodded, “I’ll try.”

“Attagirl.” Rumple praised as he appeared in a chair in front of her.

“What are you doing here?” she asked confusing the others.

“I’ve told you, I’m here to help you embrace the darkness.” he replied.

“Emma, honey, who are you talking to?” Nicholas asked.

“No one.” she lied approaching what seemed to everyone else an empty chair.

“This is too much for her.” he snapped.

“I’m fine. I can do this.” she assured.

“Not yet, dearie. First you must take a price for the magic.” Rumple informed.

“I won’t take one to save somebody.” she flatly argued.

“Well, sorry, dearie, but these are the rules.” he giggled, “I didn’t make them up. There has to be a price.”

“Fine. I’ll pay it.”

“It doesn’t work that way.” he giggled again before pointing at Regina, “She asked for the magic, she has to pay it.”

“It’ll be different. I’m the Savior.” she said only hear him giggle a third time.

“Emma, who are you talking to?” Regina asked, “What’s going on?”

“It’s okay. I can do this.” she assured. With a slow wave of her hand, the wound was gone and Robin gasped for breath. Happy to see her soulmate alive, Regina rushed over to him and happily kissed him. For some reason other than to celebrate, Emma pulled Nicholas in for a kiss, too.

“Emma,” he asked in concern as they pulled apart, “You okay?”

“I’m fine.” she nodded, “I feel a little woozy. I think I’ll lie down for a bit.”

After leaving her loved ones in the other room, Emma tried to collect herself in the hallway. But Rumplestiltskin wouldn’t leave her alone. “You liked the power, didn’t you?” he asked.

“No. I just did what had to be done.” Emma denied.

“Oh, well, if that were true, then why didn’t your kiss stop that?” he asked pointing at her hand. Much to her fear, the skin on her hand began resemble his. “Tasty, isn’t it, the darkness?”

Emma said nothing to him. Instead, she just went downstairs and headed to her room hoping her wouldn’t continue to pester her.

**OUaT**

As night fell on Storybrooke, the heroes joined Robin as he decided to no longer run from the demon after his soul. As soon as it saw him, the fury summoned the ferry of the dead while it used its magic to try and take his life. But Regina wasn’t going to let it.

“No!” she cried, “If you want a life, take mine!”

Having no qualms with that, the fury directed her attack on Regina and began to slowly take away her life force.

“Regina, what are you doing?!” Robin cried.

“What I should have done in Camelot!” she shouted. But Robin wouldn’t allow it, so he decided to share the burden with her by grabbing hold of her hand. It was then that Snow decided to join in.

“You don’t have to do this alone. I’m with you!” she declared as she took Regina’s other hand.

“Me, too!” David shouted as he took his wife’s hand.

“I’ve got you, sister!” Leroy said to Regina as he grabbed Robin’s hand and Arthur grabbed David’s with Hook and Ariel following. Biting off more than it could chew, the fury screamed one last time as their combined energy drove it away back to the Underworld with the ferry in tow.

“Are you okay?” Regina asked as she crawled over to Robin.

“It appears you found a few believers.” he chuckled while panting which earned him a kiss, “How did you all know that would work?”

“Lucky guess.” she chuckled.

“We weren’t gonna let you go.” David panted.

“Standing up to that monster proved one thing,” Leroy said looking at Regina, “If anyone’s gonna save this town, it’s you.”

“Aye, love.” Hook nodded, “He’s right.”

“And you’ve got us to help.” Ariel smiled.

Later that night, in her new home, Emma sat alone in her dark kitchen looking at two things with a fond, dark smile; her dagger and Nicholas’s Philosopher’s Stone. Tracing her finger over the glowing source of life, she closed her eyes and focused inward until she found herself in a completely different place.

Instead of her house in Storybrooke, Emma was now in the ruins of a stone castle in the middle of a scorching hot, sunny desert. In front of her was a broken mural with moss growing over the rubble and edges with a single caged cart sitting before it. Walking towards the bars, she stopped just as an arm shot out between them and tried to grab her. Inside the cage, was Nicholas wearing the same clothes he wore in the book with a bloodthirsty look on his face.

“You should have killed me when you had the chance.” he hissed in hate.

“Funny,” Emma smirked, “I was just about ready to say the exact same thing. Things are a bit less fun in Storybrooke now that you’re out of the way.”

“Then why don’t you let me out and you and I can pick up where we left off in Camelot?” he asked gripping the bars tightly.

“I may be bored, but I’m not stupid.” Emma reminded still smirking like a Dark One, “However, I could let you out for a moment so that we can have another type of fun.”

“I’d rather get forty lashes.” he spat.

“Such hostility. Such fire.” she teased, “You really know what to say to a woman, don’t you?”

Nicholas’s reply to the banter was him spitting in her face, but Emma didn’t seem to mind in the slightest. “I will get out of here, Dark One.” he promised softly, “One way or another, I will get out. And when I do, I’m going to finish you, once and for all.”

“But, Nicky, how could you say that?” Emma asked with a fake pout, “Don’t you love me, anymore?”

“You’re not my Emma anymore.” he growled past his gritting teeth, “I do not love you. I hate you!”

“But I am Emma.” she sweetly retorted, “In time, you and the others will accept this, accept me. And when you do, I’ll let you out and we can be together, forever.”

“Oh, I will get out.” he nodded calmly as his eyes began to turn red again, “And when I do, I will TEAR YOU TO PIECES! I will destroy you, if it’s the last thing I do.”

“No,” Emma disagreed while smiling at him before returning to her house. Taking her dagger and the Stone with her, she headed downstairs into a cavern beneath her home and rested the blade on a large stone. In the stone, standing proud and tall was the other half of the source of her power, Excalibur.

“I’m the one who’s going to destroy you.” she softly said to the Stone in her hand.


	52. Siege Perilous

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

At the top of Merlin’s tower, David watched in confusion as he held his son while the ladies, save for Ariel, and Nicholas (who was now wearing his usual Enchanted Forest clothes) move around the shelves and books as they looked for ways to free Merlin from his prison.  
“If we’re gonna free Merlin, we need witchbane.” Regina informed.  
“Yeah, but the labels are all faded.” Belle pointed out.  
“Forget the decloaking potion. It’s not a glamour anyway.” Emma waved off.  
“You sure?” Regina asked.  
“If I’m getting this right, the tree could actually be him transfigured, right?” Snow asked as she read one of the books.  
“We could find out with a sample.” Belle suggested.  
“Yeah, and when we snap off and it turns into a finger, who’s crying then?” Regina asked, “Come on, someone. Witchbane.”  
“You following any of this?” David asked Nicholas.  
“The whole concept of turning a man who turned into a tree back into a man? No.” he flatly replied, “But just grabbing certain ingredients and using somewhat scientific equipment to brew something capable of freeing him? That’s somewhat my area. I mean, this is as close to basic alchemy as magic gets.”  
“How come Ariel isn’t helping? Hook I can understand because it’s a two hand job, but-”  
“Oh, great idea!” Nicholas said with a sarcastic smile, “Let’s ask the girl who uses forks to comb her hair in the middle of dinner and thinks corkscrews are as valuable as gold for help in handling ancient magical ingredients that could level a mile radius. That’s a great idea, David!”  
“I was just wondering.” he defended.  
“You guys sure you don’t want me to just wiggle my nose and get him out of that tree?” Emma asked.  
“No.” Snow instantly denied.  
“Your magic is dark now. It’s not worth it.” Regina reminded, “I’ll just keep pretending to be the Savior destined to free him, and we can do this together.”  
“I actually wouldn’t mind if you did wiggle your nose like that, it’d be kinda cute.” Nicholas muttered to Emma playfully. She may have smacked him for that, but she did it while smiling.  
“Regina’s right, Emma” David agreed.  
“I heard someone say a woman is right.” Arthur said as he came into the room, “That’s always a safe assumption, isn’t it, David? How are you progressing, Madame Savior?”  
“Um, progress. Slow but sure.” Regina replied.  
“It’s uh, marvelous having Merlin’s own books to work with.” Belle brought up changing the subject, “It’s like talking with the master.”  
“Oh.” Snow spoke up with an idea, “What if we could talk to him?”  
“Snow, you can talk to birds, not trees, remember?” Nicholas pointed out.  
“No, she’s on to something.” Regina defended, “You are, very occasionally, a genius.”  
“Yes,” Belle nodded, “If we talked to him, he can tell us how to get him out.”  
In her excitement, Regina flipped through a book and pointed at an illustration of a red mushroom. “A mushroom.” David nodded unimpressed as he bounced his son in his arms.  
“Toadstool, actually.” Regina corrected, “Deadly poison. Extremely useful in communicating across barriers, even through spells. Says here it’s called the crimson crown.”  
“Yes, I know this name.” Arthur nodded, “It’s rumored to grow in Broceliande, the forest of eternal night. Its existence is the stuff of legend, though. Almost certainly fiction.”  
“People say the same thing about us. How far?” David asked looking excited.  
“A half day’s ride. But if it is there, it’ll be protected by magical forces.” he warned.  
David looked at his wife but she didn’t seem as sold on the idea as he was. “You know what, David? Wait until we know more.”  
“Snow, it’s not like I’m needed here. It’s a chance.” he said as he handed he the baby before heading out, “I’m taking it.”  
“Hold.” Arthur called with Nicholas following him.  
“Your Majesty. Don’t try to talk me out of this.” David said as he pressed on.  
“I wouldn’t dream of it.” he replied with a friendly smile, “I just wanted you to propose, Prince David, if it’s quite alright with you, that I and Lord Flamel come along and lend aid. Come along with me, and we can get ourselves outfitted and then we can all quest together as brothers.”  
“Yeah,” Nicholas nodded with a fake smile at David as Arthur walked away, “You know, as long as you don’t stab me in the back, again.”  
That right there was more than enough to take away David’s smile and good mood. Instead, a frown and guilt replaced them as he followed the alchemist and king.   
OUaT  
Standing in the station alone, David tried to relieve some of his stress by throwing darts. After throwing the last one, he walked over to grab them all but stopped when he saw a picture of him and Emma smiling and hugging against the patrol car. It managed to make his heart ache and feel warm at the same time. All he wanted was his princess back, not the villain she had become. His thoughts were soon interrupted by King Arthur walking in.  
“Good morning to you, sheriff.” he greeted.  
“Your Majesty. How can I help you? Any luck finding your blade?” the former shepherd asked.  
“No luck, finding Excalibur, I’m afraid, but I’m coming to you with something far more urgent. Our reliquary’s been robbed.” Arthur informed.  
“I’m sorry, your what?” David asked.  
“Magical relics collected by the knights of the Round Table. They’re all very precious.” he informed, “I had no idea it was here until it turned up in this land nearly empty.”  
“When you say precious-”  
“There was a magic bean inside. This bean can take my people home in an instant.” he replied which told David how important it was, “I have to tell you I will find it if I have to search every residence in your city.”  
“You don’t have to do anything alone.” David informed.  
“You can help?” he asked.  
“I’ll get you back to Camelot. I promise.” David promised as they shook hands.  
OUaT  
Seeing as Nicholas really didn’t need anything more than just a sword and his gloves, he was ready to go after transmuting his red coat again. All he needed was the gloves he left back in the tower, but instead of finding them, he found his sisters had just finished arguing, again.  
“You can tell me life is fair all you want, but from in here, all I can see is one sister with all the toys!” Zelena shouted before their sister silenced her again.  
“Be quiet and listen for once in your life.” Regina said as Nicholas listened from the doorway, “You forgot who I am; the Evil Queen. I can be a far greater nightmare than you can possibly imagine. But now, my gift to you is a promise. I will make sure your baby is fine and loved and safe. Just as I promise the same will certainly not hold for you.”  
“What was that about?” he asked Zelena after Regina left. She didn’t answer him, she just ignored him while trying to fight back the tears. “Ah. I think I see. Have anything you want to say to me? I’ll listen.”  
But she glared at him while gesturing to her mouth furiously. “You can still move your mouth, Zelena. I can read your lips. What did Regina say?”  
“Oh, the usual.” she mouthed, “How when my baby’s born, she’s going to take it away from me and kill me so I can never have a chance at happiness or love!”  
“I can assure you, that’s not going to happen.” he calmly replied earning an eye roll, “You can roll your eyes at me all you want, but it’s the truth. Yeah, you may not be able to go back to Oz with it and raise it yourself like you want, but you will be in its life; just as Robin will, and Regina, and me, as well.”  
“Why do you care? It’s not like I’ve been sister of the year to you since we met.” she scoffed.  
“Well, that is certainly true, no arguments here.” he nodded dryly, “But, unlike Regina, I’m willing to give you a chance at being part of this family. You’re my sister, too, ya know. You weren’t the only one who felt a connection that day.”  
Now this certainly gained Zelena’s attention. It went against her better judgement, but she actually listened to her brother and hoped he meant what he was saying. “Look, I know that this isn’t anyone’s ideal situation, but I’m not going to let Regina make it even worse by getting rid of you as soon as the baby’s born; nor, am I going to let you muck it up by leaving for singing-midget land as soon as it’s born, either.  
“Why?” she mouthed as his words touched her heart.  
“Because besides Regina, you’re the only blood I’ve got left. You’re still my family, my sister. And I’m willing to try, even if you’re not. Are you?” he asked looking into her eyes that were brimming with tears. Not caring that some managed to spill out, she nodded her head while biting her lip. He knew she meant it, but he also knew it was a bit too soon for her to be ready for a hug so instead, he took one of her hands in both of his and gave her a caring smile before he left with his gloves.   
When he joined up with Arthur and David in the room holding the round table, Arthur slid open a secret door in the wall to show off his various weapons. He had to admit, it was an impressive collection, but David seemed a bit more impressed than need be.  
“Wow.” he said in marvel of the shiny swords.  
“I like to be prepared.” Arthur smirked as they each grabbed a sword. While Nicholas grabbed a pair of knives, both he and Arthur noticed David staring at a seat that no longer bore a coat of arms.  
“Is that Percival’s chair?” he asked thinking of the knight Nicholas killed.  
“Yes. But no more apologies. A leader does what needs to be done.” Arthur replied.  
“Apologies?” Nicholas thought, “I never apologized once. The jerk tried to kill my sister and nearly killed my friend in the process.”  
“I’ll find a man worthy to fill that seat.” he continued before pointing to the largest chair of them all, “This is the one that will stand empty forever.”  
“I assume that was your chair. Suitable for a king.” David praised.  
“No. Mine is no different than the others in the same way that the table is round. Many of our order are kings and princes in their own realms. Nevertheless, happy to sit shoulder to shoulder with the rest of their knights. No one of us above the other. Except for this one.” Arthur explained as he gestured to the single unique chair, “This is the Siege Perilous. Reserved for the knight with the purest heart, the one destined to carry out the most sacred quests. Belonged to a man I trusted more than a brother. But he betrayed me. It’s been vacant since.”  
“Lancelot.” David nodded.  
“You’ve heard of him.” Arthur chuckled in distaste.  
“Well, all of you are kind of legends.” he replied.  
“Really? I shudder to think what our tale must be.” Arthur cringed.  
“Oh, only one of the greatest romances of all time.” Nicholas replied, “Your love for Guinevere was ripped away by your best friend, Lancelot.”  
“It’s a tragic story that clearly had a happy ending.” David added.  
“Well, he hasn’t died by a lake while dealing with a knight that wouldn’t listen to him, yet.” Nicholas bluntly thought.  
“The two of you seem like all that’s in the past now.”   
“Yes.” Arthur nodded, “Lancelot was a good man. The situation was difficult.”  
“I understand. Actually, Snow-Mary Margaret and I, we met him.” he informed.  
“You did? How is he?” Arthur asked only to see his new friend’s looks change.  
“We’re very sorry to tell you this, but we learned that he died.” David informed.  
“He’s dead?” Arthur asked, “How? By whom?”  
“By my mother.” Nicholas cringed, “The sorceress, Cora. I-I am very sorry. She, uh…well, Mother was always a bit eccentric. I’m sorry.”  
“Lancelot failed to resist temptation, but he was a good knight. He tortured himself for his sins far more than I would’ve done. I wished him happy. Just not with my wife.” Arthur said sadly over the loss of his brother-in-arms as a squire came in with a heavy chest and set it on the table, “Careful. This is our reliquary, containing our sacred magical items our knights have recovered.”  
“I’ve never seen magic like that.” David said as he and Nicholas looked in the chest. Out of everything in there, Arthur removed a severed black arm that held an ever burning torch.  
“It’s the Unquenchable Flame. Said to be part of the burning bush itself.” he explained, “This will light our path, and where we’re going, we’re gonna need it.”  
OUaT  
“The reliquary, Your Majesty.” one of Arthur’s squires presented at the camp. Sure enough, Arthur was right, a majority of what was once there was gone.  
“So you’re the one who found this broken into? Any theories?” David asked.  
“Me?” he asked, “Oh, well, um, everyone speaks of the Dark One in this place. Perhaps-”  
“Stop being a fool, man.” Arthur scolded.  
“Arthur, to be honest, after what she did to Nicholas, it wouldn’t surprise me.” David admitted reluctantly.  
“And, as you’re about to say, the Dark One doesn’t need tools. This lock was pried open.” Arthur informed, “You can see the scratches. This is your land. What are you thinking?”  
“I’m thinking I may not know who did this. But I may have a good idea of what their next move will be.”  
OUaT  
In the forest of eternal night, the three men walked through the shadows with nothing more than their single torch to guide them. “What is it, noon? You weren’t kidding about eternal night. I’m glad we have a torch.” David remarked.  
“Yes, because it’s a very illuminating light amongst this darkness.” Nicholas said sarcastically.  
“I’m glad we sent Griff home with the horses.” Arthur nodded hoping to avoid an awkward situation, “These woods would make them restless.”  
“Your squire works hard, Your Majesty.” David hinted.  
“And you don’t thank him enough.” he chuckled, “I can hear you say it even when you don’t. You’re right, though. I don’t even have the excuse of ignorance. I was born a common man and I’ve been in service myself.”  
“You weren’t born noble?” David asked.  
“I’m as peasant as they come.” he laughed.  
“Shepard.” David informed as they high-fived.  
“I can feel my backbone relaxing already. How ‘bout you, Lord Flamel?” Arthur asked causing David’s eyes to widen as they stopped.  
“…Born noble, became a slave at the age of four and stayed as such until I was fourteen.” Nicholas replied not sharing their happy attitude.  
“I am so sorry.” Arthur said wanting to kick himself, “I-I shouldn’t have-”  
“No, no, it-it’s alright. You didn’t know.” Nicholas waved off with a sad smile before giving an awkward chuckle, “Well, I certainly managed to make this place seem even more dark, didn’t I?”  
“I’m afraid I’ll have to take credit for that.” the king corrected causing them to chuckle and move back to the subject of his squire, “As for my squire, I assure you both Guin more than makes up the difference. Showering him and the others with gifts. She really is the kindest woman I’ve ever met.”  
“Sounds like my wife.” David nodded, “When she decides you’re family, she’d die for you.”  
“That’s not to say Guin doesn’t hav her fierce side.” Arthur warned, “With a bow and arrow, I’ve seen her take out the eye of a dove in flight.”  
“Snow could do that.” David nodded, “She wouldn’t, but she could.”  
“Emma slayed a dragon, once.” Nicholas added with a smirk knowing he won that round, “And she definitely has a fierce side of her own, too. I’m just glad she didn’t take after her father too much.”  
David nearly tripped when he heard the jab at him. Given the age difference, or lack of, he and his wife had between their daughter, that was another secret they decided to keep from their hosts. Quite frankly, he should’ve realized Nicholas was going to use that against him at some point during this journey.  
“Why is that?” Arthur asked.  
“Oh, God, no.” David mentally pleaded.  
“Oh, he’s a real moron.” Nicholas insulted before the avalanche started, “Always thinks he’s right, real full of himself, the guy rarely thinks before he acts and takes forever to keep up with everyone else. Also quick to jump to conclusions, too.”  
“He’s never gonna let me live that down.” David sighed in his head, “Enough is enough. This had to end.”  
Tripping over a nearby rock intentionally, David fell to the ground while Nicholas continued to discreetly insult him. “Are you alright, David?” Arthur asked in concern.  
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just tripped over something. Guess it’s hard to tell where you’re going in a place called the forest of eternal night, huh? I think I broke my boot, Nicholas, do you mind fixing it?”  
“I’ll go on ahead and see if I can locate our prize.” Arthur said before leaving them.  
“Broken boot? Really?” Nicholas asked flatly.  
“When is this going to stop?” David asked exasperated, “How long are you going to hold what happened over my head? Nicholas, I have apologized over-”  
“Actually, you haven’t.” he snapped, “It’s everyone else who has. Emma did, Snow did, Archie did, Leroy, the dwarves, Granny, Ruby, even Marco did and he didn’t really do anything. You, however, are literally the only one who has yet to apologize for what you did to me.”  
“It was two years ago! Can’t you let it go?!” David asked loudly.  
“No, because it’s still hurts!” Nicholas retorted making David silent, “I trusted you. I risked the already rocky relationship I had with my sister back then to help you guys more times than you can count. Yes, I didn’t stop her from casting the curse that took you away from Emma, but I apologized for that and tried to make up for it. I would’ve thought that proved to you that I saw you guys as friends. And the fact that you turned on me without believing for even a second that I was set up, hurt me to the core! I thought you were my friend and you treat me like garbage after everything I’d done not even apologize?! You’re lucky I’m not treating you worse! God knows you deserve it.”  
David couldn’t bring himself to say anything for he knew the alchemist was right. He had more than enough chances to apologize since Nicholas started helping them again after Cora’s death, he just never took one. He had been lying to himself that everything was okay with the man he truly did consider his friend once. How self-absorbed he was not to realize the wound he inflicted was still festering in his…in Nicholas.  
“And by the way,” Nicholas said as he came to a stop while storming off, “The only reason why I haven’t beaten you to your knees to get back at you is because I’m dating your daughter. If I wasn’t, I would’ve paid you back months ago. You were a lousy friend, Nolan. A real lousy friend.”  
“My friends,” Arthur alerted as he rejoined them, “I found it!”  
Once he led them through the darkness and mist, they came to a dark lake with a floating bridge leading to the Crimson Crown. “Look upon that, my brothers.”  
“So it is real.” David said with hope before stepping onto the weakened boards, “It’ll never take all three of us. I’ll go.”  
“It can hold me just as fine. I’ll get it.” Nicholas argued.  
“I think I’ll just wait here. Let the torch be your beacon back.” Arthur chuckled at the competitors.  
OUaT  
Back in Storybrooke, David and Arthur stopped by the pawn shop in hopes that Belle would be able to provide them with any useful information regarding the thief. When they arrived, they found her staring at the wilting rose tied Gold’s life force.  
“How’s he doing?” David asked.  
“Not well.” Belle replied with a brave face.  
“I’m sorry.” he apologized.  
“Yeah. But I found a healing spell in one of his old notebooks, and I’ve got everything put together except for one last ingredient. I need an object that touched him when he was still a man, before he became the Dark One.” she informed.  
“You must have something.” David observed.  
“Well, nothing I can find.” she replied, “Still more to look through, though.”  
“You want me to get you some help?” he offered.  
“No. I mean, I’m the only one who knows this place, knows his things, and I need to keep doing something.” Belle sighed.  
“Well, then we’ll make this quick. Has anyone come in to pawn anything today?” he asked.  
“Especially a magic bean.” Arthur added.  
“Uh, a bean?” she asked, “No. No one’s come in. Sorry.”  
“Ah, it was worth a shot. If we had Nicholas around, we could probably get him to smell it out for us.” he dryly joked before looking at a chalice and getting an idea, “But you have something else I need. May I borrow this?”  
“Uh, yeah.” Belle agreed even though she was a bit confused.  
“Good. This is gonna point us right at our culprit.” he said to Arthur.  
“What is it?” the king asked.  
“It’s not magic, though.” Belle warned, “It’s just a souvenir from Doc’s birthday party. It even says ‘Doctoberfest’ on it.”  
“I’m very well aware.” David lightly chuckled, “Don’t worry. I’ve got this.”  
As they headed back to the camp, Arthur decided to ask the question that popped in his head back in the shop. “So, this Nicholas you mentioned. Was he a dog that helped you as sheriff?”  
“Uh,” he laughed, “No, no, not a dog. He, uh…I wanna say he was my friend, but I don’t think I have the right.”  
“What do you mean?” Arthur asked.  
“You see, Nicholas is actually Regina’s younger brother and the man who’s seeing my daughter. You might’ve heard of him, his name’s Nicholas Flamel, the Immortal Alchemist.”  
“Yes, I believe I heard tales once of an alchemist with that name.” he nodded, “Is-is that true? I mean, he’s not actually immortal, is he?”  
“Oh, trust me, he is.” David nodded as he thought of the gruesome displays he’s seen over the years.  
“Why don’t you think you have the right to call yourself his friend? Is he a bit of a prude?” Arthur asked.  
“No, he’s a complete smartass, but he’s actually a nice guy. It’s about something I did to him once.” David replied with guilt in his voice, “Back before the first curse, my wife and I, we were on the run from his sister back when she was still the Evil Queen. Out of the kindness of his heart, he helped us escape from her more times than I could count. He considered us his friends.”  
“Were you not?” he asked.  
“…At first, we only pretended to be so we could stay out of Regina’s clutches. But as time went on, we began to see the good in him and saw him as a trusted friend, as well; that is, until the curse hit. Even though we had no idea who we really were, Nicholas still treated us like we were still his friends from the Enchanted Forest and tried to bring a little happiness out in us even while cursed. Then when the curse broke, we, uh, did something we’re not proud of.”  
“What was it?” Arthur asked as the story took him in.  
“A little while after my daughter broke the curse, Regina and Nicholas were framed for two different murders; one real, the other…not so much. Instead of giving either of them a chance, we let our past hatred for Regina and the things she’d done cloud our judgement. And in the process, we lumped Nicholas in it all, too. We forgot everything he did for us and automatically passed judgement on him; we even went as far as to convince everyone else he was guilty, too. And when we found out they had been framed, it was too late. Nicholas had been hurt so bad, the only one he could forgive was Emma, the one person who reached out and tried to mend things.”  
“Oh.” was all Arthur could say as they walked.  
“Then we just kept facing one crisis after another. But even during all that turmoil, everyone who turned their backs on him managed to apologize down the road; everyone but me.” David admitted shamefully.  
“Why didn’t you? If you don’t mind my asking?” he asked.  
“I’m not sure I have a good enough answer for that.” David replied, “I mean, he did try to kill my wife after she killed his mother, so that might have made me think I didn’t need to apologize. But as time went on, he continued to prove to everyone again that he was a good person. I guess, looking back now, I was too ashamed to admit that I did him wrong and thought as time went on, he would forget about the whole thing and move past it. But I know that’s not the case. He’ll resent me forever unless I apologize, and he has the right to. I was a horrible friend to him, and now that I can’t tell him since he’s Emma’s prisoner, I feel like I missed my last chance.”  
“When Lancelot betrayed my trust after he tried to take Guinevere, I, too resented him for a long time.” Arthur said hoping his story would give his new friend some clarity, “But, as time went on and as I patched things up with Guinevere, I realized that while he was sorry for what he had done, I was the one who couldn’t forgive myself for letting things end the way they did. And now, my friend is dead. I can’t apologize to him, but you still have a chance make things right with yours. Don’t be like me, when the next chance comes, take it. You’ll soon realize that as long as you and your friend live, it’s never too late to make amends.”  
“Thank you, Your Majesty.” David nodded in respect.  
“Arthur.” he corrected kindly as they stopped walking before reaching the camp, “Just Arthur. Alright? No more ‘Your Majesties’ anymore.”  
“Okay.” he said smiling. He may have not been able to patch things up with one friend yet, but it was nice to know he found a new one. Once they made it to the camp, Arthur gathered his subjects and listened as David began his plan.  
“Attention, subjects of Camelot! In my hand, you see the Chalice of Vengeance. There’s been a theft in your encampment.” David lied as he held up the cup while the people muttered to each other, “The chalice will tell me which among you is the thief. So, line up for your chance to drink from the sacred cup.”  
When he was done speaking, Griff, the squire from before, ran away to the nearest horse and rode off. Needing no further proof, the two royals rushed over to David’s truck and chased after the thief. After a short lived escape, Griff was caught by the dynamic duo and brought back for questioning.  
OUaT  
Once they finished shoving past each other at the end of the bridge, the former friends reached for the Crimson Crown at the same time. Looking back at each other at the same time, David pulled out his knife with a smug look thinking he won. But Nicholas just gave him an unimpressed look before turning his right middle finger into a spear which cut the mushroom with just a simple flick.  
“Say hello to my little friend.” he grinned while wiggling his finger and flipping him off at the same time. But David still swiped the mushroom and stuffed it into his satchel with a victorious grin. As they were about to cross the bridge again, Nicholas noticed something peculiar. Rusty, old, muck covered suits of armor began to rise from the water with their weapons primed and ready.  
“Uh, David?” he asked, “I think we’re about to have another ‘Walking Dead’ moment.”  
As he said this and drew his own sword, David was busy holding off one of the suits before decapitating it. But of course, it still went after him even without its head.  
“You think?!” he asked as they fought the undead knights. When they realized fighting them wouldn’t do any good, they both nodded at each other before trying to make a break for it. Unfortunately, David’s ankle was grabbed by another armor while Nicholas continued to run ahead. When he was pulled down into the black water, Nicholas groaned in frustration before jumping in to save his girlfriend’s father.  
When he saw them drag David further down into the depths of the lake, Nicholas swam down to the bottom first where he used his alchemy to create spikes rise from the ground and impale the suits while David was left unharmed. Grabbing his arm as he slowly slipped away, Nicholas brought him up to the surface where Arthur offered him his hand to pull them up.  
“Need a hand?” he asked.  
“Funny.” Nicholas panted sarcastically as David emptied his lungs of the water. As he caught his breath, he couldn’t help but stare at the soaking wet alchemist.  
“I sucked as a friend.” he finally confessed.  
“What?” Nicholas asked finding it odd that he would say that now of all times.  
“You were right; I was a lousy friend to you.” David continued as they laid on dry land, “I should’ve believed you when you said you didn’t kill that girl. I treated you like crap despite everything you did for us. I’m sorry, Nicholas. I’m sorry.”  
“…I’d say water under the bridge, but even I think it’s a bit too soon for that.” he replied before laughing at what just happened. Sure enough, David joined in when he saw the humor in it, as well. “At least we got the mushroom.”  
As David as about to reach for it, he realized that his satchel was empty which meant the Crimson Crown was gone. “David, what is it?” Arthur asked as the prince patted himself down in panic.  
“The toadstool. It’s gone.” he said as he rose to his feet, “Either the phantom knights took it, or it was lost in the bog.”  
“We could search for it.” Arthur suggested.  
“No.” David said throwing down the empty bag, “It’s gone.”  
“Dammit!” Nicholas shouted as David fell to his knees in defeat. Seeing his friends in distress, Arthur made an attempt to life their spirits.  
“The word quest means to seek, not to find. It’s the seeking that matters.”  
“You believe that?” David asked.  
“Not truly, no.” he admitted.  
“What the hell kind of pep talk is this?” Nicholas asked.  
“If the finding is what makes a difference in this world, then that’s what I want.” Arthur continued which made both him and David laugh. Nicholas, however, didn’t get the humor in what he said. He just wrote it off as a knight thing.  
“My father, he drank his life away and my brother accomplished nothing but evil.” David brought up, “There was a time I thought I’d be different. Change the world. But, I just…I don’t want to only be remembered as the man who kissed a sleeping princess awake thirty years ago.”  
“Who would?” Nicholas muttered.  
“I understand.” Arthur chuckled as he sat with them.  
“You do?” David asked, “You’re king of Camelot.”  
“Yes, some large rock decided I was a hero. Prophecy fulfilled.” he laughed, “But since then, I’ve had victories and I’ve had losses. And I’ve learned that it’s the losses that require us to be brave. So, if anything will make us heroes…”  
“It’s the never giving up. Even after a loss.” David nodded.  
“Indeed.” Arthur replied.  
“Well, as much as this little bro-mance moment has been heartwarming for all of us, I say we get the hell out of here.” Nicholas suggested as he jumped to his feet.  
“Agreed. There’s work to be done. And it’s not here.” David said helping Arthur up.  
“Good man.” Arthur praised, “David, Nicholas, if either of you want to be part of something, do something that matters, I have just the place for men like you.”  
“Pass.” Nicholas turned down before the king could finish his offer.  
“Why not?” Arthur chuckled.  
“Because you guys are call ‘the knights of the Round Table.’ Changing it to ‘the knights and an alchemist of the Round Table’ just isn’t as catchy.” he replied with a grin which made the other two laugh.  
OUaT  
Back at the camp, David and Arthur stared at Griff with cold, hard looks. “I never saw a bean.” he defended.  
“Just forget the bean for now.” David waved off, “Just tell us why you took these things.”  
“I was tired of how I was being treated. How we were all being treated. Breaking our backs for him, for the love of Camelot. I wanted to hurt the king.” he confessed while glaring at Arthur in hate.  
“Griff, I had no idea. But, you see, you’ve hurt everyone. We need that bean to get home.” Arthur snapped.  
“I didn’t see a bean, Your Majesty.” Griff repeated. Seeing as this was going nowhere fast, David nudged the monarch and led him out of Griff’s earshot.  
“I’m always betrayed by those closest to me.” Arthur said bitterly.  
“Look, you know this guy. Is he lying?” David asked.  
“I don’t believe so. And of course, it is possible there was no bean if it was removed during the six weeks we can’t recall.”  
“Okay,” he sighed, “Well, we’ll find another way to get you home.”  
“Working together?” Arthur asked.  
“Absolutely.” the shepherd nodded, “Let’s go tell this guy he’s gonna make his home in our cell for a little while.”  
As they headed back to the prisoner, David spotted a large, red mushroom poking out of some of Griff’s things. “What’s this?”  
“Must’ve fallen out when we emptied his bag.” Arthur speculated, “If that was in the trunk, it was added after the time we lost.”  
“I recognize this.” David realized as he thought back to what Regina showed him and Snow earlier that day. Over at the vault, he decided to show it to her.  
“That’s the one in the book from Camelot.” Regina said with Snow at her side, “The one I found this morning. That’s what we were looking for back there.”  
“But why?” Snow asked.  
“It’s used to communicate through magical barriers. We must’ve been trying to communicate with Merlin.” she deduced.  
“I wonder if we did.” Snow wondered.  
“Let’s use it. Let’s find out.” David urged, “If we can talk to him now-”  
“He can help us save Emma from being the Dark One.” Snow finished.  
“And maybe free Nicholas along the way.” Regina nodded.  
“David,” Snow said to her husband proudly, “You did it.”  
OUaT  
Upon their return to Camelot, Arthur stayed true to his word and reward David with the highest honor he could bestow; a seat at the Round Table. Now dressed in ceremonial armor, David walked into the throne room with pride as the sound of cheers and applause filled his ears. When he reached the throne, Arthur, wielding Excalibur in its sheath while Guinevere held his coat of arms, waited for him to kneel so he could knight him.  
“I dub thee Sir David of the Enchanted Forest. Now of the Round Table.” he said happily to his new brother-in-arms, “I know ‘knight of the Round Table’ is pale fire, indeed, next to the title of prince.”  
“No.” David denied, “I am beyond honored.”  
“Then rise, sir knight. Take your place.”  
At first, David was about to take the seat that once belonged to Percival. But Arthur quickly corrected him and pointed at his true seat at the mighty table; The Siege Perilous. “Really?” he asked finding it too good to be true.  
“I never thought I’d find anyone I trust enough to fill that seat. But it’s yours.” Arthur nodded as he headed over to the grand chair, “It will bear your coat of arms. Not bad for a shepherd, eh?”  
“Thank you.” David chuckled as they shook hands. When he took his seat, the whole room filled with even louder applause than before. Little did David know, he had just been knighted and honored by a liar.  
OUaT  
After David locked Griff in the station, Arthur decided to pay a visit to his squire; alone. Upon seeing his ruler approach, Griff suddenly looked relieved and rose to his feet to greet him.  
“Your Majesty, thank goodness you’re here. I-I don’t understand what’s going on. I did only what you asked. I took the items, and I kept them safe. I said maybe there was a bean, even though you and I know full well there was never a bean, and I did it exactly as you said. Can you please let me out now?”  
“Not just yet, Griff.” Arthur replied with a conflicted look on his face, “There may not have been a bean, but we can’t have them learning that, now, can we?”  
“No.” the squire agreed, “No, of course not, Your Majesty.”  
“They trust me now. So I must use that trust to protect my kingdom. These people may seem friendly, but they threaten everything we hold dear. David likes to think his quest a noble one. But his daughter is the Dark One. They lied to us in Camelot. They brought her into our castle. They are responsible for tearing us away from our home, a home we must now reclaim.” Arthur explained.  
“But how will we ever get back without a bean?” Griff asked.  
“I’m afraid we cannot get back. That’s why we must build a new Camelot here in Storybrooke.” he informed.  
“Then you trust me to help. I would do anything for my kingdom.” Griff promised.  
“I know you would. As would I. Which is why I need you to drink this.” Arthur said as he showed Griff a bottle containing a bright green liquid. The moment he saw it, the young squire knew exactly what it was from his time looking after the reliquary.  
“Poison from the Agrabah vipers.” he whispered, “But why? I won’t tell these people a thing.”  
“Not of your own free will, but they have magic on their side. In time, they will make you talk.” he reasoned darkly.  
“There must be some other way.”  
“I wish there was. Truly, I do. You told me you always dreamt of sitting at the Round Table one day. Well, now I’m offering you something greater. A chance to die in service of Camelot. Your death will be the cornerstone of a great new kingdom. If you take this.” Arthur promised as he uncorked the bottle.  
Being the loyal subject that he was, Griff readied himself as he took the bottle. “For Camelot.” he toasted before downing the poison. After it took its effect, he collapsed to the floor dead before his body was destroyed in a puff of green smoke.  
“For Camelot.” Arthur nodded sadly.  
Elsewhere in Storybrooke, under her house, where she kept Excalibur, Emma loomed over the real Rumplestiltskin’s body as she dangled a sword over him. But it wasn’t just any sword. It was the same sword Hook once held against the man’s neck before he became the Dark One centuries ago. Using her magic, she crushed it and used the healing potion Belle originally intended to use on him. When his eyes fluttered open, he looked up to see his successor in fear.  
“What do you want from me?” he asked feeling powerless and frightened, “You’re the Dark One now, not me.”  
“That’s right.” she softly agreed, “You are not dark. You are also not light. You are nothing. Your heart is a blank slate. And that, little man, makes you useful. Because now I can make you into the last thing you ever thought you would be. A hero. And not just any hero. The purest who’s ever lived. And then…then my real work can begin.”


	53. Dreamcatcher

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

Late at night in Camelot, Emma decided to take at least one piece of advice Rumple gave her since becoming the Dark One, she started a hobby to keep herself busy at night and to help take her mind off things. But instead of knitting, she decided to choose a more complicated pass time in making dreamcatchers. As she made one in her room alone, she began to her voices whisper around her.

“Do you hear it?” Rumple asked behind her, “A sweet sound. A strange sound. Let’s go have a look, shall we?”

Without any argument, Emma listened to him and followed the sound of the voices to their source. When she found it come from Regina’s room, she flung open a wardrobe and found where the voices were coming from; the dagger.

“So that’s where it’s coming from, your dagger.” Rumple said despite knowing full well the whole time, “Since Regina left it in her room, I say, uh, finders keepers.”

When Emma tried to take it, she got zapped by a protection spell cast over the box the dagger was in. But it was obvious from the look in her eyes that she still wanted it. She wanted what was hers.

“So she put a spell on it. That’s nothing for you. Shatter it.” he seduced darkly.

“I can’t.” she whispered still staring at it.

“It’s calling to its other half.” he noted.

“Leave me alone.” she pleaded.

“Your friends cannot protect you.” he taunted.

“Stop.” she begged softly.

“You’re the Savior. Save yourself before it’s too late.” Rumple advised.

“Get out of my head!” Emma cried as she tried to blast him away with her magic. But it just went through and nearly struck Nicholas in the process.

“Sweetheart, it’s okay.” he gently assured as he hugged her, “It’s just us. You and me.”

“He’s inside my head. I can’t get him out.” she said in fear as she saw he lean against the door smirking at her, “He’s here. He’s always here.”

“Shh.” he gently soothed while stroking her hair, “It’s okay. It’s okay. Come on. Let’s set you down.”

“What happened?” Regina asked as she and Henry entered the room as the couple was about to leave.

“Get Snow and David, now.” he ordered as he held Emma close as they walked to the nearest seat. Once he saw the look of fear in her eyes, he gently laid her down on a loveseat as Regina, Henry and Snow entered the room.

“What happened to her?” Snow asked while Nicholas held her daughter’s hand at her side.

“I think I may have an idea. She hasn’t said a word since I brought her here.” he replied while Emma trembled in fear.

“It’s getting worse, isn’t it?” David asked letting the others know he was in the room.

“David, where have you been?” Snow asked, “I was looking all over the castle for you.” 

“With Arthur. It turns out he might have a way to help Emma.” he explained while whispering, even though everyone except Emma could hear him.

“We can’t.” Snow whispered.

“If we give him the dagger-”

“David, listen to me.” Snow said no longer whispering, “We can’t trust Arthur.”

“What are you talking about? Who told you that?” he asked.

“Lancelot.” she replied.

“Lancelot?” he asked while Regina and Nicholas looked at Emma in concern as her parents talked, “Lancelot it dead.”

“That’s what he wanted Cora to think, but he outwitted her.” Snow informed.

“Hey,” Regina interrupted, “Not in front of the patient. Given the state that she’s in, anything could set her off. She needs rest. Somewhere quiet and away from prying eyes.”

“I know the perfect place.” Nicholas nodded, “You guys get some rest, I’ll look after her. Come on, honey. Up we go.”

Once he led her back to the hall, he made sure no one was looking at grabbed her hand before leading her outside into the courtyard. “Nicky, what are you doing?” Emma asked looking miserable.

“It’s like I said,” he grinned as the ground began to surge with alchemy in an outline of a large square, “Up we go.”

Before she had the chance to ask, the ground rose into the air, far past the height of Merlin’s tower and high enough to break through the clouds. Out reflex, Emma looked afraid as she clung to her grinning boyfriend as they continued to ascend. When it seemed as though they were as high up as they would be on a beanstalk, Nicholas finally stopped transmuting.

“There, now. Isn’t that better?” he asked playfully. To Emma, Camelot was nothing more than a faint orange glow from the lights inside.

“This better not be some kind of crazy-ass trust fall, Nicholas.” she growled.

“No, no, nothing like that.” he laughed enjoying how tightly she was holding him, “Not like the fall could kill us. We’re both immortal now.”

“What the hell is this?!” she shrieked.

“This? This is just you and me.” he calmly replied still smiling, “No Camelot, no dagger, no worries, no nothing. It’s just the two of us.”

“Huh?” she asked which finally caused him to do something other than smile and scare the crap out of her.

“Ah, geez.” he sighed raking his hand through his hair, “Alright. How ‘bout this? Lay down with me.”

“What?” she asked as he laid down and pulled her down with him.

“Just lay down.” he said as they faced the sky, “Okay. Now, what do you see?”

“The sky.” she sighed finding this pointless.

“Good. Now, is light out or dark?” he asked.

“It’s the middle of the night, what do you think?” she asked losing her patience.

“Emma.” he said in a warning tone while raising his eyebrow.

“Fine. It’s dark.”

“Thank you.” he nodded, “Now, look closer. What else do you see?”

“Stars?” she asked rolling her eyes.

“Hmm, that’s not what I see.” Nicholas disagreed gaining a bewildered look from Emma as he stared at the night sky, “I see Henry, your parents, your brother Neal’s there, too. And Robin, and Hook, and Ariel. There’s also Granny, Leroy, Doc, Happy, Belle, oh, even Marco and August, Archie are there, too. And let’s see, who else? Ah! Elsa and Anna, I can see them. A whole bunch of people up there with you.”

“Where are you going with this?” Emma asked.

“Let’s say that all that darkness up there, is, well, you.” Nicholas said playfully, “And everyone I just said happens to be one of those stars shining up there.”

“Which one’s Regina?” she asked smirking at what he was trying to do.

“Well, you see that little flickering star up there that looks like it’s about to go supernova any second? That’s Regina.” he joked causing Emma to laugh that sweet laugh he loved to hear, “All those little lights in all that darkness. It’s not really so dark, when you take a good look at it. Something’s out there shining a bit of light in it. You may be the Dark One now, Emma, but there’s still plenty of light in your heart. And everyone whom you’ve helped and touched with your light has a piece of it in them. A light they would share with you tenfold in a heartbeat. And that’s exactly what we’re gonna do.”

“Aw!” she cooed as she rolled on top of him and snuggled against his chest, “You’re so sweet to make all that bull crap up for me just to make me feel better.”

“Bull crap?” he asked, “It was supposed to be a touching, memorable moment in our relationship. I poured my soul into that and meant every word.”

“I know, but it was so cheesy!” she laughed on top of him, “I mean, cute. It was cute. It was a good way for me to see your sensitive side.”

“You’re making fun of me?!” he asked while laughing, “I ought to throw you off of this thing, you snot!”

“You wouldn’t dare.” she giggled before he quickly rolled over her causing her to squeal cutely. Looking at each other’s faces in the darkness, all they could do was stare at the other completely in love. Nicholas then reached down to kiss his Swan gently so to let her know he would always be there for her; and that kiss was all she needed to believe him.

“There is one thing you forgot, though.” she pointed out.

“And what’s that?” he asked.

“You didn’t point yourself out. Where are you in all of this?” Emma asked smiling.

“Well, I was officially gonna make it cheesy by saying that I was gonna be the brightest light of them all for you and point to the moon. Only…I didn’t realize that it was a new moon out tonight rather than a full moon like I wanted. So…yeah. That kinda back fired on me.”

“You are such a nerd!” Emma laughed while pushing him over on his back again while hugging him, “But you’re my nerd.”

“And don’t you forget it.” Nicholas chuckled while kissing her head.

**OUaT**

In the station back at Storybrooke, after lying to them all about what happened, Arthur showed the main party that Griff was no longer in his cell. “So he just vanished?” Hook asked.

“Could it be magic?” Robin asked, “Uh, your squire, did he wield such power?”

“Not that I ever saw.” Arthur replied playing innocent.

“Well, there’s no sign of tampering.” David observed.

“Then he must’ve lied about having the bean.” Arthur threw out, “Must’ve hidden it on his person somewhere and used it to escape.”

“How could he be so selfish?” Guinevere asked, “We could all be home right now.”

“Desperate times.” her husband shrugged.

“Our people want so badly to return. We must do something to raise their spirits. The despair of being away, that’s what caused all this. Who else knows what it could lead to?” she asked.

“Well, you’re right. People need hope.” Snow agreed, “And as your hosts and leaders of this town, it is up to us to provide it.”

“What do you have in mind?” Regina asked as David loomed over Henry’s shoulder to see him texting a certain girl from Camelot.

“How about a dance?” the boy suggested.

“A dance, huh?” David asked, “Looking for an excuse to ask your girlfriend out on a date?”

“Girlfriend? What girlfriend?” Regina asked.

“She’s not my girlfriend.” Henry denied.

“Who’s not your girlfriend?” Regina asked again as she went full on mama-queen.

“I think a dance is exactly what we need.” Snow agreed hoping to take the pressure off her grandson.

“Henry, who’s this girlfriend?” Regina asked as she ignored everything but what Hook was about to say.

“Well, if it’s dating tips you need, lad, I know my way around women.” the pirate offered trying to sound cool.

“Over you’re dead body.” Regina coldly denied.

“Regina!” Snow snapped.

“Your fiancé can’t even tell the difference between silverware and haircare products.” she added.

“Still looks better than your hair. The way yours looks, people would think you use a fork instead of a brush.” Ariel calmly retorted which riled up the mayor.

“Okay!” Snow interjected before the catfight could begin, “Let’s start planning. I think it is time Storybrooke had a ball.”

“You really aren’t good around redheads, are you?” David asked his in-law as they left the station. As they walked outside, Belle came running over to them in panic.

“Belle, what is it?” Snow asked.

“It’s-it’s Rumple. He’s missing.” she panted.

**OUaT**

The next day, Henry decided to help out his mom and uncle by taking them on his own little attempt to help Emma take her mind off things. As he led them through the woods, he saw their destination, one of Camelot’s stables.

“Come on, Mom. Keep going.” he urged, “We’re almost there.”

“What’s he up to?” Emma asked Nicholas as they walked arm in arm.

“I don’t know.” the alchemist replied as Henry opened the door for them.

“It’s nice here, right? A good place to rest. You’ll feel better in no time.” Henry promised.

“I’m a bit curious as to how you found this place, kiddo. Something you’re not telling us?” Nicholas asked.

“Well…there’s this girl.” Henry admitted.

“That’s my boy!” he cheered in his head before speaking, “Is that a fact? Well, I like this story already.”

“I-it’s not like that.” Henry poorly covered, “Her name’s Violet. She brought me here. The stable belongs to her family.”

“So you two are getting close?” Emma asked.

“N-not at all. We’re just hanging out.” he defended.

“Hello?” a girl, obviously Violet, asked from outside, “Who’s in there?”

“That’s her.” Henry whispered, “Hide. Hide. Go on.”

After Emma and Nicholas were out of sight, the pretty young girl that was Violet burst in armed with a rake ready to strike any intruder. But when she saw Henry, that was the last thing on her mind.

“Henry.” she smiled cutely, “What are you doing here?”

“I was wondering if you’d be interested in taking me ridding.” he replied while Nicholas looked at him with a gleam in his eyes while Emma looked at Violet with an analyzing gaze.

“Yeah. I’d love to.” she agreed, “Come on. I’ll introduce you to Nicodemus.”

“That your dad?” Henry asked.

“No. It’s my horse.” Violet chuckled, “Hope you’re ready to get your heart racing. Come on.”

“Wow!” Nicholas laughed after the kids left, “You can hide away top secret information in code or a winning poker hand, but you can’t hide the bloom of first love.”

“Yes, he has a crush.” Emma said calmly, “And he straight-up lied to our faces. And we’re the Dark One and Immortal Alchemist.”

“You’re also his mother and I’m his fun uncle.” Nicholas smirked.

“Which is scarier?” she asked.

“To him? That’s up for debate.” he joked, “Girl’s got moxy, though. ‘Hope you’re ready to get your heart racing’? Sheesh! She’s as much of a flirt as Ruby was.”

“And Henry’s as shy and nervous as you were.” Emma nodded.

“Well, for his sake, I hope she doesn’t think he’s gay.” he remarked smugly.

“Oh, come on! Let that go already!” she laughed.

“Only if you tell me what was going on last night.” he haggled dropping the humor in his voice. Seeing no point in hiding it from him, Emma relented and confessed.

“It’s Rumplestiltskin. Or at least something that looks like him. I’ve been seeing him in my head ever since we got here.”

“He was the one telling you to fight Giles when we found you.” Nicholas realized.

“I almost snapped his neck and tore out his heart because of his voice.” she added before seeing the demon again by the door.

“Why didn’t you just say so?” he asked, “If there’s one thing I understand, it’s knowing how annoying someone else’s voice in your head can be. And, I also know how to ignore them.”

“How? You wanna ride a horse or something?” Emma asked.

“Well,” he said not too excited at the thought, “If the damn glue source doesn’t spit at me or try to kick me in process, it should do the trick. How ‘bout it? Ready to get _your_ heart racing?”

But before she could answer, the horse began to freak out because of the two dark presences next to it. So as it bucked around and tried to get away, it kicked Nicholas in the stomach and hurried over to the other side of the stables.

“Are you okay?” Emma asked as she loomed over him.

“I freaking hate horses.” he groaned as she helped him up, “Fine! Be that way! We didn’t want to ride you anyway! I hope you become Camelot’s first bottle of glue!”

“Alright, alright. That’s enough, leave the horse alone.” she chuckled, “So, got any more ideas?”

“One.” he nodded before leading her out into the woods. As they trudged through the trees, Rumplestiltskin decided to pester Emma again.

“Now I thought the point of all this was to get your heart racing?” he asked with his ever annoying giggle, “I don’t need to be inside your head, dearie, to know you’re bored. Uh, perhaps tearing out the hearts of Camelot’s subjects will help take care of that?”

“Go away.” Emma demanded.

“Emma,” Nicholas said regaining her attention, “Stop talking to the demon in your head. We’re almost there.”

“This is pointless. I’m the Dark One. What’s this going to do?” she asked.

“This isn’t about going for a ride or anything, Emma. This is about putting your faith in me, in our future.” he explained.

“You still think we can get back there, to Storybrooke and some white-picket-fence life?” she asked.

“Yes.” Nicholas nodded, “I’ll never stop fighting for us. All you have to do is trust me. And hold on tight.”

“To what?” she asked before he began to change his appearance. When the lights faded, Emma looked past her hand and saw a black horse with a saddle where Nicholas once stood.

“Me.” he replied.

“…You turned yourself into a horse?” Emma asked not believing what she just said.

“Well, after our little mishap with kicks-ateriate back there, this was the only thing I could think of.” Nicholas replied while subconsciously moving his tail, “So, are you just gonna stand there all day staring at your stallion of a boyfriend, or are you gonna hop on?”

Smirking at his joke, Emma gave in and climbed on to the saddle. The moment she did, Nicholas took of leaving a trail of dust and dirt behind his hooves. Unlike when he decided to scare the bejessus out of her the last time he drove his car, Nicholas managed to succeed in amazing Emma as he ran through the woods and over the hills of the vast, green lands. After an hour or two of riding, they finally came to a stop.

“That was amazing. Thank you.” Emma said as she got off and Nicholas turned human again.

“Well, I had a feeling you’d like it.” he smirked as they looped arms again while walking through a meadow of pink flowers, “So, what do you see now.”

“Lots of flowers.” she replied as he picked and gave her one.

“Good. Now what don’t you see?” he asked knowing the answer.

“Rumplestiltskin.” she realized, “He’s gone.”

“I hoped he might be. Now that I’m here, there’s no room left for him in that head of yours.” Nicholas smiled.

“Well,” she said with a coy smirk, “Now that we’re alone…”

No more words were spoken as they kissed passionately in the meadow. Once again, it was just the two of them, and neither wanted that to change. But at some point or another, amidst their kissing, they remembered why they were in Camelot and decided to return to the castle. When they did, and Nicholas left Emma alone for just a moment, she used one of the dreamcatchers she made over Merlin’s tree to see one of his memories; specifically, the one that showed how he became a tree in the first place.

Apparently, the first Dark One was responsible for the destruction of the woman he loved and in his weakness, he allowed it to take its dagger and use Merlin’s heartbroken tear to turn him into the very tree looming over her. When Nicholas came back, she informed him of this and thought it best to tell Regina.

But while Nicholas was on his own, he felt a shift in the air caused by only one thing, magic. And he knew it didn’t belong to anyone he arrived in Camelot with. Time began to slow down around him and a great flash of light appeared before him. It was a blinding light, but he could see the outline of a man standing in it. A man he knew better than not to bow to.

“Agent Flamel,” the voice said, shifting in all sorts of tones and voices as it spoke.

“Director,” he acknowledged as he took a knee, “Why have you contacted me like this?”

“I have a mission for you, one of grave importance.” the leader of the League replied.

“Sir?” he asked, “I’m afraid you’ve asked me at the worst possible time. You see, I’m-”

“I know why you’re in Camelot.” the director cut off, “I make it a point to keep track of those who serve me.”

“Then you know that I won’t do anything you say until I rid the woman I love of the darkness.” Nicholas retorted with a glare.

“You will follow my orders!” he shouted as the light grew brighter and hotter, “For that matter, it ties in to your location and will be beneficial for you and your friends. Listen to me, you and Agent Locksley are to destroy Camelot. Burn it to the ground, kill her king and all his followers. Rid this realm of the broken kingdom once and for all.”

“Why?” Nicholas asked, “These people have welcomed us. They’re helping us!”

“No.” the director denied, “That is the last thing they plan to do.”

“What are you talking about? Stop speaking in riddles for once!” Nicholas demanded.

“King Arthur is a liar. He has been deceiving all of you. He wants the dagger of the Dark One for himself.”

“Why? So he can become the Dark One?” he asked dryly.

“Worse.” the man of light replied, “He plans to restore it. The dagger and his sword, Excalibur were once one in the same. He rules this broken kingdom with a broken sword. He plans to reunite them and kill the Sorcerer. The fool is a tyrant who has poisoned the minds of not only his subjects, but his own queen, as well. And the minds of Snow White and Prince Charming.”

“How?” he asked.

“Years ago, his Queen Guinevere and the knight Lancelot searched for the dagger while the would-be king drove himself mad in his pursuit of it. Naturally, Rumplestiltskin would not allow the one thing capable of controlling and killing him slip through his fingers. He made a deal with the pair, and in exchange for letting him keep it, he gave them enchanted sand from Avalon.”

“That stuff is the strongest kind of illusion magic there is.” Nicholas muttered, “Wait a minute. Are you saying-”

“Yes,” the director nodded, “He used it on her, and then used the sand to build the very kingdom in which you stand. And as of just hours before, he used them to take control of your friends in hopes of them delivering the dagger to him.”

“That son of bitch!” he cursed.

“You mustn’t allow Arthur to unite the blades. It holds more power than you can imagine once whole. Once you free Merlin, and restore your friends’ minds, wipe Camelot off the face of the map.” the director ordered before vanishing and returning time to normal.

“Of course, sir.” said Nicholas bowed his head without even bothering to give a fake smile, “It shall be done, Director.”

As much as he actually wanted to begin his new assignment now that he knew Arthur’s real intentions, Nicholas knew he needed to settle the smaller matters first before he could allow himself some fun. He told Emma that he overheard Arthur discuss his plans with Guinevere and learned about everything he had done and planned to do. Thankfully, after spending years perfecting the art of lying, and since Emma’s “superpower” wasn’t working since becoming the Dark One, his lie was believed by the blonde. Nicholas was then able to sniff out her parents’ scents and discovered that they were with Regina in the woods, obviously there to retrieve the dagger for the deranged king. When they caught up to them and saw the spell-influence couple try to take the dagger for themselves, Emma stepped in and froze them in place.

“What are you doing?” Regina asked, “When did you get so liberal with dark magic?”

“No choice. Arthur has them under some kind of spell. he wants them to bring him the dagger. He wants to reunite it with Excalibur.” Emma replied.

“Unite it?” Regina asked.

“It was once one blade.” Nicholas nodded, “It was broken in half a long, long time ago.”

“What happens when they’re together?” she asked.

“He plans to kill Merlin with it. I don’t think we need to tell you how bad that would be for all of us.” Emma explained gravely.

“How do you know this?” Regina asked skeptically, “How do I know this isn’t the darkness in you rearing its head?”

“Because I was the one who heard it from Arthur’s mouth.” Nicholas replied with a lie, “We don’t have a lot of time. Arthur’s expecting them soon.”

“He’s the king.” she reminded, “So you guys want to take on all of Camelot?”

“I want to free Merlin first then I can help my parents and stop Arthur.” Emma replied.

“Besides, I destroyed a kingdom before, I can do it again.” Nicholas added as he let the other task of his assignment sink into their minds.

“That’s a great plan, but we have no idea how to get him out of the tree.” Regina reminded.

“You already said it; dark magic.” Emma answered.

“No.” she stiffly shot down, “You can’t keep using it.”

“It’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

“Careful, Emma. I’ve been on that slippery slope. You know where it got me.” she warned.

“All due respect, I’m not you.” Emma politely reminded. Once they returned to the tower, they searched through the multitude of books for the necessary potion they’d been working on. “First thing we need to know is how the potion you’ve been working on will react to my dark magic. Bring me the vial.”

“I’m not doing a damn thing until Nicholas tells me how he really learned how David and Mary Margaret were under a spell.” Regina denied flatly.

“Sis, I told you-”

“A lie.” she cut off, “You may have been able to convince Emma what you said is the truth, but I know you better, dear brother. Now tell me the truth.”

“No.” he flatly refused.

“What?” she asked as her temper rose.

“I don’t need to explain myself to you, sister dear. It doesn’t matter how I learned about Arthur’s plans, what matters is what we do next.” he snapped, “And for the record, even if I could tell you, which I can’t, I wouldn’t on account of having to deal with your attempts to act like my third parent again and lecture me.”

“Wow.” Emma thought, “That one’s obviously been bottled up for a long time.”

“I don’t…I don’t act like a third-”

“Regina, I’m gonna have to stop you there for the sake of not wasting our time,” Emma interrupted, “But, yeah, you kind of do.”

“Whatever.” she said rolling her eyes, “How’re we gonna get Merlin out of the tree?”

“I think I know something that might help us with that.” Emma replied as she pulled out a dreamcatcher from her hood’s pockets, “I saw a memory, Merlin’s memory, in this.”

“Emma, this is dark magic.” Regina stressed as she took it away from the blonde.

“I know.” she replied not seeing the harm.

“These things catch more than dreams.”

“I know.”

“And you have to wave it over someone to capture a memory.” Regina lectured.

“I don’t.” Emma informed which shocked the queen, “This dark magic is stronger, more unpredictable than any magic I’ve ever used. The image just appeared. It showed me what happened to Merlin. Merlin wept for the loss of the only woman he ever loved moments before the Dark One trapped him in the tree using one of his tears.”

“Emma, that’s it.” Regina realized.

“What’s what?” Nicholas asked.

“Sometimes, spells are like snakebites. You can make the anti-venom with the venom. If a tear of lost love trapped Merlin, then another one might be able to get him out.” she explained, “So, what do you two lovebirds say? Let’s go get ourselves a tear.”

“I say, don’t call us lovebirds.” Nicholas dryly replied in distaste. After sneaking out of the tower, the three of them returned to the woods where they found Henry trying, and failing, to wield a sword.

“Henry! Careful.” Regina warned as they approached him.

“Hey…Moms. Uncle.” he said bashfully, “I was, uh, getting in the Camelot spirit. You know, trying to understand this world.”

“By sword fighting?” Emma asked.

“Kiddo, what’s this really about?” Nicholas asked his nephew in concern.

“W-Well, Sir Morgan, Violet’s father, had a little advice for me to fit in. That’s all.” Henry replied while tweaking the truth, “Trouble is, I’m not sure if I’m ever gonna be good at this knight stuff.”

“Well, if you’re not, you’re not. But changing so someone likes you never works.” Emma said gently, “I mean, I liked your dad because he was always himself. And I like your uncle here ‘cause he’s a goofy, sarcastic nerd.”

“Thanks, hun.” Nicholas said with a dry smirk.

“But-but maybe, if I try, I could be something better than I am.” Henry reasoned before looking to Regina, “If you didn’t change for the better, you wouldn’t be with Robin.”

“True.” she nodded, “But do you really think a girl from Camelot would be interested in someone who’s just like every other boy around here? Remember when I told you about Daniel?”

“Yeah, your first love.” he remembered.

“And it wasn’t because he tried to impress me by being like the others. It was because he was so different, so unique.” Regina said smiling.

“And that’s also a reason why your mom fell for me.” Nicholas smirked, “I mean, who’s more unique than I am back home?”

“Henry, in Camelot, you’re a mysterious stranger from an exotic land. That’s a good thing.” Emma stressed with a sly smirk.

“I think I can work with that.” Henry nodded, “Thanks. I have to go make a few arrangements.”

As he ran off and his parents looked at him fondly, an idea in how to free Merlin from the tree popped into Regina’s head. “I think I might know where to get our missing ingredient to free Merlin. From me.”

“Regina, are you sure?” Nicholas asked after they returned to the tower, “This is going to be intense.”

“Last chance to back out.” Emma warned with a vial in one hand and a dreamcatcher in another.

“I can take it.” she said as she mentally and emotionally prepared herself. Sitting across from her, Emma handed over the dreamcatcher and focused on the memory they hoped would provide the key to Merlin’s freedom; the night Cora killed Daniel right before Regina’s eyes. When the memory ended, Regina could barely hold back the tears as the pain she buried long ago resurfaced.

“I’m sorry.” was all Emma could say as Nicholas held his sister’s hand and rubbed her back.

“It was like it was happening all over again.” Regina sobbed as Emma snatched her tear in the vial.

“Got it. Thank you.” she said softly, “I didn’t know how things were for you. I didn’t know…”

“You could see it, too?” Regina asked.

“I’m so sorry. I don’t understand how a mother could do something like that.”

“She thought it was for the best.” Nicholas said sadly as that night played back in his mind as well. To this day, he still felt guilty for not being able to stop Cora in time that night. In his mind, he always blamed himself for Regina becoming the Evil Queen. 

**OUaT**

While Henry had Emma busy with looking for his not-so-secret crush’s missing horse, Regina, Robin, Belle, Hook and Ariel took the chance to try and sneak into her house and learn what she’d been hiding; maybe even get Nicholas back if possible.

“I knew this place looked familiar.” Regina said as they walked to the white-picket gate of the Dark One’s home.

“Shouldn’t it?” Ariel asked, “I mean, you did make this place, after all.”

“Not what I meant. This house, it’s actually Nicholas’s.” she informed.

“I thought your brother lived with you?” Hook asked.

“He does. But this is actually his house.”

“I don’t think any of us follow, Regina.” Belle offered.

“When I cast the first curse, I originally gave Nicholas a house of his own so he could have a place to do his experiments. Only I forgot about his whole ‘night-terrors’ problem and that he didn’t like to be alone after having one. So I offered him to come live with me again and he just up and left the place.” she explained.

“And now Swan’s living in it.” Hook sighed, “She really must be the Dark One if she has the guts to take up residence in another man’s home after doing whatever it is she did him.”

“Why couldn’t he just have let us stay here when the mansion was compromised?” Robin thought as he looked at the large house.

“Showtime. Henry says he’s got Emma occupied.” Regina informed as they reached the front door.

“You told Henry what we’re doing?” Hook asked.

“No, but he’ll let us know when she’s headed back.” she replied. When she tried to open the door, she quickly realized, and felt that the house was covered in a barrier meant to keep certain people out.

“It would appear she doesn’t want you trespassing.” Hook observed.

“You wanna try, pirate?” Regina asked.

“No thanks, I’d rather have at least one hand for my wedding.” he dryly replied.

“She’d let Henry in.” Belle pointed out, “Do you have anything of his on you?”

“I do now.” Regina smirked as she poofed his trademark scarf into her hand and used it to open the door, “Thank you, Henry. You’re our hero.”

Once inside, they found the Dark One’s home to actually look normal. The only thing that really caught anyone’s eye was the door in the back of the closet hall.

“What do you think that leads to?” Ariel asked.

“Why don’t we open it and find out?” Robin suggested as he cautiously opened the wooden door. When they made it down the stone steps into the cave, they saw Excalibur resting in its stone.

“Now we know why she didn’t want anyone inside.” Regina remarked.

“I don’t think she wants anyone to see this, and I think I know the reason why.” Robin informed as he took a close look at the blade’s edges, “Anyone else think Excalibur looks a bit familiar?”

“The dagger.” Belle nodded as she looked at the sword, “It’s the same design, the same edges.”

“What the hell does she want with this?” Regina asked, “And with Gold. What is she up to?”

“Well, given our missing memories, I’d wager whatever it is, it’s not good.” Robin said pointing out the obvious.

“Let’s take a better look at the damn thing and find out.” Hook suggested as he was about to try and pull out the sword.

“Stop!” Regina barked, “I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but it could be booby-trapped. You could get killed.”

“Oh, I didn’t know you cared.” he teased.

“I don’t. But right now, you and you’re future fish-wife are useful; ish.” Regina dryly remarked as Belle noticed and picked up a strand of rope by the cage in front of the stone.

“He was here. Rumple was here.” she informed.

“And now he’s gone.” Robin sighed, “Let’s try searching the rest of the house.”

“No time.” Regina denied as she read a text on her phone, “It’s Henry. She’s on her way back.”

As they walked out of the house as fast as they could, Robin noticed something resting on a coffee table by the window. When he went over, he saw that it was a small octagon box with something inside. “Robin, what are you doing?” Regina asked.

“Take a look at this.” he said as he pulled a dreamcatcher out of the box.

“What’s that?” Ariel asked trying not to look too excited at another land object.

“It’s a dream catcher.” he replied.

“Why would she have it tucked away like that?” Belle asked.

“Because they can be more than just objects of folklore. When imbued with magic, they can be quite powerful.” Regina explained as the gears turned in her head, “I think I know how Emma took our memories.”

**OUaT**

After spending the next couple of hours making the preparations, everything was set up and ready at the courtyard where Merlin’s tree stood in the dark of the night.

“Go on, Emma. Do it. Arthur could be here any second.” Nicholas urged. As Emma carefully mixed the ingredients together, Regina pulled out the vial containing her tear.

“And now for the final ingredient, the tear.” she said. When Emma poured it in, all they saw was a small puff of smoke shoot out of the pot before retreating back.

“Gee, that’s disappointing.” Nicholas remarked.

“It should’ve worked. It should have worked!” Regina snapped.

“Regina,” Emma said gently, “It’s simple. Your heartbreak wasn’t strong enough.”

“What?!” she scoffed.

“No, no, I know it was real. But there’s Robin now. You’ve moved on. You’ve healed.” Emma explained as Henry joined them, only he was not looking his best.

“Hey. Sorry I’m late.” he apologized while trying not to look any of them in the eye.

“Henry, are you okay?” Emma asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” he lied.

“No, you’re not.” Regina said as concern filled their faces.

“Kiddo, what happened?” Nicholas asked.

“I don’t want to talk about it.” he tried to wave off.

“You can tell us anything.” Emma reminded. And that was when the dams Henry called his eyes burst.

“I tried doing what you said. I tried acting like myself. But she didn’t want anything to do with me.” he choked as he began to cry, “Violet’s right, in this world, I’ll never be a hero.”

“You may not be a hero in her world,” Regina gently said as she soaked one of his many tears in a tissue, “But you will be in ours. This’ll work. This tear. Your tear, Henry.”

“It can free Merlin?” he asked.

“You can save me, kid.” Emma praised as her dear son sniffled. As she did, Nicholas’s nose twitched before he hardened his shield on his arms and readied his shadows.

“We’ve got company.” he warned.

“Stop!” Arthur ordered as he and four of his knights approached them, “Stay away from that tree. I won’t ask twice. You and your people have done nothing but lie to me ever since you got here. You’re no Savior. You’re a fraud.”

“Go ahead. Call me a fraud again. I dare you.” Regina growled.

“And what are you?” Nicholas asked, “You’re the damn king of frauds! You haven’t even told your people that the very thing that made you king is broken. You’re a sham.”

“We welcomed you, celebrated you. And how do you repay me? You bring the Dark One into the heart of my kingdom, endangering all who live here. Give me the dagger!” Arthur demanded.

“You want it?” Nicholas asked as his shadows grew and pointed directly at them.

“Come and get it.” Regina taunted as she readied a fireball while giving Emma the tear, “Now, Emma.”

When she added the final piece of the puzzle, streams of light and dark magic swarmed around her as the necessary spell was cast. “It’s working!” Emma cried as she blasted the tree.

When both the light and darkness were used on the tree, what was left of the spell was released into the night as Nicholas and Regina kept the knights at bay. When the tree was gone, a man wearing black and gold robes wearily rose from the ground where it once stood. When he pulled back his hood, the young, bronze face of Merlin was revealed at last.

“I’ve been waiting for you, Emma.” he greeted kindly before dropping his kind face as he looked to Arthur, “And you, the boy who would be king. My great hope. How you’ve disappointed me.”

“I disappointed _you_?” Arthur asked, “You gave me false prophecies. Sent me on an impossible quest! You ruined my life!”

“Put it away, Arthur.” Merlin chastised as the king threatened to pull out his broken weapon, “We both know that broken sword can’t hurt me.”

“…This is not finished.” he promised as he sheathed the blade and left with his men.

**OUaT**

While the block party went on, the heroes decided to let Arthur know they found his sword, but they also wanted to squeeze some answers out of him once they realized he had been lying to them and kept some important details to himself.

“She had Excalibur?” he asked trying to control his frustration.

“Trapped in a stone in her basement.” Hook nodded as he and the others looked coldly at the king.

“Well, then we need to get it back at once. It would be disastrous if the Dark One took possession of it.” Arthur stressed.

“That have anything to do with its striking resemblance to the Dark One dagger?” Hook questioned.

“How do you know about the dagger?” Arthur asked.

“I’ve spent a lifetime trying to end the Dark One’s existence. I know much about the dagger.” he replied, “What I don’t know about is your blade. Care to enlighten us?”

“Yes. There’s a reason they resemble each other. They were forged as one weapon and then broken in two. I’ve spent years trying to reunite them.”

“That’s why you were so interested in the dagger when you arrived.” Snow pointed out as she glared at him.

“I apologize for not telling you sooner, but I had to make sure I could trust you.” Arthur defended, “The restored weapon has great power. It can eradicate all dark magic forever.”

“That’s a good thing.” David nodded.

“Of course.” Arthur agreed, “But in the wrong hands, it can also destroy all light magic.”

“That’s her plan. To snuff out the light forever.” Ariel realized.

“What happened in Camelot?” Snow asked rhetorically, “How did Emma fall so far?”

“What I don’t still understand is why she did what she did to Nicholas.” Belle threw in, “There must be some reason why she decided to take him out of the equation.”

“Maybe he found out what she was planning and tried to stop her?” David suggested, “Or maybe since he’s immune to most magic, whatever was used to take away our memories wasn’t gonna work on him so she did the one thing that would keep him quiet.”

“If that’s the case, then our dear alchemist may know more than we do.” Hook speculated, “We need to find a way to free him.”

“How?” Snow asked, “You saw the way Emma had his Stone that night. There’s no way she’s gonna let it out of her sight.”

“So I guess the real question is, how are we going to get him back and how much help will Nicholas be?” Belle asked.

After the block party was over, Regina decided to take a closer look at the dreamcatcher they took from Emma’s place in hopes to return everyone’s memories. “If Emma used this to rip our memories, maybe it can tell us what happened in Camelot.”

“Well, what are we waiting for?” Robin asked while Regine pursed her lips together, “You’re afraid of what you might see, aren’t you?”

“Emma clearly thought she had good reason for what she did. Who knows what happened to us there?” she asked.

“Well,” the archer sighed, “There’s only one way to find out.”

When Regina waved her hand over the weave, instead of seeing the memories of what happened to Emma, the couple saw Henry talking to Violet at the ball Camelot threw for them.

“Are these Henry’s memories?” Robin asked.

“No.” Regina said no less confused while Henry watched them from the foyer, “No, I think it’s that girl he has a crush on.”

In the memory, Violet was tending to her horse in her father’s stable before she spotted a note Henry left for her. Clearly, it made her happy to see such a thing. But that happiness quickly went away when Emma snuck up behind her and startled the girl.

“Violet, can you keep a secret?” Emma asked.

“Of course.” she chuckled.

“Good. Because Henry can never know about this.” Emma said darkly before she tore out Violet’s heart, “Violet, listen. You will get this back. I just need your help first.”

“W-w-what do you need?” Violet stuttered.

“I need the tear of a lost first love; a fresh tear. I need you to break Henry’s heart.” Emma informed as the words made her sick to her stomach and want to choke.

“What?” Regina asked. As soon as he heard the memory, Henry let the adults know he was there by dropping his bag of popcorn in shock. “Henry.”

**OUaT**

The following morning at Granny’s, Merlin effortlessly removed the spell on David and Snow and freed them from Emma’s spell allowing them to move again.

“There.” he smiled, “That should do it.”

“Emma.” Snow said as her thoughts cleared and she hugged her little princess, “We’re so sorry.”

“If we would’ve known how bad Arthur was, we never would have confronted him on our own.” David explained.

“It’s okay. I’m just glad Merlin could help.” Emma replied as she nodded to the sorcerer.

“Merlin?” David asked as he waved, “You’re Merlin?”

“Expecting someone…”

“Older.” he nodded.

“Yes. Well, let’s just say that being a tree, good for your skin.” Merlin joked.

“Well, now that the great sorcerer is among us, maybe he’ll tell us. Can you do what your apprentice said?” Nicholas asked, “Can you free Emma from the darkness?”

“Sure.” Merlin smiled, “But with a caveat. Darkness like this takes a hold of a person, find its way deep inside, where nobody else can see. So if I am to free you from its grasp, I must know one thing. Emma, is your heart truly ready to be free? Because it is as much up to you as me.”

**OUaT**

The next day in Storybrooke, Regina decided gather the others and inform them what she planned to do with the toadstool Arthur found. All they needed to do was prepare the contacting spell and have someone chosen by Merlin add the Crimson Crown into the brew. When he was brought to the vault to do this, he tricked the others into leaving him alone so he could burn the toadstool in the fire under the cauldron. When he lied to them and told them it didn’t work, Regina stormed back inside the vault to see what when wrong while he went back to his camp.

“You’ve checked over that spell a dozen times, Regina.” Snow reminded.

“Well, I did everything right.” she retorted, “Arthur should have been able to communicate with Merlin.”

“Unless he didn’t want to.” David said as he pulled the burnt toadstool from under the cauldron.

“The Crimson Crown.” Hook gasped.

“Arthur threw it into the fire. He sabotaged the spell.” David said as he began to get angry, “He lied to us.”

“I guess he didn’t realize magical toadstool’s don’t burn.” Regina huffed.

“But why wouldn’t he want us to contact Merlin?” Ariel asked.

“We need to talk to Merlin now more than ever.” Snow sighed.

“Unfortunately, we need someone he’s chosen.” Hook reminded sourly, “The Apprentice is dead. We’re out of options, love.”

“Perhaps not.” Regina disagreed as a, figurative, lightbulb lit over her head, “There is one other person in Storybrooke who was chosen by Merlin; the Author.”

After Snow called Henry, he joined them later clearly still upset over what Emma did to Violet. “Are you sure you’re up for this?” Regina asked in concern.

“I’m fine, Mom.” he assured curtly.

“It’s just, I-I know you’ve been through a lot.” she said gently.

“The person who ripped out Violet’s heart isn’t my mother.” Henry said stiffly, “But Emma is still in there somewhere, and I’ll do anything it takes to get her back.”

“You can do this, lad.” Hook praised before Henry tossed the charred mushroom into the cauldron. In a puff of smoke, Merlin’s distraught face appeared to them. Unfortunately, it wasn’t what anyone was expecting or hoping for.

“If you’re receiving this message, then things are worse than I feared.” he warned.

“I don’t believe this.” Regina blurted, “We’re getting Merlin’s voicemail?”

“There is only one person who can help you defeat the Dark One now. If you want to destroy the darkness, then you must-” Merlin began to say only to be cut off by the sound of explosions in the distance of the message, “No. The Dark One’s found me already.”

And just like that, the message ended and the heroes found themselves with more questions and not a single answer.

“What the hell did Emma do to him?” Hook asked them all.

As this happened, Emma looked out the window of her house with a dark smirk on her face. With her hands behind her back, she watched as Belle and Gold walked out of the yard and headed back to the pawn shop as Nicholas’s Stone glowed around her neck. But in one of her hands, the now freed Excalibur hung loosely in her grip.

But from the cover of the night and the shadows of the trees, Quartermain looked at the Dark One through his binoculars with an angry expression on his face, and his trademark riffle on his back.

“To hell with waiting.” he growled as he rose to his feet and made his way to the unsuspecting villain with every intention to fight her; and if need be, end her.


	54. Nimue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

In the depths of her residence, the Dark Swan placed the two mythical blades on the stone they once hailed from. As she marveled at the glints shining off their steel, Rumplestiltskin decided to pay Emma a visit.

“Beautiful, aren’t they?” he asked happily, “Both halves finally reunited. You know what they represent, now, don’t you?”

“A broken promise.” Emma replied with a dark smile, “When this sword was broken, it, a promise and a heart were all broken in one swift instant. And now that I have the pieces together, I will mend the broken sword and the broken promise.”

“Indeed, you will, dearie.” Rumple giggled as he clapped his hands, “Indeed you will.”

“But first,” she said as she held the Philosopher’s Stone in front of her face, “What to do with you?”

**OUaT**

At Granny’s in the woods, Nicholas watched as Emma sat alone outside making more dreamcatchers through the window as her parents talked with Merlin. “So you can really do it?” David asked, “Take the Dark One dagger, take it with Arthur’s sword to recreate the original Excalibur?”

“I hope so.” Merlin nodded.

“And we can use it to save Emma?” Snow asked.

“Perhaps, but I need two things. The magical means to unite the two blades. That’s my and Emma’s quest. From you, I need-”

“The two blades.” Regina finished.

“We’re pretty much at the open-warfare stage. Now getting the partial sword from Arthur won’t be easy.” Robin pointed out.

“As long as you’re looking at the future, any hints on how?” Hook asked.

“Well, the future isn’t really exact.” Merlin replied, “There are many parts-”

“Of course there are.” Nicholas snapped as he turned to face them, “Well, here’s one that gonna happen for sure by the end of tonight; Camelot, and all her subjects burning in my flames! While we’re sitting here doing nothing, Emma’s out there making things to pull people’s memories out because that’s what she does now instead of sleep!”

“I understand.” Merlin calmly eased, “I know what it is to lose someone you love to the Dark One. All I can ask of all of you is that you bring me that sword and that you have patience with Emma. Her kind of power, for good or evil, it is a weight on the soul. And love is a great help, if you can find it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must speak with Emma.”

When the ancient wizard exited the diner, Nicholas went out the back so he could smoke one of his cigars. As soon as he lit a match, Robin came out to talk with him.

“What was that about?” he asked.

“You’ll have to be a bit more specific with me, Locksley.” Nicholas said with his cigar in his mouth.

“What did you mean when you said you plan on burning Camelot to the ground?” Robin asked as he glared at his comrade.

“Oh, right, I didn’t tell you. The Director contacted me yesterday, told me that he wants us to wipe Camelot off the face of the map and kill Arthur and his followers.” Nicholas replied as he let out a big puff of smoke, “Oh, that’s a good Cuban.”

“Ah. So that’s how you found out about Arthur.” Robin inquired.

“Today’s as good a time as any to do it.” he pointed out, “Hell, we don’t even need to keep Arthur alive, just make sure we get his sword.”

“You know, it’s times like this when I’m glad our jobs don’t require any paperwork for this sort of shit.” Robin cursed bluntly. On the other side of the diner, Merlin approached Emma as she made her dreamcatcher.

“Emma.” he said, “Emma, there is a way to make Excalibur whole again. Will you come with me today so we can get what we need? It’s not far.”

“What is it?” Emma asked.

“A spark from mankind’s original fire, the flame of Prometheus.” he replied, “It’s heat forged Excalibur, and that’s what we’ll need to put it back together. So will you come with me to collect the spark? We’ll be back by nightfall.”

“…You look dire.” she observed, “What is it?”

“…When we get there,” Merlin said after hesitating, “We will need to deal with the first Dark One.”

“The one who wore the mask? The one who killed the woman you loved?” she asked.

“The very same.” he nodded, “This is not a trivial task.”

“I was seeing Rumplestiltskin. Like a voice in my head. I just got rid of him. And now you want me to let another one in?” she asked.

“Yes, and not just anyone. This is the first Dark One, the original, the one from whom all the evil that followed was born.” Merlin explained.

“Will we win?” she asked.

“I see two paths for our journey, Emma.” he sighed, “On one, you resist the darkness and we succeed. On the other, you succumb to the darkness and I do not return. I die.”

“You die?”

“Even immortality has exceptions. A Dark One does have the power to kill me.” he replied.

“But they won’t even be there. Not really.” Emma argued before she realized what he meant, “Oh. It would be me. If you died, it would be me.”

“If I die, it means that you lost your battle and the darkness stained your soul. Everything and everyone that you know will be at the mercy of the most powerful Dark One ever, yourself. No pressure.” he joked.

After Merlin left Emma to collect her thoughts, he went back inside to tell the others. A few minutes later, Nicholas decided to step outside to talk to the woman he loved.

“You’ll be back by nightfall, right?” he asked.

“Yes. We got get this spark thing, and then I’m working my way back to you, babe.” Emma smiled as he drew close to her, “And with a bit of luck, we can put Excalibur together tomorrow, and then bam, no more darkness. And then you, Mr. Secretive, can finally come clean about you’ve been hiding from me.”

“Nothing would make me happier.” he grinned before he kissed her, “You have no idea how big of a pain in the ass it’s been keeping everything under wraps around you guys. But be careful, Emma.”

“I’ll be fine. I’m not dying today. I’m immortal, too.” she reminded.

“Yeah, but I’ve been playing that role a lot longer and I’ll tell you this, immortality brings nothing but pain.” he warned as he tried not to dwell on the negative outcome. Instead, he reached into his pocket and brought out a bronze coin the size of a half-dollar with a coat of arms on one side, and the letters LXG on the other hooked to a strap of leather. It served as the mark of his status as an agent of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

“What’s that?” Emma asked.

“This coin is my most prized possession. I’ve had it for almost half a century and it’s been with me through thick and thin. It was given to me by…someone who made the biggest difference in my life and filled it with purpose. I want you to hold on to it. Maybe give you some luck.” he said as he put it in her hand, “And let it be a reminder that you’ve got, according to you, a goofy, sarcastic nerd who loves you very much waiting for you here.”

Emma couldn’t help herself but smile as she pulled her nerd in for a loving kiss. “I love you, too.”

“Oh, and before I forget, there’s something else I wanna show you.” Nicholas said as he pulled out his phone and showed her a picture of a gray house back in Storybrooke.

“What’s this supposed to be?” she asked.

“Well, this is actually my place.” he replied.

“You live with Regina.” Emma reminded.

“True, but this was the house she originally made for me when she created Storybrooke in the first curse.” Nicholas informed, “Got tons of room. I was thinking that, maybe, once we get the darkness out of you and put everything behind us and go home…you and I can put it to some good use?”

“Are…are you asking me to move in with you?” she asked.

“Yeah.” he said softly, “But only if you’re ready. But just remember, you say no and you leave me to continue living with _Regina_.”

“Are you trying to guilt trip me?” she laughed before kissing him again, “How’s about I give you my answer when I come back?”

“I’ll hold you to it.” Nicholas chuckled before kissing her soft hand one last time and went back to the diner. When he left, Emma turned and saw Merlin looking at her with an unreadable expression.

“It’s time.” he said.

**OUaT**

As the hush of night filled the air of Storybrooke, Allan Quartermain quietly maneuvered to the front yard of the Dark One’s home with his bayonet ready in his hand. After he crossed the white gate and closed it behind him, Quartermain glared at the house with his permanent scowl.

“Come out and face me, Dark One.” he said under his breath. Sure enough, Emma appeared at the base of her porch with her dagger held in a tight grip.

“I don’t know who you are and I don’t care. Leave now and I might just let you live.” she warned darkly.

“I’m only going to say this once, give me the Philosopher’s Stone.” he demanded as he narrowed his eye at her and aimed his riffle at her.

“And what do you want with it?” she asked only to be answered by a bullet in her leg.

“I didn’t come here to talk. I came here for the Stone.” Quartermain informed as he readied the next shot, “Now then, are you going to give it to me or am I going to be taking it by force?”

“Neither,” Emma glared, “Instead, you’re going to die.”

With a flick of her hand, she tried to break his neck with her magic only to see the exact same result when Rumplestiltskin made her do it to Bluebeard. In her brief moment of shock, Quartermain took the chance to shoot her in the chest without any remorse.

“By force it is.” he muttered.

**OUaT**

While Emma and Merlin were off on their journey, the others were devising the best way to infiltrate Camelot and steal Excalibur. Little did anyone know besides Robin and Nicholas, Camelot and her people wouldn’t survive the night.

“Okay, so what’s the plan?” Snow asked.

“We take them by surprise and go in through the front gate.” David explained while both Zelena and Nicholas smacked their heads at the horrible idea.

“Well, after what happened the other night, they’ll be on high alert.” Ariel pointed out, “We need a diversion at the drawbridge. The rest of us can climb the wall on the side.”

“Are you forgetting? I’ve got magic. I can just poof into Arthur’s bedroom.” Regina reminded as Zelena scoffed, “What?!”

“She can’t talk, sis.” Nicholas reminded knowingly.

“Well, if you’re going to make a scene, you might as well make noise.” Regina remarked as she returned their sister’s voice.

“Oh, thank you!” Zelena spoke happily, “I do love hearing a sensible person talk.”

“Spit it out. What are you thinking?” she asked.

“Like Nicholas, I’m thinking going in the front is suicide. And a diversion? Arthur hides the sword. You need it on him. And you could poof right in front of a blade. Oopsie! You need to sneak in so quietly no one knows you’re there.” Zelena lectured.

“Huh.” Nicholas smirked with his arms crossed, “That actually was exactly what I was thinking.”

“I guess brains just isn’t a family trait Regina has.” Zelena taunted.

“How do suggest we get in?” David asked, “Hang glider? Oh, giant slingshot.”

“If Sir-Castic would let me speak, I’d tell you that I wasn’t idle during those days in there, playing mute handmaiden at Regina’s side. I was plotting an escape.”

“I knew it.” Regina sighed.

“And I found a way out. And if I know a way out, I know a way in.” Zelena concluded.

“You’re going to help us?” Nicholas asked.

“Of course.” she said trying to sound with fake sincerity even though she meant it only towards him as she raised her cuffed hand, “Because you’re going to help me. I want my magic back.”

“Done.” Nicholas replied before anyone else could say anything. When the deal was struck, Regina reluctantly poofed them all on the outskirts of Camelot and let the no longer green witch lead the way.

“It’s a tunnel, abandoned for years. It will take you to the courtyard.” Zelena informed.

“Well, if it’s so good, why didn’t you escape through it?” Hook asked.

“Observe the massive metal grate.” she bluntly indicated, “See, without magic, I’m a delicate thing.”

“Well, it leads in the right direction. Looks like your information is good, at least this far.” David observed.

“Thank you. Now I’ve done my part. You can do yours. Take off this bloody cuff.” the witch demanded.

“For all we know, this leads to the guards’ quarters.” Regina argued, “We make it out safe with the sword, then we’ll talk. Mary Margaret, how do you feel about guard duty?”

“Oh, I’d be delighted.” she replied, “We’ll chat, have plenty of pregnancy tips.”

“Good lord, this is worse than being in my cell.” Zelena complained.

“Wait for my signal, then we make our move.” Nicholas whispered to Robin who nodded discreetly as Regina removed the grate and lead them all inside with their weapons ready.

**OUaT**

Despite being endowed with the powers of both Savior and Dark One magic, Emma was failing to hold her own against the old man fighting her. Despite being far out of his prime, Quartermain was still able to easily dodge her attacks and land plenty of his own. That being said, he wasn’t letting his guard down for a moment as she tried to gut him with her dagger. He certainly was glad that he hadn’t shown up later after she combined the two blades; that would’ve made things a bit more difficult.

As she tried to land a blow with her dagger on his face, Quartermain skillfully locked her arm and broke it before grabbing her by the throat and slamming her body on the pavement. Naturally, Emma didn’t let him stay ahead of her for long, so she pushed him into the gate with her magic and looked at him with a frenzy filled expression; one he met with in kind when he saw her pick up his riffle.

“I’m curious,” she said, “What is it about this weapon that allows you to wound me? Is it enchanted? Or are the bullets?”

With a wave of her hand, Emma tried to feel out any and all magic surrounding the riffle. But in a matter of seconds, her dark smile disappeared as she looked at it in confusion.

“This…this is just an ordinary riffle.” she said as she looked back at Quartermain. But when she saw his expression, she nearly faltered when she saw his eyes no longer blue, but pure, dark purple that faintly glowed in the night.

If you recall from previous chapters, Allan Quartermain was often referred to an old tiger. Given his attitude and his natural instincts as a hunter, this is an accurate comparison. However, the terrifying growl emanating from his throat which sounded exactly like a tiger made the comparison all the more befitting. In a complete blur, the Dark Swan found herself being held in the LXG agent’s tight grip as he lifted her by the throat once again and slammed her to the ground. He then picked up his signature weapon, readied the next shot, and pressed the barrel down on her forehead.

“Don’t ever touch this.” he growled before filling her head with lead. True, it couldn’t kill her, but getting shot at point-blank range in the head with a Winchester was more than enough to keep the Dark One down for a few moments. As she groaned and writhed with pain, Quartermain took this one chance to reach around her neck, break the chain and take back the necklace she made out of his subordinate.

Being a man of few words, he simply glared at the former Savior and crushed a transport rock to take him back to the mansion. At the base of the steps to the front door, he looked down at the glowing Stone in his hand and sighed.

“You just love to get yourself into trouble, don’t you?” Quartermain asked, “You better not have lost your memories, too. If not, then you’ve got a lot to explain, Flamel.”

**OUaT**

While the others were literally storming the castle, Emma and Merlin walked through the forest to their mysterious destination. As they trudged up a steep hill, Emma tried to squeeze more answers out of the thousand-year-old wizard.

“When I was seeing Rumplestiltskin in my head, he said he would only be with me until I embraced my dark powers. So recently, I’ve been thinking maybe not seeing him, maybe that’s a bad thing.”

“Have you embraced your powers?” Merlin asked which brought Emma to a halt.

“I’ve done some dark things recently.” she admitted, “I hurt someone; my son. And if I dig deep down…the darkness is winning. But there’s hope, right? You wouldn’t be bothering to get this spark if there wasn’t still hope.”

“There is hope,” Merlin nodded, “And it’s up there.”

“That’s a whole lot of up.” Emma remarked as they craned their necks while looking at the hill.

“We can make it.” Merlin assured, “Question is, will I come down?”

After the two magic users climbed up the hill, they finally reached the ruins of the alter that once proudly displayed the very source of humanity’s true beginning.

“This structure marks the end of Prometheus’ theft. The stolen flame burned on for a great while, long enough for Excalibur to be both forged and broken here. This is where the first Dark One killed Nimue, the woman I loved.” Merlin explained in sadness.

“What happened to the flame?” Emma asked staring at the cold, flameless alter.

“The first Dark One took it and still possesses it in the form of a single ember, with the spark deep inside.” he replied.

“So that’s what I need to get. Okay. Bring him on.” she said firmly as Merlin gave her the dagger, “My family let you take this?”

“I didn’t ask permission. You need its power to talk to the first Dark One, to reach all the way back to the origin of Dark Magic.” Merlin explained as he gave her space.

“It’s buzzing, like ants crawling up my arm. Is it safe?” she asked.

“Of course not. Your power is totally unchecked, and I’ve just handed you the power to kill me. Now, call on the spirit of the previous Dark Ones.”

“…Take the right path. It’s just in my head. It’s just in my head.” Emma whispered as she clutched Nicholas’ coin. As she focused, she watched as the names of the Dark Ones changed rapidly like a slot machine across the dagger. Before she knew it, dressed in black robes and a frightening gold mask, the first Dark One appeared before her.

“You did it.” Merlin gasped.

“You can see him, too?” she asked.

“Yes. Power has its advantages.” Merlin nodded before saying something that shocked Emma to her very core, “And it’s not a him.”

To see what the Sorcerer meant, Emma looked down at the dagger and saw the name of the first Dark One, Nimue. Looking back up, Emma watched the spirit take off the mask and reveal the stone colored face of the woman Merlin once loved.

“Nimue.” Emma said.

“Yes. I am Nimue.” she nodded, “And you are Emma. How pretty, the first Dark One and the newest Dark One standing as sisters.”

“It makes sense.” Emma realized as the pieces put themselves together, “You killed the woman he loved because you killed the woman you used to be. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I did tell you.” Merlin replied as he choked back the pain and tears, “The creature over there is the first Dark One. It’s not the woman I loved.”

“It’s been a long time, Merlin.” Nimue greeted.

“…I’ve thought of you every day.” he confessed sadly.

“And now, on your last day, I’ll be your last thought. How poetic.” she sneered as she made Emma blast him back with her magic.

**OUaT**

As Quartermain exited the fireplace with the Stone in his fist, the other members, including Robin flooded into the meeting room in hopes to see their leader return victorious.

“Do you have it?” Sawyer asked from the level above the floor, “Did you get the Stone?”

“What’s it look like?” Quartermain asked as he held up the Stone while walking, “Contact Skinner. Have him bring back the water, now.”

“Already here, Allan.” Skinner informed as he hurried over with a beaker filled with the enchanted water.

“I called him the moment we realized you went out on your own.” Mina informed as she and Nemo hurried over to the table. When they were all together around the nearest coffee table, they looked down at the beaker with longing hope on their faces.

“Do you really think this’ll work?” Robin asked.

“We better hope so.” Quartermain said shaking his head as he held the Stone by the chain over the water, “Because I just shot the Dark One in the head. Chances are she’s pissed off.”

“I just hope he remembers everything.” Nemo commented.

“Why don’t we ask him and find out?” Mina asked, “Mr. Q, if you’d please?”

Nodding his head, the leader of the team dropped the Philosopher’s Stone into the beaker as everyone’s eyes followed its path as it fell. With a thunk, the source of their friend’s immortality and existence sank to the bottom of the container. At first, nothing happened. But just as Sawyer was about to complain, the water turned as red as blood and began to surge with red electricity as the beaker violently shook.

“I suggest we all stand back a little.” Quartermain offered as they all took cover. In an instant, the beaker exploded and left the Stone floating in midair for a second before flesh, bones and tissue began to erupt from it. Looking over the chairs and couches they hid behind, the League agents watched as Nicholas grotesquely rebuilt his body and cried out in pain. When he was done and the lights were gone, he was left naked and soaking wet on the floor as he panted with an angry look on his face.

Quartermain then went over to him and draped his old duster coat over the alchemist as he helped him to his feet.

“Nicholas?” he asked, “Are you alright?”

“…Where’s my goddamn pipe?” he asked as he continued to catch his breath.

“He’s okay.” Sawyer chuckled. Strangely enough, Robin had Nicholas’ pipe on him ever since they returned home so after Mina brought him a white bathrobe, the archer returned the pipe and lit it for the weary alchemist.

“How long has it been?” Nicholas asked as they sat by the fireplace.

“It’s been a couple of weeks since we came back. Almost nine in all since Emma became the Dark One.” Robin replied.

“I’m guessing that’s still an issue, then?” he asked.

“Considering that I just had a brief brawl with her, yes, I’d say so.” Quartermain dryly informed.

“And before you ask, we barely have a month left until the Promised Day arrives.” Mina added.

“And we’re still a sacrifice short since the Apprentice’s death.” Sawyer reminded.

“What’s been going on around town?” Nicholas asked as he made a ring of smoke.

“Not much.” Nemo replied, “The Dark One hasn’t made much contact with anyone as of late. Robin only recently found out that she’s been hiding Excalibur in its stone here while having Rumplestiltskin trained to become a hero to remove it for her.”

“And I happened to watch the crippled bastard leave with Belle before I engaged. By that alone, it’s obvious that he succeeded in removing the sword for her.” Quartermain informed.

“Well, that’s just great.” Nicholas said sarcastically, “Exactly what we need right now.”

“The good news is you haven’t miss Hook and Ariel’s wedding yet.” Skinner pointed out in a failed attempt to lighten the mood, “Right, not important. But on a serious note, how you two going to explain your return, Nicholas?”

“At this point, it doesn’t really matter what we tell them.” Nicholas huffed, “What matters is taking care of the Dark One, once and for all. What’s everyone doing?”

“Sleeping, most likely.” Robin scoffed, “It’s only an hour until sunrise.”

“How’s Zelena and the baby?” he asked in concern for his present and future family members.

“For now, safe. Regina put her back in her cell below the hospital after we got back and has managed to keep her there since.” Robin replied in slight distaste.

“Good because we need to make sure she’s not where anyone will pay much attention to her.” he informed.

“What do you have in mind?” Mina asked.

“We need to speed up her pregnancy.” Nicholas firmly informed.

“What?!” Robin exclaimed.

“Whoa, mate, are you sure?” Skinner asked.

“That’s a bit much even for us, don’t you think?” Sawyer asked.

“Hey, I don’t like it anymore that you guys. We’re talking about my sister and unborn nephew/niece here.” Nicholas defended, “But unless he finds a new sacrifice and another one to replace her, Zelena’s gonna run the risk of losing the baby completely if it stays inside her for the next month.”

“Can we even do that?” Skinner asked.

“Well, there are plenty of potions that are actually made specifically for this.” Mina answered, “The most it’ll do is cause Zelena some pain as her uterus and body rapidly adjusts to the growing fetus until she goes into labor. At that point, the potion will have run its course and the baby will be ready to pop out.”

“Well, actually, I meant are allowed to do that?” Skinner corrected, “I mean, I know the Director has us do some dark things, but is this something he draws the line at?”

“I don’t know.” Quartermain shrugged, “If he finds out, I, uh, guess we’ll know.”

“And this won’t harm my child?” Robin asked.

“The only pain it’ll feel is having its body gets pushed out of her…yeah.” Nicholas awkwardly assured, “After that, the potion will no longer be in effect and it’ll age and grow normally.”

“How would we even go about giving her the potion?” Nemo asked.

“Nemo, that’s the easy part.” he replied, “I’m just gonna cover her food with it and give it to her in her cell.”

“You know she’s probably gonna tell you spiked it even if her magic’s cut off, right?” Sawyer asked.

“Then I’ll give her something she’s been craving. She’s not gonna care about checking for laced potion in it if she’s being driven by pregnancy cravings.” Nicholas pointed out, “Now if all of you will excuse me, I’m going to Granny’s for the early bird hour.”

“You can’t be serious. We’re facing an emanate crisis and you’re going to Granny’s?” Robin asked.

“Hey! I’ve been a rock for the past couple of weeks!” he snapped as he transmuted his clothes on under the robe, “I may go without sleep for weeks on end, but I don’t exactly do that when it comes to food. So, yes, I plan on eating my fill of cheap, tasty diner food before I take on the goddamn Dark One again!”

“Wow.” Mina scoffed as Nicholas stormed out, “He gets cranky when he’s hungry.”

“Right then.” Robin said awkwardly, “I’ll, uh, I’ll just go get the others over to Granny’s then.”

After Robin called the others and told them about Nicholas’ return, they all hurried over to the diner and found the Immortal Alchemist stuffing his face in a booth surrounded by empty, dirty plates, bowls and cups. Surprisingly, Regina was the last to show up.

“Where is he?” she asked frantically, “Where’s my brother?!”

“Over there,” Granny said bluntly from the register, “Eating me out of business.”

“Oh, Nicholas! I’m so glad you’re okay.” Regina said as happy years formed in her eyes while she hugged her brother as he ate.

“Go away. Eating.” he said as he stuffed his face. Hearing this made Regina drop her happy expression and caused her to poof all of the remaining plates away. “Okay, I’ll admit that was rude of me. But that was uncalled for on your part.”

“Ugh, fine.” she groaned as she summoned a plate of chicken and waffles.

“What, no hot sauce?” he asked as she gave him her signature death glare, “Kidding. Just kidding. Thank you, sis.”

“How the bloody hell are you back?” Hook asked.

“Not important. What I wanna know is why the hell does it smell like home out in the woods?” Nicholas asked as he drank his coffee.

“Ah, that would probably Arthur’s subjects camping out there.” Snow replied.

“What?!” Nicholas exclaimed as he choked on the beverage, “Why the hell would you guys let them stay here?!”

“Well, after Emma brought them here in the curse, we-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait.” Nicholas interrupted as David spoke, “We came back in a curse? Okay, well, even if we did, after what those jerks tried to pull with us, you still let them stay here?!”

“What are you talking about, Nicholas?” Ariel asked.

“Oh, for God’s sake!” he cried as he smacked his forehead, “She took away your memories, didn’t she? Oh, that bitch!”

“Hey!” David exclaimed as he grabbed the alchemist’s collar, “That’s my daughter you’re talking about!”

“Not really!” Nicholas retorted.

“Flamel, mate, what the bloody hell happened between you two there?” Hook asked, “Did you have a falling out, or something?”

“…You guys seriously don’t remember?” he asked with a baffled look.

“No, we told you. Emma took our memories.” Regina reminded.

“Okay, first of all, no, she didn’t.” Nicholas corrected, “Second of all, that’s not Emma.”

**OUaT**

“Why are you doing this?” Emma asked, “You loved him.”

“Even when you love someone, you have to say, ‘No, this is mine. You can’t take it away from me.’ And if they don’t listen, if they try to stop you from being you, then you have no choice. You have to kill them. Oh, and you’re doing this,” Nimue corrected as she made Emma dash over and pin Merlin down by the throat, “Because we are one and the same now, all Dark Ones, and we must destroy the threat to us. We must destroy Merlin.”

“Emma, please.” Merlin choked.

“It’s not me!” she struggled to say.

“Finish the job!” Nimue ordered.

“Don’t listen!” Merlin pleaded.

“He wants you to make a sword to destroy me, to destroy us.” Nimue hissed.

“You can control this.” he coached.

“Don’t listen to him!” Nimue spat as she appeared on Emma’s other side, “He doesn’t understand what you and I do. He doesn’t understand the power. If you don’t kill him now, you’ll go back to being powerless.”

“Killing is the dark path.” Merlin tried to warn.

“No! It’s power to protect yourself and your loved ones!” Nimue shouted, “If you knew what was coming, you’d do anything to keep this power to save those you love.”

“Let the light win.” Merlin choked.

“Kill him! Don’t go back to being nothing!”

“I’m not nothing!” Emma shouted in defiance, “I was never nothing! The power you have I don’t need! Now I am going to take that ember from you, and you are going to let me.”

“No,” Nimue smiled as Emma found herself in the same spot Nimue stood and Nimue where she stood only a second before with the dagger in her hand, “I won’t.”

“What did you do?” Emma asked as fear began to take root inside.

“Stupid girl,” Nimue sneered, “Did you really think that me, Nimue the _first_ Dark One wouldn’t take advantage of the situation?”

“Emma?” Merlin asked nervously as the scene played out differently in his eyes. Instead of seeing Nimue hold the dagger, he saw Emma hold it with another Emma in black looking afraid. The only thing that made him afraid was Nimue’s name was still on the dagger.

“Oh, she’s not in control, anymore, beloved.” Emma said with a dark look on her face as she held the dagger in front of her at Merlin, “No. There is only the darkness. There is only _Nimue!_ ”

As she cried out her name, the first Dark One used the dagger to absorb the light version of her magic from Merlin and absorb it into the source of her power.

“No!” Emma cried as Nimue absorbed the streams of magic into her and let it envelope the body she had just stolen. As the magic turned black and covered her body, Nimue laughed evilly with the dagger in her hand as she took on a new form; of befitting for _the_ Dark One. When the magic was sucked into the dagger, Emma looked in horror at what Nimue had done to her body.

No longer was her hair golden and curly, it was now a sickly pale gray kept in a tight bun similar to what Nimue originally had. Her skin was no longer tanned after spending weeks in the sun in Camelot, now it was pale enough to be considered almost bleached with nothing but bright red lips to add color to her face. And finally, instead of the white dress and hood she wore since arriving to Camelot, she wore a tight, black coat with a lace trail below her tailbone with black leggings and black heels that seemed purposely sharp enough to pierce flesh.

“I suppose this will do until I can maintain my true appearance.” Nimue smirked as she relished in the feeling of having a body again. Emma couldn’t bring herself to say or do anything after having witnessed what just happened. Merlin, on the other hand struggled to look up at the new version of his lover as she crouched down and stroked his face.

“Looks like the light failed you once again, Merlin.” she taunted darkly before looking at Camelot in the distance, “And now, it’s time I make good on our promise.”

“No, no, no.” he begged, “Nimue, please. You don’t have to do this.”

“You are right.” Nimue said in Emma’s voice now hoarse and dark, “But I am the Dark One. It’s something I want to do. And you,” she said turning to Emma with the dagger directed at her, “I hope the others will enjoy your company. For you will have plenty of time to get to know them all.”

“No, don’t!” Emma shouted as she tried to take the dagger, but Nimue made her vanish with just a simple wave.

“Look out, Camelot.” Nimue said as she gazed at the castle.

**OUaT**

After struggling to return to the basement, Nimue made it to the stone with the dagger in one hand, and the spark necessary to reunite the blades in the other.

“Well, well, that was unexpected.” Rumplestiltskin giggled at her side, “Curious, don’t you think? That whoever that was didn’t seem interested in the one thing that can control us. Not like he needed it given how easily he mopped the floor with you.”

“Well, at least he didn’t keep score as he did it.” Nimue retorted, “After all, that’s what the alchemist did to you when he was still just a boy, correct? Now before you try and fail to sound humorous, be quiet. It’s finally time.”

“Quite right, I apologize.” Rumple smirked with a playful bow, “This is, after all, something historical. We all wish to see it. And we’re so very proud. All of us.”

“All of us.” the other Dark Ones chorused as they appeared in the cave. But as they said they were all proud, the real Emma Swan who was bound in chains in her black robes on the ground looked at the woman who stole her body with pure hatred.

Seeing this, Nimue looked down on her and smirked as she ignited the flame and raised the two blades together. With a thrust, after centuries of separation, the two halves became whole once more at the hand of she who broke the blade. Unlike last time, Nimue didn’t get the chance to marvel at the blade’s beauty. Now that it had been remade by her hands, it seemed even better than before in her eyes.

“Look out, Storybrooke,” she said darkly, “Darkness is coming.” 


	55. Birth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

While Nicholas and the others were having their discussion at Granny’s, Zelena was making the most out of her time beneath the hospital as much as a magicless, pregnant witch could. Despite being beyond irritated and bored, she found a way to look past both by reading to the little one growing inside her as the morning sun shined through the glass in her cell. Upstairs on the main floor of the hospital, another redhead dressed in a nurse’s outfit carried a tray of food with a plastic cover over to the entrance to the basement.

“Breakfast for the witch.” she said to the older nurse at the desk while the ever silent patient with the mop cleaned the floors.

“It’s a bit early for that.” she replied clearly cranky from getting up so early.

“True, but it’s important for the baby to receive plenty of healthy nutrients at this stage.”

“…Who are you?” the nurse asked, “I haven’t seen you here before. What’s your id number?”

But before she could receive an answer, the older nurse felt a swift chop to the neck before everything went black and hitting her head on the desk.

“Told you we should’ve waited for Nicholas to do this.” Skinner said to Mina who sighed and shook her head.

“I agree; this would’ve gone smoother if that were the case. But you know as well as I that the ‘heroes’ are not going to let him out of their sights anytime soon now that he’s back.” she reasoned, “Besides, the sooner she eats this, the sooner the effects will kick in and we’ll have one less inconvenience for our plans.”

“Lord knows we’ve got plenty of those already.” Skinner nodded despite being invisible, “Though, I don’t think eating a plate of greasy onion rings from Granny’s is ‘nutritious’ enough for a baby at this stage.”

“Well, what nurse would give a pregnant prisoner onion rings, in a hospital no less?” Mina asked as she unlocked the cell door and took a look at Zelena for the first time. Surprisingly, despite them only being half-siblings, she could see more of a resemblance between her and Nicholas than Regina.

“I swear, if that is yet another plate of nothing but green vegetables with nothing but that Godforsaken Naked Juice to wash it down, I’m going to eat my bloody fingers instead!” Zelena threatened hotly. Naturally, neither League agent was impressed by the outburst.

“I believe you’ll find this menu change a bit more enjoyable.” Mina calmly replied as she uncovered the plate and presented the laced onion rings, “Bon appetite.”

When she was left alone after the cell was locked, Zelena broke her act and made a rush for the greasy comestibles. But before she dug in, she noticed a small card sitting next to the plate.

_Hope you like ‘em. You don’t win friends with salad, you know. ;)_

_-N_

“Well,” Zelena smirked, “I was wondering when you’d get back in the game.”

Thoughts on her brother aside, the Wicked Witch scarfed down the onion rings, completely unaware that they were laced with a potion.

**OUaT**

Having snuck past the guards, the angry party barged into the throne room where they found Arthur with three of his best knights. “Foul witch,” Arthur hissed at Regina, “You’ve over powered the guards!”

But with a mere flick of her hand, Regina was able to stop them with her magic and made their weapons disappear.

“Sword’s on the table.” Robin indicated while keeping his bow, loaded with three arrows, on the knights.

“Careful, don’t touch it.” Hook warned, “It may have protection charms.”

“Tell your timbers to stop shivering, pirate.” Regina said curtly, “Nothing in here can hurt us. Arthur doesn’t know how to do magic.”

“Looks like we got what we came for.” Nicholas smirked darkly as he grabbed Excalibur and examined it, “Okay, Robin, we can start now.”

“Start what?” David asked.

“Oh, finally.” Robin exhaled as he let his arrows fly and pierce each of the knights’ hearts.

“Robin?!” Regina exclaimed as the bodies dropped. As they did, Nicholas opened the nearest window and used his flame alchemy on the courtyard; the sound of people screaming in fear and agony quickly followed the sound of his fingers snapping.

“What the bloody hell are you two doing?!” Hook shouted. Instead of answering, Nicholas used his alchemy to slide the floor underneath their feet and sent them on their backs as it quickly turned liquid around their arms/legs before reverting to normal and trapping them.

“Oh, we’re just doing our job.” Nicholas said with a dark smile before backhanding Arthur so hard, he landed in his throne with Nicholas’ spears at his throat. “Now then, how should we go about killing you?”

“So many choices, all of which seem like fun.” Robin chuckled shocking everyone; especially Regina. “Oh. Perhaps we should cut open his veins and let him slowly bleed to death as his kingdom and people burn?”

“Hmm…tempting.” Nicholas mused, “But I was thinking more like a… _psychotic Emperor Nero_ kind of killing. Like we tear out his spine, impale him to a spike and burn his corpse like a torch.”

“Hmm, no. Let’s not use too much fire regarding the killings in this mission. It seems a bit redundant.” Robin disagreed, “I know! How about a classic? We should use the _Blood Eagle_ technique.”

“I like, I like.” Nicholas nodded while Arthur became afraid, “You know, you can’t beat the classics; you just can’t.”

“ _Blood Eagle_ it is.” Robin smirked as they grabbed Arthur’s arm and shoved him to the ground where Nicholas created to poles with chains for the king.

“Robin!” David shouted as he and the others struggled to break free, “Nicholas, stop!”

“Sorry, pal.” Nicholas said even though he didn’t feel sorry at all, “But orders are orders.”

“And quite frankly…we really want to do this.” Robin chuckled as he pulled out a hunting knife, “All hail King Artie!”

“That’s Arthur, you miserable ingrate!” Arthur spat as Nicholas was about to cuff his wrists.

“Yeah, we don’t care.” Nicholas bluntly replied as he pated the king’s back. Just as Robin was about to bind Arthur to the other pole, the bright sunny day outside turned pitch black night in an instant. And if it hadn’t been for his heightened senses, Nicholas wouldn’t have raised his guard when he smelt someone new arrive.

“Please, don’t stop on my account.” Nimue said in Emma’s body as she sat with her legs crossed on the Round Table.

“Emma?” David asked in shock.

“What’s the matter, Daddy? Don’t recognize your little girl?” she asked teasingly. They all looked at her with their mouths agape; all of them but Nicholas.

“Who the hell are you?” he growled as he readied his shadows.

“Don’t you know?” Nimue asked with a fake pout, “Nicky, I’m hurt. It’s me, Emma.”

“You’re not Emma.” he spat, “You don’t smell like her. You reek of death and darkness like Gold. Now, I’ll ask politely, one last time, who the hell are you? Tell me the truth, or I’ll burn it out of you, you worthless scum!”

For a moment, she tried not to break character but Nimue couldn’t hold back her evil laughter for very long. When she was done, she smirked at Nicholas smugly before coming clean.

“Well, damn.” Nimue sighed, “I was really looking forward to destroying all of you with my little act. No matter; I can still do that just as easily like this. Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Nimue, the first Dark One.”

“…You guys can get up now.” Nicholas said as he freed his friends without taking his glaring eyes off of Nimue. As he did, Arthur ran like a coward and got away.

“You must be…Nicholas.” Nimue stated, “So you’re my latest successor’s true love, then?”

“What of it?” Nicholas asked as he kept his rage in check.

“Hmm, she’s got good taste, I’ll give her that.” she smirked while checking him out.

“Sigh…well, I guess that makes two Dark Ones that are attracted to me.” Nicholas groaned, “I’m having mixed feelings about that. So are you going to tell me why you look like Emma?”

“Believe it or not, this is Emma’s body. I’m just using for a while until I can maintain my true appearance permanently. Although,” she said seductively, “If you want, you and I can put this body to good use until then.”

“I’d sooner have anal sex with my boss.” he flatly denied.

“Ugh!” Robin shuddered in disgust, “I didn’t need that mental picture. Thank God I’m not on your team.”

“What have you done to Emma?” Nicholas asked as the others raised their guards for the obvious conflict.

“That foolish girl is paying the price for trying to control me.” she answered, “In a manner of speaking, our souls have simple traded places. You should’ve seen her face! The utter shock, the dumb confusion. You could see every emotion she felt as she realized after weeks of fighting, she finally lost to the darkness. Ah! It was wonderful. And now that I control her body, with her tucked away with the rest of the souls of the previous Dark Ones and Merlin’s magic combined with both Emma’s and my own, I shall finally, after so many years and lifetimes, fulfill the goal of the Dark One; to snuff out the light.”

“I’ve heard enough! You were stupid to confess, and even more stupid to boast. Everything you’ve said is fuel on your funeral pyre.” Nicholas said as his face twisted in rage while he tightened his glove, “So then, I’ll think I’ll begin by burning out your tongue!”

**OUaT**

It took time, but Nicholas was able to explain everything that happened after Nimue took control of Emma’s body. Needless to say, they were all shocked and didn’t know what emotion best suited them. The only one who could break past their unreadable expressions was Snow who was trying her best not to cry.

“It may be hard to swallow, but it’s the truth.” Nicholas said as gentle as he could be, “That’s not Emma. It never was.”

“How do we get her back?” Ariel asked once she found her voice.

“I don’t know.” he replied hopelessly, “Normally, I would’ve been able to come up with at least five alternate options that would guarantee our success. But now, now all I see is just one. We have to destroy the darkness and hope that Emma comes back to us.”

“Do we know what it is this Nimue person is planning?” Hook asked.

“Unfortunately, I wasn’t in the mood for asking too many questions at the time. So, no, I have no idea how Nimue plans to go about snuffing out the light.” the alchemist answered, “And as much as all of you hate it, all we can do is be patient and wait for her to make her move. I wouldn’t be surprised if she hadn’t reforged Excalibur already. It won’t be long now.”

“So that’s it?” David asked, “You expect us to sit around and do nothing?”

“David,” Nicholas sighed, “I understand you’re-”

“No, you don’t!” he shouted slamming his fist on the table, “You have no understanding of what I’m feeling! My daughter is being possessed and not in control of her own body and you sit here saying that we should do nothing?!”

“For now.” he calmly corrected, “We do nothing for now. If we charge into this blindly, we may end up giving Nimue exactly what she wants, whatever that might be. We can’t afford to be reckless.”

“Didn’t seem to stop you from the way you tell it.” Snow snapped bitterly.

“Yeah, and that ended with me becoming an accessory.” he reminded, “Nimue isn’t a pushover, believe me. We’re talking about the first Dark One who not only has Emma’s magic to back up her own, but Merlin’s as well; and she has Excalibur. Even I know that’s enough magic to spell out trouble for all of us. If you guys wanna go ahead and charge head first without a plan, be my guests. Just remember, I only survived because I’m immortal. Can any of you say the same?”

“He’s right.” Regina agreed, “We knew how to deal with Rumple, but this Dark One, this Nimue, we have no idea how she operates. And if she’s as powerful as Nicholas says she is, we’d be dead before we knew it.”

“Exactly.” Nicholas nodded.

“Well, since you fought her, do you know any of her weaknesses?” Robin asked.

“Yep. You see, like all Dark Ones, Nimue has no idea how to fight. She has no technique, no skills and she relies on both her magic and immortality too much.” he explained, “Not to mention, when we fought, she tried to toy with me in hopes of getting inside my head instead of actually trying to attack me. In other words, she’s an arrogant shrew that can’t fight; much like Gold.”

“And how the bloody hell does that help?” Hook asked.

“Because I happen to be an immortal who does know how to fight. And as long as I keep my cool and not let her get the upper hand again, Nimue will have her hands full while you guys figure out how to take care of the darkness once and for all.” Nicholas explained before feeling his phone vibrate from the text he was waiting on from Mina.

“What are you gonna do?” Snow asked.

“Well, as of now, I have an appointment to go to. You’ll know when I’m done when you hear the screaming in the background of the hospital’s phone call. Ciao.” he said before transmuting himself to the hospital.

In her cell, Zelena was reading aloud the story of Hansel and Gretel to her baby. As she did, Nicholas appeared standing before her with a mysterious smile on his face.

“I’ve always thought how funny these sugar-coated versions of our stories are compared to what actually happened, don’t you?” he asked.

“Not as funny as hearing word of the Immortal Alchemist being turned into jewelry by his crazy girlfriend.” Zelena mocked as she set the book aside and crossed her arms, “What do you want, little brother?”

“Now is that any way to greet me after being stuck like that these past few weeks?” he asked pretending to act hurt, “I’m hurt. I even bought you onion rings.”

“I suppose I should say thanks for the nosh.” she reluctantly admitted.

“You know, you don’t remember this, but we actually grew pretty close in Camelot.” Nicholas said with a sad smile.

“Please.” she scoffed rolling her eyes.

“It’s true.” he said sincerely, “Whenever I wasn’t helping Emma and when you weren’t pestering Regina, we actually connected. Like brothers and sisters should.”

“Should my heart be fluttering with hope?” she asked sarcastically, “Why would you go out of your way to try anything like that?”

“Because aside from Regina, you’re the only blood I’ve got left.” he replied, “I don’t care what you’ve done in the past, Zelena. You’re my sister, my family. Besides, compared to what Regina and I have done, you’ve done almost nothing; you know, besides tricking a man into thinking you were his wife and getting him to knock you up.”

“…You didn’t come here just for that.” Zelena said as she tried to figure out his intent, “This is more than just a touching brother-sister moment.”

“Shrewdness does run in the family.” Nicholas nodded, “And you’re right. I came here to apologize in advance for what’s about to happen.”

“What?” Zelena asked before she felt her baby kick. At first she was happy, but when the kicks became harder and she began to feel pain, that happiness went away.

“This.” he said stoically, “You know, you really should’ve questioned why a hospital would allow a pregnant prisoner onion rings in the first place before eating them. For what it’s worth, sis, I am sorry about this. But you’ll thank me in the upcoming month.”

“You bastard!” Zelena cried in pain as her stomach began to grow and as he left the cell. Once he called Robin and Regina, they helped her upstairs and wheeled her up to the maternity ward.

“Just keep calm and breathe.” Robin coached.

“Shut up!” Zelena snapped, “I was a fake midwife, I know the drill.”

“Nicholas, why the hell did you do this?!” Regina exclaimed.

“I have my reasons.” he curtly replied over his other sister’s screaming, “I bet none of us are ever gonna look at onion rings the same way after this though, eh?”

**OUaT**

“Get out of here, all of you.” Nicholas ordered as he gave Nimue a terrifying glare, “I’m taking her on my own. This one is mine and mine alone.”

“Everyone, we should heed his words and leave.” Robin advised before Nimue stopped them by shutting the only entrance.

“I don’t recall giving you permission to leave.” Nimue pointed out, “I came here to cause pain and misery and that’s exactly what you’ll-gah!”

As Nimue spoke, Nicholas snapped his fingers and incinerated her tongue mid-speech. “Keep your eyes on me, Dark One.” he spat, “Our conversation is the only one that should concern you. It’s kind of interesting how quickly the tongue can be rendered to a bubbling grease. It’s surprising how easy it burns, isn’t it?”

“Regina,” David asked, “Do you really think we should-”

“David, if you think it’s bad when I get angry, you haven’t seen anything yet. Not when Nicholas gets like this.” Regina cut off as her brother’s face turned murderous.

“Are you sure?” he asked.

“You heard my sister, shepherd.” Nicholas growled, “And unless you want to get caught in the crossfire, go. And, Locksley, don’t forget why we’re here.”

“Roger.” he nodded as he led the others out.

“Dammit.” Nimue growled as her tongue finished healing, “You’ve made a mistake in facing me, alchemist. A grave mistake, indeed. When I’m done with you, I swear, I’ll make each of your family pay!”

But Nicholas couldn’t care less about what she was saying. All he cared about was bringing her pain and to do just that, he delivered a powerful punch to her solar plexus before grabbing her head and smashing it through the window and tossing her into the courtyard.

“Rumplestiltskin always managed to disappoint me whenever we fought.” he said as he made a staircase from the wall that led to the courtyard, “I hope the first Dark One can prove herself to be better.”

“Oh, you’ll see what I can do, no question!” Nimue shouted as she readied two balls of black fire in her hands. Nicholas easily dodged them like a kid would dodgeballs before snapping his fingers again; only this time instead of her tongue, he made her eyes burst with flames.

“What’s it like having the fluid inside of your eyes boil?” he asked, “I’d imagine it might sting a little.”

“Damn you!” she wailed just as he enveloped her and a large portion of the castle in fire.

“I’m never going to understand why so many people are afraid of Dark Ones. They can’t fight and all they ever do is talk. Just like you, you idiot.” Nicholas glared, “Stand up, demon! Go on and heal yourself. You’ll suffer a thousand deaths before I’m done.”

“Go to hell!” Nimue cried as she flung multiple nearby swords at him, all of which bounced off his shield as she scrambled away.

“You cowardly bitch!” he roared. Not in any mood to play hide and seek, Nicholas used both gloves to unleash two powerful blasts of fire that began to consume the castle and destroy parts of its foundation. As the blasts were made, Nicholas could hear Nimue cry out as it enveloped her.

“Show yourself, Nimue!” he ordered as he moved through the smoke.

“Dammit.” she cursed behind her flaming source of cover before scampering away.

“Come out now. Otherwise I’m gonna ignite your bone marrow!” he threatened before hearing footsteps behind him. With his hand at the ready, he turned and saw Emma looking the way she did on their anniversary.

“Nicky, help me.” she pleaded as Nicholas’ eyes widened. When she saw this, Nimue charged at him with an evil animalistic smile.

“Stupid fool, he won’t kill the girl!” she thought. But she was proven wrong when Nicholas growled at her and engulfed her body in the flames of hatred he was tending.

“What’s wrong with you?!” she cried in agony while writhing in pain in the fire, “You didn’t even hesitate to incinerate the woman you love!”

“I can tell when it’s Emma I’m talking to.” Nicholas said as his face tightened with rage, “And you dare to invoke her image like that? You must be a glutton for punishment!”

The next blast was so powerful, it sent Nimue’s flaming body into the farthest wall like cannon fire. “Damn!” she shrieked as her body burned and healed while charging at him, “I’ll show you real punishment!”

But as the first Dark One got close to him, her anger fueled confidence, literally, went up in flames when Nicholas incinerated her eyes again. She found herself writhing on the ground again in unimaginable pain as the alchemist loomed over her menacingly.

“My eyes!” Nimue cried, “They’re gone!”

“So, I’m curious.” Nicholas said in a dark tone, “Were you trying to get close so I wouldn’t use heavy fire? You didn’t know I could do pinpoint aiming? Too bad for you, because I can!”

Even louder cries of pain tore through Nimue’s throat as the Immortal Alchemist burned her flesh. Fear began to consume her as she realized he was too strong for her. So with no other choice, Nimue poofed herself away from the burning castle and fled from the battle. But even with all the burning stone, wood, flesh and smoke in the air, Nicholas was still able to find her scent and traced it back to the woods where Granny’s was.

“You’re not getting away.” he snarled as he transmuted himself to the diner in pursuit.

**OUaT**

In the hospital, the sound of Zelena screaming filled the halls as the pains of labor coursed through her body seven months sooner than she imagined.

“Someone scream for a doctor?” Dr. Whale asked sporting a platinum blonde look instead of his natural brunette color.

“There is an angry baby inside of me. Get it out!” Zelena shouted.

“You know, the last time I delivered a baby, you tried to steal it. But why try to steal one when making one is so much more fun, right?” Whale asked jokingly before stretching his gloved hand out to Zelena, “Dr. Whale.”

“Do you make a point to include innuendo in each of your sentences or is it some kind of tick you have?” Nicholas asked bluntly finding the doctor’s joke inappropriate.

“We really need another doctor in this town.” Regina remarked, “And what’s with the dye job?”

“Oh, so-so Emma changes her hair and no one makes a fuss, but I get ridiculed? Yeah?” Whale asked feeling offended, “Come on. You know you like it.”

“Oh, my God, stop talking!” Zelena pleaded, “Didn’t I kill you the last time I was here?”

“No, you just threw me across the room. I hope that doesn’t happen again this time.” he corrected while everyone looked at him dryly, “Okay, all business today. Got it. Uh, let’s get those vitals going, and get that baby out of you.”

After everything was said and done, Zelena gave birth to a healthy, beautiful baby girl; who fortunately wasn’t green. When the sound of the baby’s first cries rang through the hall, Regina, Nicholas and Snow were waiting by the door, each of them with different feelings. On one hand, Regina felt sick to her stomach that her sister just gave birth to the man she loved’s baby even though she was happy for him. One the other, Nicholas was looking forward to see the newest addition to his family.

“I can’t believe it’s really come down to this.” Regina sighed, “Am I really helping Zelena?”

“It’s the right thing to do, Regina.” Snow reminded, “So, are you two ready to meet the newest member of your family?”

“Honestly, I don’t know.” she answered.

“Well, I, for one, am.” Nicholas replied being the first to enter the room with his sister reluctantly at his heels. Once he knocked on the doorframe, Nicholas watched his comrade happily cradle his daughter.

“Nicholas, Regina.” he smiled, “I have a daughter.”

“That’s wonderful.” Regina softly praised.

“Look who’s green with envy now?” Zelena asked tauntingly.

**OUaT**

Having fled to the diner, Nimue hurriedly prepared the necessary ingredients for what she was preparing in the kitchen; and, no, it wasn’t Granny’s (in)famous chili. Despite it being brief, Nimue’s battle with Nicholas proved to be a powerful demonstration of who was the most powerful between the two. And despite being immortal herself, Nimue feared for her life and decided to escape from Nicholas as far as she could. All the way back to Storybrooke.

Everything was ready save for one ingredient, the heart of the one she loved most, and ironically, that was still Merlin. The moment she crushed his heart over the pot containing the curse, Nicholas barged in with a look of pure bloodlust still cast over his face. But when he saw Merlin lying on the floor dead, he took a moment to close the wizard’s eyes, bid his farewell and deconstruct his body so no one would ever befoul it.

“Nimy, I’m home!” Nicholas called as his shadows were aimed at the Dark One.

“Glad you could make, dear!” Nimue retorted as a ball of steaming liquid swirled in her hand, “Soup’s on!”

The moment she hurled the ball at him, Nicholas’ arm was melted down to a puddle as it made contact.

“Gah!” he shouted in pain while Nimue smiled evilly at him, “What is this?!”

“A gift from Arthur.” she replied as she gathered more and sent it flying at him, “Originally, it was intended for all of you, but I believe you deserve it more!”

With each ball of the magical acid making contact with his body, Nicholas felt his flesh melt away before disintegrating. Even his Ultimate Shield couldn’t spare him the pain as Nimue retaliated against him. Finally, when there was nothing left of him but his torso and head, the first Dark One gathered the remaining acid and raised it over him with a twisted gleeful expression on her face.

“You and I aren’t done yet.” Nicholas warned before she doused him with the acid and left nothing but the searing ooze it made and his Philosopher’s Stone lying in a puddle. Before he could recreate his body, Nimue quickly waved her hand and cast a preservation spell over it while adding a chain to make it into a necklace.

It was then that an idea popped into her head. Now that the threat to her was taken care of, she could finally toy with people in whatever way she wanted. So to do just that, she summoned everyone who came from Storybrooke, knocked them out and left them on the floor while she added a dreamcatcher to her concoction to take their memories.

“I may have failed in Camelot,” she whispered to herself, “But Storybrooke may just be the place to complete my goal.”

And with that, the purple and yellow smoke enveloped them all, including the survivors of Camelot, and swept them away to the other realm.

**OUaT**

Night eventually fell on Storybrooke. So far, Nimue hadn’t made a move in her plan yet and decided to stay out of everyone’s sight. When she was sure the coast was clear, she teleported herself to the lake where the fury attempted to drag Robin to the Underworld. In one hand was Excalibur and in the other was a piece of cloth with dried blood.

During his brief time as her prisoner, Gold was trained to become a hero worthy to remove Excalibur from the stone once again. During this time, he had gotten a few scrapes here and there and for her plan to work, Nimue needed just a small amount of his blood. His blood was special, you see for Rumplestiltskin was a man who had done what few can claim; he died and then he returned. And the blood of a man like that was exactly what she wanted.

The moment Nimue dipped the cloth into the water, “her” body went limp and fell to the ground as the mists rolled over the water and the feeling of death crept past the shadows. When she awoke, it was no longer Nimue controlling Emma’s body, but Emma herself once more. But it was too late, the deed had already been done.

Once her vision finally cleared, Emma saw the ferry of the damned filled to the brim with people in black hoods floating on the water. In addition to that, a single hooded figure wearing a mask walked across the water and approached her. Taking the mask off, Nimue revealed her true appearance with a terrible smile.

“Thank you, Emma.” she said, “We couldn’t have done this without you.”


	56. Swan Song

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

After all of the Dark Ones got off of the ferry and headed into town, Emma collected herself as best she could before transporting herself into town in hopes to find her family before any of her late predecessors did. Focusing on Nicholas, she poofed to the hospital where the three siblings and Robin were on high alert.

“Get the hell away from my daughter!” Robin hissed with his sword pointed at her.

“Guys, please, listen to me.” Emma begged, “I’m not Nimue, I swear.”

“Like we’d believe that.” Regina scoffed with a fire ball in her hand.

“Wait.” Nicholas said as he stared the newest Dark One in the eye. Despite his harden glare, he gently approached her to see if it truly was his true love. It took a moment, but Nicholas confirmed that it really was Emma when he dropped his glare and captured her lips in his.

“Well, I guess that answers that.” Regina stiffly remarked as she extinguished her fireball and looked away from her little brother’s make-out session.

“How did you do it?” he asked after they parted, “How did you break Nimue’s control?”

“I didn’t.” she answered, “And that’s why I’m here. We’ve got trouble.”

Once everyone was notified that Emma was in control once again, they all gathered in Regina’s office with a dreamcatcher in each of their hands. Emma then used her magic to return their memories and then explained what Nimue had done. When that was said and done, they headed outside in order to search for the enemy.

“Let me get this straight,” Regina bluntly said, “All of the dead Dark Ones are running around Storybrooke as we speak?”

“Yeah, and if you thought Nimue was bad, imagine what the rest of them are like.” Emma nodded hotly as they walked through main street, “Trust me, after spending over three weeks with them in Nimue’s, or my head, I can tell you none of them are pleasant.”

“Heh, now you know what I go through every day.” Nicholas chuckled in his head while the dwarves caught up with them.

“There’s more than one Dark One?!” Leroy asked.

“It’s a long story.” David waved off.

“Well, no matter. There’s seven of us.” he argued.

“Six. Dopey’s still a tree.” Happy dryly reminded.

“We may be down a dwarf, but we’ve got you back, Flamel, and we’re ready to fight.”

“I admire your enthusiasm, Leroy, but take it from me, fighting Dark Ones isn’t as challenging as you may think.” Nicholas replied, “Regardless, we need to hit them with everything we’ve got.”

“Regina and I will search by the woods.” Robin said as he and Regina broke off from the group.

“Aye, Ariel and I will check the harbor.” Hook nodded as they left.

“David, you and Snow scope around Granny’s while Leroy and the others stay here in main street to keep an eye on the roads.” Nicholas advised, “Henry, you stick with me and your mom.”

“Right.” the boy nodded while trying to stay calm.

While Robin and Regina headed towards the woods, Zelena appeared in a puff of green smoke in front of them.

“Careful who you sneak up on.” Robin glared as he aimed his bow at her.

“Get out of our way, Zelena. We don’t have time for this.” Regina dryly sighed.

“I’d like to have a little chat about my daughter.” Zelena informed.

“Our daughter.” Robin reminded.

“About that. I’ve worked up a teeny alteration to our custody arrangement. I’ve decided to grant myself sole custody.” she explained, “See, I’d like to raise her by myself without you two and Nicholas getting in my way. I’m going to teach her how to be wicked.”

“You and try and take my daughter away from me and you’ll regret it.” Robin warned, “The only reason I haven’t killed you yet is because of your pregnancy and now our daughter. Try my patience any further and I may just let my fingers slip.”

“Oh, come on.” Zelena laughed, “There’s no point in threatening me over our darling baby girl because, soon enough, you’ll both be dead, and then I can just take her.”

“What do you mean we’ll be dead?” Regina asked.

“Ask them.” Zelena gestured to the two black hooded specters behind them before poofing away.

“Dark Ones, stand back!” Robin warned Regina. Elsewhere, David and Snow began to conduct their search.

“Come on. We can cover more ground in the truck.” David suggested as he ran over to the vehicle. As soon as he glanced in the mirror, he saw two more Dark Ones behind his wife, “Behind you!”

The process continued with six other Dark Ones intercepting the dwarves, two more with Hook and Ariel, one with Rumple, and Nimue intercepting Henry behind Emma and Nicholas’ backs outside of the pawn shop.

“Mom, Uncle, help me!” he pleaded when he saw Nimue.

“Henry, don’t move!” Emma shouted.

“Too late for that.” Nimue calmly dismissed as she literally walked through Henry’s body before disappearing.

“Henry, are you okay?!” Nicholas asked as the others regrouped with them.

“I-I think so.” he nodded.

“What the hell just happened to us?!” Ariel asked hotly.

“I think I may have the answer to that.” Gold replied as he joined them with Excalibur in his hands, “Check your wrists. Found this by the lake. You know, Ms. Swan, you really should keep better track of the one thing in existence that can kill you. It might just keep you alive.”

When they did, they all saw a brand resembling a spider on their wrists. “What is that?” Emma asked.

“That is the mark of Charon.” Gold replied hopelessly.

“Charon?” Henry asked, “He was the ferryman in the old myths. He navigated a boat to the Underworld.”

“Smart lad. You see, the Dark Ones only have a temporary pass into this world, like a-like a tourist visa. The only way for them to stay is-”

“Is to trade places with living souls.” Nicholas gasped, “Equivalent Exchange.”

“Meaning us.” David realized.

“Exactly.” Rumple nodded, “And when the moon reaches its peak, the ferry from the Underworld will arrive and drag us down there.”

“That doesn’t sound good.” David muttered.

“Speaking as one who’s died and been there, it’s not.” Gold retorted.

“So how do we stop it?” Regina asked.

“We can’t.” he replied, “The Underworld is worse than you can possible imagine. It’s gonna make you wish the old stories of fire and brimstone were true. It’s going to make you wish for death. And then the realization will hit that death has already come, and this fresh torture is all that’s left.”

“Gold, you’re scaring Henry.” Emma admonished.

“Good, because we should all be scared. This is death itself. This is a fight we cannot win.”

“No.” Nicholas denied, “Emma and I aren’t marked. We’re not giving up, not now, not ever. There has to be something we can do.”

“You’re right. There is something.” Gold nodded, “Use this time wisely. Use it to say goodbye.”

After he left, the Charmings and Mills siblings didn’t waste any time in heading to the vault in search of answers to their predicament. Unfortunately, nothing seemed to have what they were looking for.

“There has to be a way to escape this mark.” Henry stressed. His grandparents, however, didn’t share his enthusiasm.

“Maybe Gold is right.” Snow admitted, “Maybe this is a fight we can’t win.”

“Mom,” Emma said in disbelief, “You’re Snow White. You don’t know how to give up. Hope is in your blood.”

“And I do hope, Emma, but I don’t want to spend what could be my last moments with my nose in a book. I want to make the most of my moments with my family.” she said as tears began to form in her daughter’s eyes.

“Dinner at Granny’s.” Henry spoke up, “That’s what we should do.”

“Yeah,” David agreed, “Dinner at Granny’s. That’s a great idea.”

“What about Neal?” Emma asked, “He’ll be left here all alone.”

“He won’t be alone, Emma.” Snow said with a sad smile, “He’ll have you.”

“I will not give up on my own family.” Emma argued as she tried not to cry.

“Emma, we’re almost out of time. And time is what’s most important; time with those we love.” Snow choked as she kissed her princess’s head, “I know you won’t stop trying. And I hope you succeed, but promise me that you’ll come meet us at Granny’s, come say goodbye.”

“I promise.” Emma said as the tears finally escaped while her mother hugged her tightly.

“I love you, Emma.” Snow said.

“I love you, too.” Emma said back. After they all left, Regina was the only one to stay behind to speak to Emma.

“So, I hear we’re giving up.” Regina said.

“No. Not tonight. Not ever.” she denied, “If I can destroy the Dark Ones, no souls will be owed, and you will all be spared.”

“How?”

“Do you remember the promise you made in Camelot to do whatever was necessary to get rid of the darkness?” Emma asked.

“I don’t like where this is going.”

“I need you to keep that promise now. And I need you to swear not to tell anyone else; especially Nicholas.” Emma pleaded.

“But to get rid of the darkness, you still have to put it in someone and sacrifice them. Who?” Regina asked.

“…Me.” Emma said. Later, Nicholas and Robin went over to the pawn shop to get Excalibur back.

“We’re closed.” Gold snapped as he came out from the back, “Please, go away.”

“No. We’re not going down without a fight.” Robin shot down, “I bet there are a lot of people in the Underworld who would be thrilled to see you and Regina.”

“We deserve it.” he scoffed, “And it doesn’t matter. There is no alternative.”

“There might be, but I will need Excalibur.” Nicholas debated.

“The only way Excalibur would be of any use would be if-”

“If Emma takes all the darkness into herself and uses the sword to destroy it.” Robin finished while Nicholas gritted his teeth and looked to the side.

“And herself.” Gold added with an astonished expression. No longer needing any more words to convince him, the ex-Dark One went back behind the curtain and came out with the sword in hand.

“Excalibur was always destined for the hands of a true hero.” Gold muttered as he gave it to the two gentlemen.

“That’s it?” Nicholas asked, “You don’t want to make a deal or something?”

“No.” he said simply, “Tell Ms. Swan something for me? Tell her, she’s a brave woman for doing this, and that it was an honor to fight alongside her and against her. But her plan might not work.”

“What?” Robin asked, “Why?”

“Well, that blade it chooses who it finds worthy. And it chooses its miracles.”

“It doesn’t matter.” Nicholas said as he tried to swallow the lump in his throat, “This will all be over tonight.”

After they exited the pawn shop, Robin decided to meet up with Regina at her office while Nicholas returned to Emma to give her back the sword at the loft. When the couple stormed in, they saw Zelena with her feet propped on Regina’s desk.

“Gina! Robbie! Come on in.” she happily greeted with a green color chart in her hand.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Regina asked.

“At the moment, I’m trying to decided what color would look best on your walls. I mean, my walls. Kelly? Hunter? Pistachio? Oh, my God, I just realized that all three of those work as baby names. Haha! It’s all just coming together.” Zelena laughed while Regina grabbed the chart and dumped it in the trash, “Cheeky.”

“You’re not moving in, sis.” Regina said flatly.

“Well, perhaps I’m slightly premature, but in an hour, you’ll both be dead, then everything that’s yours, including our brother’s love, will be mine. And, of course, I get the baby.” Zelena smiled.

“No.” Robin denied, “You see, our child deserves her best chance.”

“And that’s not with you.” Regina agreed as she pulled out the Apprentice’s wand.

“Oh, yes. The withered knob of that sad old man. Uh, if memory serves, the last time you tried to use it, you weren’t powerful enough to make it work.” Zelena reminded before Regina made the wand glow purple and shake with power.

“If my memory serves, last time, I didn’t believe in myself. But now I do, as does everyone else in this town. So, let’s go somewhere, just the two of us.” Regina smirked while Robin’s eyes widen when he caught on to her intention.

“Regina, wait!” he said, but it was too late. His soulmate poofed herself and her sister away in clouds of purple smoke. In a panic, he reached into his pocket for his League shell to contact Nicholas, “Oh, Nicholas is going to kill me!”

As he did this, the two sisters found themselves up in the clock tower where they did battle once.

“Oh, such a letdown. I thought you were gonna use the thingy.” Zelena mocked.

“Oh, I am. So you better hang on.” Regina smirked as she used the wand to create another green tornado; only this one was made for just one person this time around. But just before it could suck Zelena away, another, natural tornado collided with it and caused it to disappear before dispelling itself.

“The hell?” Regina asked before Nicholas transmuted himself below the stairs, joined up with them, grabbed both his sisters’ by their heads and slammed them into each other.

“You idiot!” he shouted as he grabbed Regina’s shoulders angrily, “Do you have any idea how close you came to ruining everything?! You almost sent us months back!”

“What are you-” Regina said surprised at her brother’s antics.

“And you!” he cut off as he pointed at his eldest sister, “You could’ve just stayed in the hospital, but no! You had to go and piss everyone off again. I’ve had it with you two! And I am not going to let this sister-spat of yours ruin everything I’ve spent decades working on!

“You’re going back to the hospital!” Nicholas yelled at Zelena before turning to Regina, “And you’re going back to Robin!”

“Like hell I am!” Zelena seethed.

“I’m not giving you a choice.” Nicholas growled as he reached into his pocket and blew poppy dust in her face, knocking her out cold. When she collapsed, he crushed a transport rock and threw the dust at her which sent her back to her cell.

“Now, am I going to have to make you leave?” he asked his remaining sister. Instead of arguing, she just left in a cloud of smoke. After that little family squabble was settled, Emma decided to break her promise to her loved ones.

Out of their line of sight, Emma watched her parents, baby brother and son eat their last meal together in the diner while soft music played in the background. With tears in her eyes and on her face, she set down her letter to them on the jukebox.

“I’m sorry.” she whispered before leaving. Not five minutes later, Snow went to change the music and found her letter.

“Oh, no.” she whispered as she read it, “David?”

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“It’s Emma.” she said handing him the letter.

“We got to stop her.” he said as his eyes widened.

“You don’t have to worry.” Nimue assured as she and two other Dark Ones appeared at their table, “She can’t save you, anyway. Which means there is no way to stop your trip to the Underworld.”

With a thrust of her hand, she used her magic to make all the marks glow and transported them to the lake where the ferry was waiting for them.

“Henry?” Regina asked when she saw her son, “Are you alright?”

“I-I think so.” he nodded in confusion.

“Neal’s back at the diner!” Snow panicked when she didn’t see her baby.

“Roland and the baby, where are they?” David asked Robin.

“They’re safe. They’re with friends.” he said meaning his comrades, “They’ll take Neal, as well.”

“So this is really it.” Henry said as everyone looked at all the Dark Ones surrounding them while the S.S Purgatory came into view. 

“So much for our wedding.” Hook sadly joked as he held Ariel to his chest as she cried silently.

“Well, we can always spend eternity in hell together.” she joked through her sniffling.

“Aye.” he laughed as tears brimmed in his eyes as Nicholas and Emma came running over to everyone with Excalibur.

“Mom, Dad! Henry!” Emma cried as she ran up to hug them, “I’m sorry, I tried!”

“We know. It’s okay.” Snow soothed as they all hugged.

“It’s time.” Nimue smiled darkly.

“No, you’re not taking the people I love!” she cried as she tried to rush her only to be stopped by her twisted magic.

“I may not be able to kill you. But I can stop you from interfering.” Nimue said over her choking before it became laughter, “What are you doing? Why are you laughing, Emma?!”

“I’m…not…Emma.” she choked while smirking before turning into Nicholas.

“I am.” the other Nicholas said before poofing back to Emma as she raised the sword and absorb all of the Dark Ones into Excalibur. Now black, red and silver, Excalibur hummed with power as it shook in Emma’s hand, but despite knowing her plan, Nicholas wasn’t ready for her to go through with it.

“Emma, you can’t do this.” he pleaded.

“Baby, we both know there’s no other way. We have to hurry.” she said with a sad smile and tears, “The darkness won’t stay trapped in Excalibur much longer. Take it.”

“Please, no.” he begged.

“Nicholas, please. You have to help me. Take it.” Emma cried.

“I can’t. You sacrificed enough, already.”

“But I was weak.” she sniffled, “I let Nimue take control. If anyone should go to the Underworld, it’s me because of that. Let me make up for that weakness by being strong now.”

“I can’t lose you again.” he said as tears rolled down his face.

“And I don’t want to lose you. But you have to let me go.” she said as their loved ones watched the scene with tears of their own, “Let me die a hero. It’s my job to protect everyone as the Savior. That’s who I want you to remember, please!”

Seeing that there was no getting through to her, Nicholas relented and approached her outstretched hand to take the sword; little did anyone see, but he discreetly slit his hand with his claw and kept it from healing. Instead of taking the sword, he used his injured hand to bring her head in for one last kiss.

“I love you.” Emma whispered.

“I love you, too.” Nicholas said back as he took a deep breath, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” she whispered.

“No, for this.” he said before punching her in the jaw and sending her to the ground. In her daze, Emma could do nothing to stop him as he pulled down her sleeve and tore through her arm before grabbing it with his cut hand.

“Trade ya.” he said before groaning out in pain. Even through his layers, everyone could see his glowing Stone run through his arm and hand into Emma’s forearm. As this happened, the darkness left Emma and went to him instead.

When the transfer was complete, Nicholas used what strength he had left to push Emma away as he grabbed Excalibur and raised it into the air. Taking a look at his friends, his nephew and his sister, the alchemist said one final word to them.

“Goodbye.” And before they could stop him, he impaled himself in the chest with the sword and watched as it crumbled away. Emma scrambled to her feet as light began to envelope her while she caught the man she loved. When it was gone, she was back to normal wearing her trademark jacket.

As for Nicholas, with the Philosopher’s Stone no longer inside him, his body began to show years of scars from his time as a slave and as an LXG agent; if they hadn’t all seen it, no one would have been able to recognize him through all the facial scars, the milky, blind right eye and the pure white hair on his head.

Robin had to use all of his strength to hold Henry and Regina back as they cried and tried to go to him. And, yes, even he had to hold back a tear or two at the sight of his friend and brother-in-arms dead. All Emma could do was cry over his chest.

The Immortal Alchemist was dead.

Having seen it all from the mansion, Sawyer, Mina and Quartermain disguised themselves as the paramedics and picked up their comrade’s body. Emma held on to his damaged hand as long as she could before they took him away. As she cried, Snow apologized to her and held her close as she sobbed.

Regina tried to stay strong, but she couldn’t stop the tears from escaping. Her beloved little brother, the light that shined in her heart through all times of darkness…her Abby was dead. Henry was no different. He cried and cried over the loss of his uncle; over the man who was more of a father to him than anyone.

David and Snow let a few tears slip since their friend’s death. Guilt also filled them out of not being able to make up for wronging him. Now, they realized, they never could.

Hook and Ariel wept for him, as well. If it hadn’t been for him, they may not have fallen in love and helped save each other. They couldn’t bring themselves to stay long. As soon as they heard the sirens approach, they went back to the Jolly Roger to grieve.

Gold didn’t cry over Nicholas’ death and not because he was glad. No, far from it. In hindsight, he realized that he never despised the alchemist like he always thought. In the end, he finally realized that Nicholas Flamel was his rival; one that he respected and would miss.

The next day, Emma was laying on her coach in silence as she held Nicholas’s coin to her heart. She hadn’t slept a wink after what happened. All she wanted was to be alone while she grieved.

Outside the house, Robin approached the white gate with a heavy heart. He didn’t bother to go back to the mansion, he wanted to give the others space while they bid their farewells to their family member; and while they made preparations for what he had in mind. As he walked to the door, he thought back to the previous day.

**OUaT**

After they left the pawn shop, Nicholas caught whiff of something strange nearby. When realized that it was coming off of the sword in his hand, his eyes widened with shock and when he did this, Robin caught on and became angry. So angry that he was about to storm back into the shop and teach Gold a lesson. But Nicholas stopped him.

“It’s not ideal.” he said as he grabbed the man’s arm, “But it’s what we need.”

**OUaT**

Putting those thoughts aside, he knocked on the door and waited for Emma to let him in. “Robin?” she asked before sighing miserably, “Please, just go.”

“Emma,” he said trying to be gentle, “There’s something I need to tell you. And you’re not going to like it.”

After they finished talking, Emma texted Gold and basically ordered him to meet them at his shop. They waited at the register counter for him to come in. Emma looked as though she had been punched in the gut. Robin, however, looked like he was going to punch someone in the gut instead.

“Now, you see,” Gold sighed as he walked inside, “This isn’t the library or Granny’s or some bus station, Miss Swan. This is my shop. Unless the sign says ‘open’ you’re not invited.”

“Oh, no, we were.” Robin denied through his gritting teeth, “Isn’t that right, Emma?”

“I hear whispering. It’s the dagger. It’s calling to me.” Emma said.

“You’re both upset, imagining things.” Gold tried to reason.

“No, we’re not. It’s here, isn’t it?” Emma asked, “You have it, don’t you?”

“…Yes, I do.” Gold admitted with a somewhat guilty smirk as he revealed a new, black version of the dagger with his name written in silver on it.

“You are the Dark One.” Emma whispered, “Again.”

“Yeah.” he smirked, “Had hoped to keep that secret. Wasn’t expecting you to hear it. But then, most ex-Dark Ones are dead.”

“How is this possible?” she asked.

“When Flamel and Locksley here came to me, asking for the sword, I had seen an opportunity. A chance I had never imagined would present itself again. As fate would have it, a small vial of magic was close at hand. One sprinkle, and I knew I could get it all back. I turned the sword into a conduit. So that while Flamel thought he was destroying the darkness, he was actually moving it. Channeling it someplace safe.”

“Into you.” Robin snarled.

“He had no idea.” Gold smirked, “And now, things are as they should be.”

“Oh, he knew, alright, you bastard.” Robin thought angrily, “He knew exactly what you were planning.”

“Nicholas sacrificed himself, and you took that from him!” Emma yelled as she tried to grab his neck only to be stopped with ease.

“Do you honestly think that you can hurt me?” he asked unimpressed, “I now have the combined power of every Dark One who ever lived; including you.”

“You found a loophole, betrayed us all again.” Robin seethed.

“It’s what I do.” Rumple smirked arrogantly, “It’s the man I am.”

“And it’s arrogance like that that will cost you.” Robin chuckled.

“What are you talking about?” Gold asked as the archer pulled out his phone.

“You know, I actually don’t mind all this technology around here. It’s actually quite interesting.” he said with a fake smile, “One of these app things Regina showed me really caught my eye. They call it ‘facetime’ here; odd word, don’t you think?”

“What are you getting at?” Gold asked narrowing his eyes.

“This.” Robin flatly said as he pulled up facetime on his phone. Instead of seeing just a person, Emma and Gold could see Gold’s bedroom with Belle sleeping soundly in bed; only, she wasn’t alone.

With his face covered and gun loaded, Sawyer was glaring at the phone when he saw the Dark One’s face while pointing his revolver at Belle’s head. To remind him not to make too much noise and wake her, he slowly raised his finger to his covered mouth.

“You’re going to do something for us, Dark One.” Robin whispered menacingly, “Or she dies.”

“Do you really think I can’t stop that from here?” he asked as he tried to snap Sawyer’s neck only to see nothing happen.

“As a matter of fact, I do.” Robin coolly replied, “You see, you made a grave mistake when you started all of this. And now that Nicholas is gone, you’ve pissed off a group of people that you don’t want as enemies; and I happen to be part of that group.”

“Don’t test me.” Rumple growled before Robin grabbed his dagger and slammed it between his fingers.

“Don’t test me!” he spat softly, “You have a minute to comply, otherwise, even if you kill us, Belle’s brains will be splattered all over your bedroom.”

“You’re bluffing.” Gold scoffed.

“I don’t bluff.” Robin denied, “Forty-five seconds.”

“You wouldn’t kill Belle. She saved you from me.” he reasoned.

“I’ve killed for worse. And I’ve killed people more innocent than her. Thirty seconds.”

“Robin, what are you doing?” Emma asked, “You didn’t tell me about this.”

“No, I didn’t.” he nodded not taking his eyes off of Gold, “Now you know why. Fifteen seconds. What’s it going to be, Dark One? Tick-tock. Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five,”

Sawyer then cocked the revolver and placed his finger in the trigger, fully prepared to shoot.

“Four, three-”

“Alright, alright.” Gold pleaded.

“Hold your fire.” Robin calmly said to his friend, “Well?”

“…What do you want, Miss Swan?” he asked seeing that he didn’t have a choice. Later, after gathering the others at the loft, Emma told them her intentions.

“You’re going to Hell?” Snow asked her daughter in disbelief.

“The Underworld.” Emma corrected.

“That’s quite a distinction.” David said bluntly.

“I’m getting him back.” Emma said not up for debate, “It’s not fair to Nicholas. Gold tricked us. Everything he gave up was based on a lie. He gave me the Stone for a reason. He’s waiting for me down there to give it back.”

“It does sound like something he would do.” Regina nodded, “My brother always did plan ahead.”

Just then, Zelena stormed into the loft looking beyond furious. “Where the hell is he?!” she asked, “Where’s Nicholas? I want to pay him back for what he pulled last night.”

“He already has, your wickedness.” Hook spat harshly, “He’s dead.”

“What?” she asked not believing it at first. But when she saw their faces, she realized it was true, “N-no, he-he can’t be. He’s immortal.”

“Was immortal.” Regina corrected, “He sacrificed himself to save Emma and put his Stone in her.”

“And you might as well do this now while she’s here, Regina.” Emma said as she handed her a dreamcatcher. With a wave of her hand, Regina returned her sister’s lost memories from Camelot. When they were returned, Zelena remembered every moment Nicholas spent with her trying to connect and build a relationship with her; and that nearly brought her to tears when she realized that he was gone. A knock on the door then filled the loft as David opened it.

Now dressed in his League gear, Robin looked at them all with a look they had never seen on him before; hardened killing intent.

“Let’s go.” he said.

“I’m coming, too.” Zelena informed surprising everyone.

“And why the hell would you think we’d let you come?” Regina hotly asked.

“Because he’s my brother, too.” she replied sincerely.

Back at the sight of where they lost their beloved alchemist, the heroes, minus Ariel who decided to stay behind to keep watch on the town, glared at Gold as he stood in front of the water with his dagger in his hand.

“Do it.” Emma ordered.

“Are you sure about this?” he asked.

“Do it.” she ordered threateningly.

No longer arguing, the Dark One cut his hand and let his blood open the portal to the Underworld once again. Leading them across the water to the ferry, Emma looked at the passage to the dead and spoke softly to herself.

“Nicholas, I will find you. I will always find you.”


	57. Souls of the Departed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, LXG or The Prince of Egypt

As the ferry of the dead sailed to its destination, Emma Swan, the Savior slept as it slowly returned home. But as she dreamed, she didn’t see anything but herself looking around in the darkness. But as she looked, she began to hear the subtle sound of a trumpet playing. As it did, she saw a single figure dressed in a long red hood covering his face with white gloves play the trumpet on a stone as something else came into view.

It was a red cross bearing a lifeless red snake with a crown riddled with dents on the ground surround feathers. Next thing she knew, she found herself in the middle of a desert filled with slaves, all of which, save one, had golden hair and eyes while one of the youngest had brown hair and eyes. As they did their backbreaking labor in the searing heat, the voices of the souls of the Philosopher’s Stone sang.

** Souls **

_Mud!_

_Sand!_

_Water!_

_Straw!_

** Guard **

_Faster!_

** Souls **

_Mud - and lift!_

_Sand - and pull!_

_Water - and raise up!_

_Straw!_

** Guard **

_Faster!_

When the guard barked his order, he struck the brown haired slave’s face which sent him to the hot sand as he dropped his heavy bag of straw. To get him on his feet, the guard struck him again.

** Souls **

_With the sting of the whip on my shoulder_

_With the salt of my sweat on my brow_

_Alchemist, Lord on high_

_Can you hear your people cry?_

_Help us now_

_This dark hour!_

As the souls sang, Emma watched as the brown haired slave looked in horror as an older slave was whipped to death. In his anger, he dropped his bag and shoved the task master down the sand dune. Because of this, other taskmasters used their whips to grab his arms while the one he pushed came back and used his whip to strangle the boy before kicking him to the ground.

** Souls **

_Deliver us_

_Hear our call, deliver us_

Not caring in the slightest, the taskmaster pulled out his knife ready to kill the child. But as fate would have it, the boy’s owner arrived and stopped him. Instead, he ordered the guards to take the slave back to the city, which they did but not before knocking him out.

** Souls **

_Lord of all, remember us_

_Here in this burning sand_

_Deliver us_

_There's a plan you promised us_

_Deliver us to the Promised Day_

The scene then changed to when the slave regained consciousness and found himself strapped to a table over a transmutation circle while his master and all of his assistants running around preparing a procedure. Even the kingdom’s ruler was there to witness it. As fear over took him, a priestess wearing pink robes and a silk face cover loomed over him and chanted as she marked his forehead.

** Priestess **

_Yal-di ha-tov veh ha-rach_

_Al ti-ra veh al tif-chad_

_My son, I have nothing I can give_

_But this chance that you may live_

_I pray we'll meet again_

_If He will deliver us!_

When she was done, his master activated the circle and sent waves upon waves of pain through the slave’s body. His body was surging with red lightning as his skin deconstructed and reconstructed. As it did, his master took a syringe to his arm and drew blood before emptying it into a flask. He then filled the room with blue lightning, and from the blood bubbling inside, a black speck with a large eye in the center blinked innocently at its surrounds. 

And as the souls continued to sing, Emma covered her mouth in horror at the sight before her with tears in her eyes.

** Souls **

_Deliver us_

_Hear our prayer_

_Deliver us_

_From despair_

_These years of slavery grow_

_Too cruel to stay_

_Deliver us_

_There's a plan you promised us_

_Deliver us_

_Out of bondage now_

_Deliver us to the Promised Day!_

When the procedure was over and the black speck looked at the slave, the scene changed to the boy, a few years older waking up screaming in his bed in a cold sweat. He was beyond terrified at what he saw and couldn’t stop himself from shaking or crying. Emma wanted to console the boy, but she knew she couldn’t. And to make things worse, she saw someone that made everything she saw sink into heart even more. She saw a younger Regina burst through the door in her nightgown with a worried look as she rushed over to the boy.

It was then that everything clicked together. Emma realized that she just caught a glimpse of Nicholas’ past as a slave. All she could do as the tears rolled down her face was watch as Regina tried to soothe her brother as he had his panic attack. In his fear, he couldn’t recognize her at first. But when he did, he allowed her to wrap her arms around him and ease his pain.

With tears of her own brimming in her eyes at her beloved sibling’s pain, Regina gently kissed his head before singing to him.

** Young Regina **

_Brother, you're safe now_

_And safe may you stay_

_For I make this vow for you_

_Oh, little brother_

_I swear this to you_

_No harm shall ever come to you_

The scene then faded away and Emma found herself back where she started. Only this time, the black space was shined with a bright red light coming from a large, red stone behind her. In addition to that, all around her were the souls that powered the stone now inside her. Those that weren’t dressed in red were just red faces flying around her.

** Souls **

_Deliver us_

_Send our shepherd to shepherd us_

_And deliver us to the Promised Day_

From inside the stone, another soul wearing a red hood looked in her direction and approached the wall of it while pressing his hand on it. Emma walked up and did the same and when she did, she could see past the shadow over his face and saw Nicholas with a heartbroken expression.

** Souls **

_Deliver us to the Promised Day!_

_Deliver us!_

Emma then suddenly awoke on the boat with her loved ones around her. When she looked around, she saw her parents at her side.

“Emma?” Snow asked, “Are you okay?”

“You passed out.” David said.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” she assured as she tried to push what she just saw out of her mind. But she found it hard with the numerous voices ringing through her head and giving her a headache.

“Good.” Gold said at the bow of the boat, “Because we’re here.”

Once they got off the boat and made their way through the fog, they found themselves in Storybrooke. Only, this Storybrooke had a red sky and looked like it had a touch of “Mad Max” added to it. Everyone walking the streets looked miserable and seemed as though they had nothing to live for; which they didn’t.

“I don’t think we’re in Maine anymore.” Zelena remarked dryly as they walked past a broken version of the clock tower on the road.

“How is this possible?” Emma asked, “How does the Underworld look like Storybrooke?”

“Your questions are pointless.” Gold snapped, “All that matters is, all these people in this Underworld are dead and trapped because they have unfinished business.”

As he said this, an all too familiar white car sped across the road down the street. “Cruella.” Emma said.

“That’s right.” Gold nodded, “And she’s here because of you. And I imagine there are many here because of all of us. Let’s not lollygag.”

“Split up. We’ll cover more ground.” Emma ordered.

“Agreed.” Regina nodded while looking at the souls, “The sooner we get out of here, the better.”

Over at Granny’s, or Ms. Ginger’s as it was called in the Underworld, Snow took a look inside to find Nicholas, or at least someone who would know where he was. Over at the counter, she approached the Blind Witch; the one who tried to eat Hansel and Gretel.

“Is that…I know you.” she said as she took in her scent, “Aren’t you Snow White? Can you imagine? Uh, well, what can I get you? Do you like gingerbread or children? Kidding. But the-the gingerbread’s actually not bad.”

“I’m looking for a friend. He would have gotten here recently.” Snow informed after ignoring the strange suggestion, “Uh, brown hair, smokes a pipe, has a really weird tattoo on his back.”

“Nicholas Flamel.” the witch gasped.

“You know him?” Snow asked.

“Not personally, but kinda hard to forget the little brother of the woman who killed me.” she bluntly replied while smiling, “Though, I find it hard to believe that the _Immortal_ Alchemist is dead. Oh, I bet a lot of people are eager to take a crack at him if he is down here.”

Just then, David walked through the door in different clothes and headed over to Snow. “David? You changed. What happened? Is everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine.” he said looking at her intensely.

“Good, because I’m not. This place is creeping me out.” she said before he pulled her in for a passionate kiss.

“I see why my brother likes you.” he smirked arrogantly after they separated.

“James.” Snow realized as she shrugged him off.

“Indeed. So, Snow White’s in town. I’m guessing that means my brother is, too. Alright. When you see ol’ Dave, tell him there’s a new sheriff in town.” James said while the witch brought him a cup of coffee.

“Too bad it’s not you, right, deputy?” she asked playfully.

“You know, if you weren’t already dead, I’d kill you here and now, witch.” James threatened with an annoyed smirk.

“And yet, here I am, and so are you.” she giggled while handing him another coffee and bag, “Better hurry back, deputy. You know the sheriff hates it when you’re late.”

Scoffing at her, James let out the back with a huff right as David walked in and caught a glimpse of him. “Was that…my brother?” he asked his wife.

“Yeah.” she replied embarrassed while Emma, Robin and Regina came in.

“Mom, Dad. You find anything?” Emma asked.

“Uh, there’s no sign of him at the park or the town hall.” David informed.

“This is hopeless.” she sighed, “We don’t even know if Nicholas is here. What if he has no unfinished business?”

“Oh, trust me, Emma. He has plenty of unfinished business left.” Robin assured with a light chuckle as Henry came in.

“Hey, Mom. Any luck yet?” he asked.

“Not yet, kid. But we’ll find him.” she assured hugging him.

**OUaT**

Many years ago in the Enchanted Forest, a younger Regina at the age of eighteen was doing her normal routine, her morning horseback riding lesson with the handsome stable boy Daniel. She wouldn’t tell anyone, but was the only thing that made her happy since she was a little girl; since her brother Abba disappeared. It didn’t quite fill the hole in her heart, but it did help distract her from the pain, the pain that the thoughts of that day always brought her.

She and her parents spent days looking for Abba after she lost sight of him. One moment, he was there toddling after her as they played, the next it was as if he just vanished. And when they couldn’t find him, her little heart shattered; for roughly two weeks she cried herself to sleep when she laid in both her bed and her parents’.

Shaking those thoughts and memories out of her mind, Regina waited for Daniel to arrive with his horse while she saddled her own. As she did, she heard the sound of someone running up behind her. When she saw that it was Daniel, a happy smile grew on her face.

“You’re late. I was about to start without you.” she teased while he tried to catch his breath.

“Regina, wait,” he panted.

“I was thinking we could head towards the pond today, the swans there look so beautiful, don’t you think?” she asked, “I always wondered what it is that makes me like them so much.”

“Regina…I have (pant) something important (pant) to tell you.” Daniel wheezed, “Your mother told me-”

“If she told you to cancel our lesson today, forget it.” Regina snapped, “I’ve already missed three other chances to ride to the pond and I am not missing out today.”

“No, it’s not that.” he said, “It’s-”

“What?” she asked.

“It’s your brother.” he said gaining her attention, “Your brother has come home. He’s with your parents at the castle.”

Regina looked like both her heart and the world had come to a complete stop when she heard those words come out of the man she loved’s mouth. The next thing she knew, she was shoving past him and running as fast as she could to her home.

Inside the castle, Flamel was looking around with a confused look on his face. Ever since Rumplestiltskin transported him there, his parents, especially his mother, hadn’t let him out of their sight or their embrace. Who could blame them, really? Their son was finally home after ten long years.

“I think…I remember this part of the castle.” he said unsure of himself. Most of his past before he became a slave was a bit fuzzy, so not everything around him was causing overwhelming nostalgia.

“Yes.” Cora chuckled feeling happier than she’d been in years, “You and your sister used to play together here while your father and I watched.”

“…Gina, right?” he asked them, “My sister?”

“Regina, yes.” Henry nodded happily, “Oh, she’s going to be thrilled to see you after all this time.”

“She will?” he asked nervously. He had been afraid that his family was going to reject him ever since he made up his mind to return home. Now that he was home, he was more scared than ever.

“Of course she will.” Henry assured cupping his son’s face, “Your sister loves you, son. She always has. She’s missed you so very much.”

“Do you think she could tell me my name, then?” Flamel asked, “Or should I just keep calling myself Nicholas Flamel?”

“Sweetheart, you can call yourself whatever you want.” Cora assured.

“I think…I’ll stick with ‘Nicholas’ for now.” he replied hesitantly, “Just until I’m ready to know my real name.”

“Of course.” Henry nodded, “Whenever you’re ready, you come and tell us.”

“Thank you…F-Father.” Flamel smiled with a tear forming in his eye. Just then, Regina came bursting through the door covered with sweat. As she caught her breath, Henry hurried over to her and briefly told her what she needed to know.

Flamel looked at her curiously as she came over to him with tears in her eyes. At first, he couldn’t recognize her given what ten years had done to her. But she was able to recognize him instantly when she saw his eyes; the same chocolate-brown eyes that she fell in love with the first time they looked at her when he was a baby.

“Gina.” he realized when he made the connection. Regina choked back a sob and flung her arms around her little brother.

“You’re home.” she whispered.

**OUaT**

After sharing what they all found out, or what they didn’t given the lack of luck, they went their separate ways again to search for Nicholas. Outside on main street, Regina and Robin marveled at the alternate version of their home.

“It’s uncanny.” Robin awed, “It’s so similar, yet so…off.”

“Well, when I conjured Storybrooke, it was with the Dark Curse.” Regina explained, “Whoever created that curse, looks like this is where they got their inspiration.”

“Or vice versa.” he offered as they passed a soul Regina spotted earlier.

“You.” she said coming to a stop and facing him, “You’ve been following us. Why?”

“Someone wants to see you.” he said, and Regina knew all to well who he meant. After being escourted to town hall alone, she entered the office and saw Cora dressed in a pantsuit like what she wore when she died.

“Mother. You’re here.” Regina said not believing her eyes.

“Yes.” Cora said softly at the sight of her precious daughter.

“I had hoped you were okay.” she admitted.

“I know, darling.” Cora nodded before they finally hugged each other tightly, “I know. But I do have unfinished business. And that would be you and your siblings.”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t save him.” Regina said in guilt as tears brimmed in her eyes.

“He made his choice, there wasn’t anything you could’ve done to stop him; he gets his stubbornness from me.” she chuckled sadly, “All I’ve ever wanted was for you both to be happy.”

“Then help me find him so we can get out of here.” Regina pleaded.

“I can’t.” Cora replied, “I don’t know where he is. Besides…it may be in his best interests if you leave her without your brother.”

“Mother?” she asked.

“After everything he’s been through, why not leave him be and let his soul be at peace for once in his life?” Cora asked, “It wasn’t easy, but I’ve arranged for a boat to take you home. It departs in one hour. Take Henry, take your sister and your thief and go before it’s too late.”

“Mother,” Regina cut off, “I can’t. I’m not leaving without Abba.”

“You must.” Cora stressed, “I know it’s hard to put aside all suspicion after how I raised you, but, Regina, do you remember the last thing I said to you and your brother before I died?”

“That we would have been enough.” she nodded at the painful memory.

“You would have been. It just took me too long to realize it. Don’t make the same mistake. Go.” Cora warned.

“What would happen if I stayed?” Regina asked.

“Sometimes a mother has to do what’s best for her children, even if it’s reprehensible.”

“Are you threatening me?” she asked.

“Oh, no. No, of course not. Never. But there’s something I have to show you.” Cora said as she poofed not only the two of them, but the soul watching them as well away. 

Next thing they knew, they were the Underworld’s version of where Maleficent was once held as a dragon underground. Only this version had half of a stone bridge looming over a pit of flames. On one end, Cora and Regina stood by the ledge while the innocent soul was at the end looking down at the fire.

“Mother, where are we?” Regina asked as Cora raised her hand to use magic, “What are you doing?”

“Showing you your fate if you don’t return to Storybrooke.” she replied as she made the flames engulf the poor man and drag him into the pit as he screamed.

“You-you killed him.” Regina gasped.

“Killed is, um, a relative term down here.” Cora corrected, “This Underworld, most can only leave it in two ways, to a better place or a worse one. But you, my sweet daughter, have another option. However, not for long. Go home, or there will be a cost. Someone will suffer.”

Before she could ask, Regina watched as her mother waved her hand and sent her back to the streets in front of Ms. Ginger’s. After going inside and telling everyone what happened, they looked even more worried than before.

“Someone will suffer?” Snow asked, “You don’t think she meant Nicholas, do you?”

“No, we don’t need to worry about that.” Regina assured, “If you think I was smothered by her, puh! You should’ve seen how she suffocated Nicholas before _and_ after he became a slave. He’d have been a total momma’s boy if she had raised him like she did me.”

“So, what now?” Zelena asked, “If she doesn’t know where to find him, how are we supposed to find Nicholas with less than an hour?”

“Perhaps I can provide the answer to that question.” Gold informed as he joined them with a small vial in his hand.

“What the hell is that?” Robin asked.

“This is the way to find your not-so-immortal alchemist. The Ale of Seonaidh from the land of DunBroch.” he replied.

“That’s a mouthful.” Regina quipped.

“It lets you communicate with the dead.” he continued, “Pour this over Flamel’s grave, and we can stop guessing where he is and simply ask him.”

“You’re saying Nicholas has a grave here in the Underworld?” David asked.

“Everyone down here has a grave.” Gold clarified, “You’ll find the cemetery right where you remember it.”

“Well, if this works, we could find Nicholas before the boat leave. We could all get out of here together.” Snow realized.

“A fine idea.” Gold agreed, “I suggest you all get moving.”

“No way.” Emma shot down, “You’re coming with us.”

“You can do this part on your own. There’s boat that’s leaving soon. You want to find Flamel? Fine. But I have no interest in exploring this world further. You can meet me there. But that’s entirely up to you.” he said as he left.

“Emma,” Snow interjected when her daughter was about to stop him, “There’s no time to argue. If there’s even a chance that will work, we have to risk it.”

“Alright.” she relented, “Let’s do this.”

After searching for roughly ten minutes, Zelena found her brother’s grave and brought the others to it. As they stood before the gravestone, Emma clutched the ale in her hands in worry.

“You okay?” Snow asked.

“I just hope he is.” she replied as she sprinkled the ale over the grave. A few seconds passed and Nicholas flickered before them, looking in even worse condition than when he died. Regina turned Henry away so as not for him to see his uncle looking the way he did. Even Zelena gasped in horror at her brother’s appearance.

“Nicholas.” Emma said, “Nicholas, we’re here to help you. We just can’t find you. Where are you?”

But the alchemist couldn’t answer. It seemed as though he couldn’t even see or hear her. All he did was flicker before them as his face contorted in pain.

“Emma,” Regina said feeling sorry for her friend and brother, “The spell’s not steady. He can’t hear you.”

“Just tell us where you are.” Emma pleaded as Nicholas continued to blur.

“Something’s happening.” Robin said.

“It’s not holding.” Regina replied.

“Just talk to us.” Emma pleaded as the voices in her head began to cry out for Nicholas, “Talk to me.”

But Nicholas never got the chance. His soul, or what was left of it, was pulled down into the ground as he cried out in agony. “Nicholas!” she cried before clutching her head.

“ _You lied to him!”_ the voices screamed.

“ _You failed him!”_ a female voice accused.

“ _It should have been you, not him!”_ a boy’s voice said hotly.

“Emma?!” Snow said loudly gaining her daughter’s attention.

“He doesn’t know we came for him.” Emma said trying to ignore the voices, “He doesn’t know we’re here. He doesn’t know that I care.”

“Yes, he does.” Snow argued, “And, Emma, we will find him.”

“Will we?” she asked, “Did you not just see that? He’s in pain. He’s suffering. Look at this place. We have half an hour. We have half an hour. Cora has a boat coming. You have to take it, or we might all be stuck here.”

“If she can arrange a way out, so can we after we find Nicholas.” David argued, “We are not giving up on you.”

“How are we supposed to find him?!” Emma all but yelled, “We have no idea where he might be, no one does!”

The others saw her point, none of them had any clue as to where Nicholas might be and they were running out of time to search. And despite being the only one amongst their group that had been down to the Underworld before, Rumplestiltskin was proving to be useless to them. As the others thought of another way, Robin caught a glimpse of a grave that gained his attention. It wasn’t the grave itself that caught his eye, no, it was the name inscribed on it that did it.

“I think,” he said loud enough for the others to hear, “I think I may know of someone who can help.”

On the other side of town, in the sheriff’s station, a man sat in the sheriff’s office with his feet propped on the desk with a cup of coffee in his hand and a longsword laying on the desk. He had a mop of red hair that reached his neck, a scruffy beard around just his mouth and chin, and wore a magenta button down shirt under a black vest with black jeans and a leather jacket. Seeing as James was nowhere in sight, Robin took the chance to approach the Underworld’s sheriff.

“Good evening, sheriff.” he greeted curtly.

“You know, few people ever come to this place. I don’t really see the point in there being a sheriff down here on account of us all being dead.” the sheriff dryly chuckled before glancing up at the archer, “So why has one of the living visitors decided to pay me a visit?”

“Oh, I’m sure you’ve heard by now why we’re here.” Robin replied in the tone of voice he saved only for League business, “We are looking for the Immortal Alchemist, Nicholas Flamel.”

“…You know Flamel?” he asked now intrigued, “How?”

To give his answer, Robin took out his own LXG coin and flipped it into the sheriff’s hand. When the man caught it, his eye’s widened as though he had seen it before.

“Where did you get this?” he asked softly.

“Like Flamel, I am an agent of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.” Robin informed, “Not only was his death wrongfully taken advantage of by the Dark One, the fate of all the living realms rests on his shoulders. Because of that, he must be returned to the land of the living. Do you know where he is?”

“…Can’t say that I do.” he replied tossing the coin back.

“If you are lying to me, I will-”

“What?” he cut off rising to his feet, “What could _you_ possibly do to me? In case you have forgotten, I am already dead. And I have had enough of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.”

“Is that why you won’t help?” Robin asked as the sheriff stormed out of his office, “Because you blame Flamel for your death?”

“Blame him?” he asked feeling insulted, “I gave my life to save the lives of my friends; including his! I do not blame the Immortal Alchemist for what befell me, I made the choice to fight even if it meant death. If you believe me to be so petty as to blame another man for something he had no say in, then you do not know me at all, _Leagues man_. I said I do not know where he is, and I meant it.”

“Then who would?” Robin asked, “I find it hard to believe that no one in this literal hell-hole has no idea where he is. So I will ask you again, who the bloody hell knows where Nicholas Flamel is?!”

“You’re a part of that organization, you figure it out!” he retorted. It took a moment, but realization dawned on Robin’s face before it hardened.

“I see.” he muttered, “In that case, things will prove to be more difficult than I thought. Thank you for your time, sheriff. You’ve been most helpful.”

“I want in.” he announced as Robin was about to leave.

“What?” he asked facing the departed man.

“I wish to help you find Nicholas; if you’ll have me.” he said.

“Why?” Robin asked.

“Last time I worked together with Nicholas, I wasn’t able to see our quest through to the end. I wish to make amends for that and help him now.”

“Very well.” Robin nodded, “We’d be more than happy to receive help. All I ask is that you not mention anything to the others about the League. They haven’t been informed yet, and now is certainly not the time.”

“Of course.” the sheriff nodded as he grabbed his sword and attached it to his belt, “Lead on.”

By the time the two men joined up with the others in front of the library, night had fallen and the boat leading back to the surface was long gone. When they returned, Regina rushed up to hug her soulmate tenderly.

“I take that our way out is gone?” Robin asked knowing the answer.

“Yeah.” Emma nodded, “But we’ll find another way. Who’s this?”

“Someone who has offered to help us find Nicholas.” he replied, “Everyone, this is the Underworld’s sheriff and an old friend of Nicholas’.”

“Pleased to meet you. I am Boromir, son of Denethor and Steward of Gondor.” he introduced with a respectful nod.

“Didn’t see that coming.” David muttered to his wife.

“Great.” Emma nodded, “We’ll need all the help we can get.”

After they headed over to the alternate version of the loft, Cora came out from behind the clock tower and watched them leave. Afterwards, she walked into the library and entered the elevator. After a long, fast drop, she reached her destination with a fearful look on her face.

Walking through the mines, she could hear the sound of soft, classical music echo through the cave. Coming to its source, she found a man dressed in a suit surrounded by trinkets while a grotesque, bloody creature served him wine while a peasant girl in rags gave him a pedicure.

“Is there something you’d like to tell me, Cora?” the man asked in a gentle tone as the music soothed him.

“Um,” she stuttered, “The sheriff has tu-turned to the intruders’ side. He-he is helping them search for-”

“For your son.” the man finished, “Yes, I know. Thanks to your incompetence. As I expected from a miller’s daughter.”

“Why do you want my daughters gone?” Cora asked, “What threat could they pose to you?”

“Ah,” he said in a calm, yet clearly angry tone, “You see, they have come here to take the soul of their brother. Whose soul belongs to my domain now. You see where I’m going with this? Do I look like a man who likes to lose?”

“I did what you asked. Now I want what I was promised. Tell me where my son is.” Cora demanded even though she was afraid.

“Ah. Really, Cora. I’m surprised you care so much about Abba, especially after having lost him to slave traders and, of course, what you did to your other daughter.”

“How do you know those things?” she asked.

“Oh, I know about everything. Including why you have Zelena up. All so you could claw your way out of a miserable peasant life. Which is ironic considering what your actions led to the life your son had to live.”

“No. No, no, that-that was an accident.” Cora defended, “He-he fell, he-”

“Enough.” he interrupted, “I don’t want to hear your excuses. And I have just thought of the perfect punishment for you.”

Flicking his wine glass, he made Cora change out of her pantsuit and into the very same rags she once wore when she was a poor, powerless miller’s daughter.

“Look at that.” he chuckled, “A miller’s daughter once again. Hurry now, Cora. You have flour to deliver. That’s what they do at mills, isn’t it? I never paid much attention. It seems like such dull work.”

“No.” Cora denied looking utterly miserable, “No, you promised you’d save us.”

“And you promised not to fail. Something to think about for eternity.” he chuckled. As Cora sobbed and hauled her cart away, he chuckled at her misery and did something unexpected. His skin turned a sickly, pale gray while his hair erupted into blue fire. This was more than enough to reveal who he was.

He was Hades, god of death and lord of the Underworld.


	58. The Search

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

At the red lit loft, the rescue party went over possible ways to find Nicholas with the help of “Underbrooke’s” sheriff. But despite how useful he was proving to be, some of them who knew his story, or at least thought they did, were wary of him helping them.

“So where exactly have you already searched for Flamel?” Boromir asked as they peered at the map he brought them from the station.

“Everywhere we could think of.” David scoffed, “We checked all over town and asked everyone who had a similar job to what our friends’ have up top.”

“There’s no point in asking them.” Boromir dejected, “Even if they did know, they wouldn’t tell you. They are too afraid of him.”

“Him who?” Regina asked while Zelena shifted slightly.

“Wait, you don’t know?” he asked them all, “You’re in the Underworld, it’s obvious who’s in charge down here. Hades, of course.”

“Hades?” Henry asked, “You mean the god of death?”

“Is there another Hades I don’t know about?” he asked, “But, yes, that Hades. And after spending decades down here, I know for a fact that he is unhappy with all of you for coming here.”

“Well, if you’ve been here for so long, where might you think he’s keeping Nicholas?” Hook asked.

“Believe it or not, but Hades actually enjoys handling punishment for souls. My guess is that since Flamel has cheated death for so long, something Hades cannot stand by the way, he’s most likely being kept down below where Hades keeps the eternal punishments.” Boromir replied.

“Can we get there?” Emma asked as her head continued to pound from the voices.

“I don’t believe anyone has ever asked that before.” the sheriff muttered to himself, “But, yes, we can. Unfortunately, the underground tunnels beneath the town are like a labyrinth; and Hades keeps them well guarded with his dark minions.”

“Nothing we can’t handle.” Robin argued.

“Tread carefully,” Boromir warned, “Foolhardiness has proven fatal in more ways than one down here. All planning aside, it’s obvious that Hades will be keeping an eye on us no matter where it is we go; be it his own or the eyes of the souls reporting to him.”

“So, discretion is actually pointless then?” Hook asked bluntly.

“I think we threw discretion out the bloody window yesterday when we asked everyone in sight if they had seen Nicholas.” Zelena flatly commented, “Where would the best entrance be for us to start searching?”

“There are the mine tunnels on the outskirts of town in the woods.” Boromir replied, “They are unguarded, and if we are discovered, we would have plenty of room to make our escape, if need be. In fact, all of the entrances in town lead directly to Hades himself.”

“We’ll head over to the toll bridge and start looking there.” Snow said as she grabbed her bow and quiver with Regina grabbing her coat to indicate she’d be joining. As everyone was talking, Emma did her best to ignore the pain and screaming voices in her head.

“I shall accompany you.” Boromir offered, “If we should intercept the lord of the dead, I wish to personally inform him of my resignation as sheriff.”

“Okay, Hook, Robin and I will keep looking around town for any other leads.” David added, “We might get lucky and find something.”

“While you’re doing that, stop by Nicholas’ house. If it’s anything like the loft, it may have some of his things down here. We may even be able to use a locator spell on them.” Regina suggested.

Unfortunately for Emma, the voices were making it difficult for her to follow along with everyone’s planning. Sweat began to bead on her forehead as her frustration grew, the only one who noticed this was Henry.

“I can check the vault to see if Cora has anything we can use.” Zelena offered.

“You?” Regina scoffed, “In a place full of our mother’s magic by yourself? I don’t think so.”

“ _This is your fault. You’re to blame._ ” the voices chanted in Emma’s head.

“ _We’d be better off in anyone else instead of you._ ”

“ _Leave her alone! She had no say in this. It was Flamel’s idea!_ ” one of the souls defended which only caused more yelling.

“When are you going to get it through your thick head that I’m actually trying to help?” Zelena asked, “I didn’t have to come down here with you.”

“Are you two seriously going to do this now?” Hook asked, “You’d think the fate of your brother’s soul would be enough reason to put this squabble on hold.”

“No one asked for your input, _Guy-Liner_.” Regina retorted.

“ _Let me take control!_ ” a voice demanded, _“We’ll never get anywhere with this one running things._ ”

“ _Flamel gave her the Stone and it’s her body!_ ” a woman’s voice defended, _“That alone is reason enough for her to stay in control._ ”

“ _Oh, and I suppose we should just sit back and let the girl waste our time acting like a headless chicken, then?_ ”

“ _Keep talking like that, Andal, and you’ll find yourself dealing with us!_ ”

“Be quiet.” Emma growled softly.

“Mom?” Henry asked in concern.

“ _Ooh, is that a threat, Sergence?_ ” the voice asked, “ _Should I be afraid of you? Are you going to kill me? Oh, wait. You can’t!_ ”

“I said, be quiet.” Emma said softly to herself.

“ _Who are you to order us?!_ ” another voice shouted at her, “ _We do not answer to you!_ ”

“If all you plan to do is argue amongst yourselves, then I fear for what might become of Flamel.” Boromir judged as he crossed his arms.

“Keep your concerns to yourself.” Zelena said rudely.

“You really think it’s a good idea to act like that to the guy who’s trying to help us instead of turning us over to Hades?” David asked the witch.

“This is escalating quickly.” Robin sighed as they all started arguing.

Having enough of the arguing in her head and in the room, Emma finally let out her frustration and slammed her hands on the table before shouting to everyone that could hear her; inside and outside her mind.

“SHUT UP!!!” she yelled causing everybody to stop and look at her, “Shut up! Shut up! All of you, shut the hell up!”

Everyone looked at her in surprise. Never before had any of them see Emma get so angry like that. Firing her gun to gain their attention? Yes. Jumping into a raging sea to make them stop fighting? Yes. Actually yelling at all of them at the top of her lungs? Not once. If it hadn’t been for the red sky making the entire room reddish, they would have been able to see her bloodshot eyes as they glared daggers at them all. Thankfully, the voices of the souls also quieted down after she yelled at them.

“Go!” Emma ordered pointing to the door, “Now!”

They did so without another word and went their separate ways to do what they said they would before the arguing started. Out in the woods, Boromir lead Emma, Snow and Regina to the underground passage by the toll bridge. As they trudged through the mud and branches, Snow finally broke the awkward silence that had been hanging in the air since the loft.

“You think we can trust this guy?” she asked gesturing to Boromir up ahead.

“Robin said he’s a friend of Nicholas’. And he’s the only one in town who’s offered to help. What more do we need?” Emma asked stiffly.

“Well, given what he did before he died,” Snow carried.

“Easy there, pixie cut.” Regina cut in, “If there’s anything we’ve learned since the curse, it’s that none of the book/movie versions of our stories are entirely accurate. Our departed friend here may not be as guilty as those movies make him out to be.”

_“Puh!”_ a child’s voice scoffed in Emma’s mind causing her to wince, _“That’s for sure!”_

“I said, be quiet!” Emma hissed.

“You hear them, don’t you?” Regina finally asked Emma.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Emma lied stiffly.

“Yes, you do.” she snapped with a glare.

“Hear what?” Snow asked in confusion.

“Emma’s realizing exactly what Nicholas has had to go through for nearly half a century now.” Regina informed, “She can hear the voices of the souls powering the Philosopher’s Stone.”

“You can?” Snow asked in concern, “But I thought Nicholas said they stopped years ago.”

“Yeah, well, coming down here must’ve woken them up.” Emma replied flatly, “And they haven’t shut up since. Ugh, they’re worse than the Dark Ones.”

“What do you expect?” Regina asked, “Last time you had, what, two dozen souls in your head? Give or take? Now you’ve got over half a million.”

“What are they saying?” Snow asked.

“More like, what aren’t they saying?” Emma scoffed, “A bunch of them are blaming me for what happened to Nicholas, others are defending me, some are talking about taking control or something, and the rest are just talking to each other about who knows what.”

“We’re here.” Boromir announced as they reached the cave. After entering the dark and red tunnel, the party kept their eyes and ears peeled for any sign of Nicholas or trouble; normally, they wouldn’t be able to find one without the other. Unfortunately for them, Hades emerged from the shadows and stop them in their tracks.

“I’m disappointed in you, sheriff.” he said in an unreadable tone, “You shouldn’t have done this.”

“Don’t expect an apology.” Boromir remarked with his sword drawn.

“Hades.” Regina realized. If anyone had asked, she and the other two women would’ve said they expected the deity to look a bit different than what stood before them.

“Don’t look so surprised. Who’d you think was in charge of this place; your mommy?” he asked.

“Well, if this is your realm, maybe you can answer a few questions. Like where is my brother, and why does this hell-hole look like Storybrooke?” Regina hotly demanded.

“I have my reasons for the town, and I don’t need to share them with you.” Hades replied, “And as for your brother, I, personally, am giving him my own undivided attention. For your sake, you’d best hope I don’t do the same to you.”

“We’re not afraid of you.” Snow said standing her ground.

“Oh. Snow White.” Hades gasped in false surprise, “Or is it Mary Margaret? You should be quite afraid of me because if you continue to interfere with my domain, I will come after you and everyone you hold dear.”

“Bring it.” Emma dared, “We’re not gonna rest until we find Nicholas.”

“Oh, and that must make you Emma.” the god chuckled, “Since your alchemist likes to send you messages, I told him I would deliver this one personally.”

Using his godly powers, Hades made something appear in his hand as he displayed it to them. With blood splattered here and there, he showed them the cut out skin from Nicholas’ back that was covered by his tattoo.

“What did you do to him?” Emma softly asked in horror while the others glared at him in anger.

“It’s not what I’ve already done you should worry about. No. It’s what I’m about to do.” he smiled as he dropped the skin and vanished in a vortex of blue fire.

When he returned to his throne room, Hades strode over to his chair with a glass of wine as red as blood appearing in his hand. Mulling over his thoughts, and past the sounds of screaming in the air, an idea popped into the mind of the Underworld’s ruler as he stared at the red liquid; a very dark idea.

At the loft, Emma was pacing back and forth with worry after Regina poofed the four of them back. Seeing her true love’s carved skin was more than enough to shake her up. If Regina hadn’t been so furious at Hades for what he had done and was doing to her little brother, she’d be doing the same.

“I never should have let him take on Nimue with me.” Emma said blaming herself, “I shouldn’t have let him take Excalibur and give me the Stone. It should’ve been me that died, not him.”

“Hey,” Snow soothed as she hugged her daughter and rubbed her back, “Don’t listen to those voices. This is not your fault. Nicholas is not suffering because of you.”

“Your mother’s right.” Regina agreed no less angry, “If anything, it’s all Rumple’s fault. He started all this.”

“As much as finding someone to blame might help you ladies feel better, it won’t get us anywhere.” Boromir gently reminded, “I fear that Nicholas may be receiving worse punishment now that we have angered Hades.”

“What are we gonna do now?” Emma asked.

“I don’t know.” he sighed as the others came back.

“Any luck?” David asked.

“Uh, poor timing, my friend.” Boromir muttered awkwardly, “Was anyone successful in their tasks?”

“Grandma Cora locked up her vault pretty tight.” Henry informed, “Me and Zelena couldn’t get in.”

“And as per usual, no one else offered their help to us. Were you able to find…” Robin sighed before spotting the piece of skin sticking out if Boromir’s satchel, “Oh. I see.”

“He’s toying with us, isn’t he?” Hook asked, “Hades?”

“What gave you that impression?” Zelena asked rolling her eyes, “Did you find anything at Nicholas’ house?”

“Just some burnt books, some broken lab equipment, a couple of whips, and…and a cage.” David sighed past the lump in his throat.

“Wait.” Emma said as her eyes widened, “I have something that belonged to him.”

“You do?” Regina asked. Emma reached into her pocket and pulled out Nicholas’ coin.

“Where did you get that?” Robin asked.

“He-he gave it to me back in Camelot.” she replied finding it odd that he asked her that.

“Oh, yes.” Regina whispered as she examined the coin, “This will do perfectly. We can use this to find Nicholas. Care to do the honors, Ms. Swan?”

In an attempt to cast a locator spell on the object, Emma waved her hand over it only to see and feel nothing happen. She tried again, but still nothing happened. “Why won’t it work?” she asked.

“Because you don’t have magic anymore, Emma.” Robin replied, “You have the Philosopher’s Stone inside you, remember? It’s impossible for you to use magic now that alchemy is flowing inside you. Watch.”

It wasn’t anything gruesome like what Nicholas probably would’ve done, but Robin merely scratched her arm to show her and everyone else that it healed exactly like Nicholas’ wounds did.

“My guess is that until we find Nicholas and return the Stone to him, you won’t be able to perform magic.” he concluded.

“How do you know all this?” Zelena asked, “You seem to know more than what you’re letting on.”

“As much as it sickens me,” Regina remarked, “Zelena’s right. You’ve been keeping secrets from us, Robin. Just like…like Nicholas. When we were in Camelot, you…you two were going to kill Arthur. You-you looked like you were enjoying it.” 

“And you blackmailed Gold into helping us. You threatened to kill Belle if he didn’t.” Emma remembered, “Who was pointing that gun at her, Robin? What aren’t you telling us?”

Everyone, aside from Boromir, stared intently at Robin who gritted his teeth and sighed. He then looked at them all with a cold look and flatly said, “I don’t have to tell any of you a goddamn thing.”

Needless to say, that was more than enough to surprise them all. Normally, Robin was a polite gentleman that rarely cursed around them and had a friendly disposition. But now he was coming off as a cold and distant stranger.

“Now is not the time to be asking these questions.” he spat, “We came down to this hell-hole for one reason, and one reason alone; find Nicholas, give him the Stone and get back to Storybrooke. If you want answers, wait until we are bloody done with this place and ask him yourself because he and I are sharing the same secrets. But at the rate we’re going, it won’t matter because everything we’ve been working for will fall apart.”

Back in the throne room, Hades unchained the hideous creature that had been serving him his wine with a wicked grin. The beast wore tattered brown robes riddled with holes and blood stains and looked as though it had no skin. It’s hairless head and visible arms were red as blood and had blood streaming from its entire body. Several teeth were missing from its jaw and it had only one working eye. In fact, it was so damaged, it couldn’t even speak; all it could do was groan, wheeze and cough up blood.

“You see her?” Hades asked it as he showed it Emma in a small crystal ball. The monster nodded, “Go get her. Happy hunting.” he smirked as he pushed it forward. And thus, it creature began its slow and painful walk up to the surface leaving a trail of bloody footprints behind.

Looking happy at the suffering he was causing, the lord of the Underworld’s head ignited in blue fire once again as he smiled devilishly in his throne.


	59. Sudden Death

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, LXG, or LoTR

After Robin’s outburst, the others got over their shock what he said and tried to put their focus back on finding Nicholas. Since Emma could no longer use magic, Regina decided to cast the spell on her brother’s coin. As soon as she did, it zipped out of her hand and under the front door leading outside. Chasing after it, they all searched for it in the streets, but it was nowhere in sight.

“Where the bloody hell did it go?” Hook asked hotly.

“You think it’s another one of Hades’ tricks?” Henry asked.

“I don’t know,” Snow said as she drew an arrow, “Maybe we should ask him.”

Looking where she was aiming, they all shuddered at the sight of the limping, bloody creature Hades sent after them. With its one “good” eye, it glared at them and grunted in pain as it slowly tried to get to them.

“What the hell is that hideous thing?” Zelena asked. Without a warning, Snow shot it in the chest and watched as it fell to the ground.

“I don’t think we want to stick around and find out.” she said as it growled at them. When it rose to its feet, it continued to trudge towards them, but Regina and Zelena knocked it back with their red and green fireballs.

This was more than enough to give them time while the ghoul moaned in pain on the ground. They tried to take their leave from the beast, but the moment they turned around, they saw it limping towards them once again. Fear began to take root in them, just slightly, and because of this, Boromir took his sword and skewered the bleeding carcass. But it appeared behind Henry the moment it fell to the ground.

“Henry, look out!” Emma shouted. It was then that her hands turned to claws and extended to impale the ghoul behind her son.

“That was unexpected.” Hook remarked as her fingers turned back to normal.

This time, the creature didn’t appear behind somebody after collapsing to the ground. Instead, it laid there soaking the ground with its blood with its soft pain filled moans emitting from its shredded throat. Despite its hideous appearance, some of the heroes felt sorry for what laid before them; especially when it tried to crawl towards them with its hand reaching out for something in desperation. For whatever reason Hades released it, it wanted to complete its task and get its hands on Emma Swan.

“Enough of this.” Regina spat before sending it flying with a blast of magic, “Looks like Hades is running out of ideas.”

“What was that thing?” Robin asked Boromir.

“I do not know.” he replied just as confused, “I have never seen such a foul creature in all my years here. Perhaps Hades was testing our strength?”

“Then why would he send such a weak thing?” Hook asked, “Why not send one of his furies, or some other hell-beast?”

“I don’t know.” Zelena said staring in the direction where her sister had tossed it away, “But I don’t think that’ll be the last we see of it.”

“Maybe there’s something on it in the library.” Henry suggested.

“The boy might be on to something.” Boromir nodded, “If we can’t find information on the beast, perhaps we can acquire knowledge on how to defeat Hades, or at least find Flamel.”

“Anyone else feel like we should’ve done that yesterday?” Zelena dryly asked as they headed to the library. As their luck was to be expected, they found nothing remotely close to information on Hades, or even the blood soaked specter either. While they effortlessly searched, the former sheriff’s mind wondered to his past when he was alive.

**OUaT**

Many years ago, in the kingdom of Gondor in the land of Middle Earth, a younger Boromir looked to the blackened distance from the cliff holding his beloved city to the ragged peaks of Mordor. His hair flowed freely in the breeze as he glared at the bane of his realm. All his life he had looked at the black land’s borders with ill contempt. For too long the wretched orcs of Mordor had taken the lives of his fellow man and brethren of Gondor in the never ending cycle of battle and death. His father, the kingdom’s steward Denethor may have been Gondor’s ruler, but Boromir was no fool; he knew his father was no king, and definitely not fit to lead his people.

It had left a sour taste in not only his mouth and the mouth of his father’s, but all those who came before them and ruled in place of the royal family since the death of Isildur being a kingdom’s ruler but not it’s monarch. Seeing the barren white tree in the courtyard everyday was but another reminder of this and the shell the white city of Minas Tirith had become over the past two ages. But his thoughts were not focused on that. No, his mind was focused on the danger the orcs were imposing on the fallen city of Osgiliath and the rest of Gondor.

“Boromir!” another man’s voice called from behind. The future steward turned around and saw his younger brother Faramir rush up to him.

“What is it, brother?” he asked.

“It’s Osgiliath,” he panted, “Th-the orcs, they’ve completely taken over the city. Our forces have been over run. Minas Tirith will be next.”

“Has father prepared reinforcements yet?” Boromir asked.

“I would imagine he will speak with you on this matter presently.” Faramir replied looking uncomfortable at the thought of their father, “What men we have left amongst the ruins are either too wounded or too shaken to go on against Mordor’s forces.”

“I will speak with father. We shall discuss our counter attack and make our way to Osgiliath.”

“Forgive me, brother.” Faramir begged as his sibling headed to the hall of kings.

“Whatever for?” Boromir asked in concern.

“Osgiliath was my charge. And I let it fall to the putrid hands of those orcs. I failed Gondor and her people.” Faramir said belittling himself, “I am unfit to be captain of the guard.”

“These are father’s words, not your own.” Boromir lectured as he placed his hands on his brother’s shoulders, “Do not let his judgement cloud and pollute your own. Not every battle can be won, little brother. We are sons of Gondor and while we may lose one or two battles, we will never surrender and we shall never allow the forces of Mordor to defeat us. Not while we may still draw breath and our swords. We will take back Osgiliath, brother. I swear. The hearts of men do not falter so easily; especially not men of Gondor.”

With his confidence restored, Faramir smirked and nodded at his brother as he patted him on the back. True, he knew that the up and coming battle would be long and hard, but with his brother’s aid, Faramir knew in his heart that victory would be achieved no matter how much blood would be spilt.

**OUaT**

“This is pointless!” Zelena exclaimed slamming her book shut.

“Love, calm down.” Hook sighed.

“How could I possibly calm down?!” she snarled, “All we accomplished since coming to this damn place was asking questions with no answers, wonder around town and receive the help of a dead man. Meanwhile, my brother is, literally, being tortured by hell’s minions as we stand here with our noses in a pile of books!”

“ _Our_ brother.” Regina corrected, “And if you have any other suggestions, please, by all means, share them with us, sister dear. Wow, now I know what Nicholas feels every time he calls me that.”

“ _Take the fight to Hades!_ ” the voices chorused in Emma’s head.

“Yeah, and we’d be killed in the process and be stuck down here for good.” Emma muttered as she flipped through the pages.

“Not sure what it is those voices are saying, but it doesn’t sound like good advice.” Robin remarked to the blonde.

“ _Not surprising,_ ” the voice of Sergence snorted, “ _Andal isn’t exactly the brightest amongst us._ ”

“ _Be silent, carpenter!_ ” Andal hissed.

“Both of you be quiet.” Emma snapped earning looks from the others, “Uh, not you guys. Sorry. It’s the voices again.”

“Maybe Zelena’s right.” Snow admitted.

“Come again from the woman whose baby I stole?” Zelena asked.

“Mom?” Emma asked.

“Well, think about it,” she began to explain, “Reading about Hades and his weaknesses is good and all, but we won’t get anywhere if we don’t do anything. I mean, when has anything involved with Nicholas ever not needed action?”

“What do you propose?” Boromir asked.

“Whatever that thing we saw earlier, whatever Hades sent at us, it may provide some answers.” she hypothesized.

“What I don’t understand is why he sent it in the first place.” Robin mused.

“What do you mean?” David asked.

“Think about it,” he said, “The thing was covered in scars, could barely move, looked like it had been through hell, and couldn’t even move without looking as though it was in pain. Not to mention, it wasn’t even remotely close to getting its hands on us. What’s the point in sending something so weak?”

“Who can say.” Boromir shrugged, “All I know is that Hades doesn’t do anything without a reason, and that reason, more often than not, involves someone else’s suffering.”

“I bet Nicholas would know.” Emma sighed, “I’m beginning to miss his brain, too.”

“Well, since we lost his coin, we have nothing else to track him with.” Regina sighed raking her hand through her hair, “This is just becoming more and more difficult by the minute.”

“It’s certainly not the most difficult thing I ever dealt with.” Boromir thought.

**OUaT**

If either of the steward’s sons had only ever been to the city of Osgiliath once in their lives, they would never had been able to recognize it after being reduced to rubble and ruins from the relentless and merciless attacks caused by the orcs. With what few men they could gather in Minas Tirith, the two brothers journeyed to their destination to regroup with Faramir’s remaining forces for their counter strike. After maneuvering past debris and the festering corpses of orcs and men alike, they joined with the small battalion by the river.

“My lords Boromir and Faramir.” one of the soldiers greeted somberly, “You have returned.”

“With able men eager for battle.” Boromir laughed as they clasped arms, “What news do you have for us? How fairs our forces?”

“We’ve managed to keep the orcs at bay for now. However, I’m afraid with each attempt we lose more men and the enemy gradually advances on us.”

“The orcs are led by the war chief Balgruth,” Faramir added as they conversed by a map of the city, “He’s not your average orc filth. He’s cunning, ruthless and, surprisingly, smart. He knows how to lead his troops.”

“Where has he made camp?” Boromir asked.

“Like I said, he’s smart.” Faramir sighed as he pointed to the map, “He never stays in the same place for more than a day. Just as soon as we discover his whereabouts, he moves to another section of the city. And we can’t intercept him fast enough on account of his scouts keeping their wretched eyes on us; and, he uses his warg to travel faster amidst the rubble.”

“Show me his previous locations.” Boromir ordered. Taking a close look at the map and its markers, the soldier of Gondor smirked at what he saw and began to formulate a plan. “You give this orc too much credit, brother. His methods are not as flawless as you may believe.”

“You have a plan?” Faramir asked his smirking brother.

“Indeed.” he chuckled, “Lieutenant, gather the troops. We have a city to reclaim.”

**OUaT**

“Perhaps we are going about this the wrong way.” Boromir spoke up.

“What do you mean?” David asked.

“Instead of spending our time trying, and failing, to find out about Hades’ past, perhaps we should focus on the actions he has made since your arrival.”

“What good will that do?” Zelena scoffed.

“It may lead to a better understanding of his intentions and what he may have planned for us and, by extension, Flamel.” he replied, “Think, what has he done since you arrived?”

“Not much.” Robin shrugged, “He was most likely the one who ordered Cora to convince us to leave without Nicholas.”

“He tried to scare us off by confronting us at the mines.” Snow added.

“He showed us Nicholas’ tattoo and threatened to torture him even more.” Emma added as a chill ran down her spine at the memory.

“And he sent that hideous creature to…” Hook carried.

“To…?” Boromir asked.

“I-I don’t know.” he replied.

“Exactly, you don’t.” Boromir pointed out, “That beast was barely able to move let alone cause us any trouble. It’s like Robin said, why send something so weak and frail instead of something ferocious beast to attack or frighten us?”

“Perhaps it can do more and we just don’t know it.” Robin suggested.

“If that is the case, then we won’t know unless we confront it.” he stressed.

“So, what?” Regina asked, “You want us to go back out there and look for the damn thing?”

“I believe that if we are patient enough, it will come to us sooner than we may think.” Boromir smirked.

Out in the woods where the creature being discussed was sent flying, the lord of the Underworld loomed over it with a disappointed look while he clicked his tongue.

“So disappointing.” he sighed, “And here I thought I sent the right one for the job.”

Since it was incapable of speaking, the ghoul could only make a raspy, slurred gargled sound in what could only be assumed as anger; or possibly protest at the remark. Oddly enough, it seemed as though Hades could understand what it was saying.

“I suppose you do have a point. It was kinda unfair of me to send you out here in your condition. But quite frankly, it was amusing to watch as those ‘heroes’ mopped the floor with you like that.” he chuckled while it glared and growled at him, “Oh, alright. I’ll return some of your strength to you. Should be more than enough to keep things interesting for round two.”

With a wave of his hand, Hades used his powers to restore a small fraction of the creature’s strength which more than enough for it to get back on its feet with ease; although, it had to resist the urge to use this newly restored strength and strangle the deity standing next to it.

“Try and make it last a bit longer this time, okay?” Hades sighed, “As much as I hate them being here, watching them struggle while dealing with you is the most entertainment a guy like me can get around here.”

Growling at the god one last time, the creature was sent back into town in a vortex of blue fire in an instant. Next thing it knew, it was back at the town square looking around for the group of heroes.

“Uh, guys,” Henry said peeking out the window through the blinds, “It’s back. And I think it found us.”

“Oh, relax, kid.” Emma assured, “That thing could barely shift across the ground, there’s no way it could-”

But she was cut off by the sound of the creature’s fists breaking through the glass and snarling as it tried to claw its way in.

“What the hell?” she asked completely baffled.

“I think Hades may have given it a little boost.” Regina observed as they backed away from the door which was kicked in.

“You think?!” Emma exclaimed as McBleedsalot snarled at them and charged at her. But just before it could, Zelena poofed them outside back to the square.

“I don’t think this is far enough away, sis!” Regina snapped.

“It’s not me!” she defended, “Hades must’ve done something to keep us from going too far!”

Watching everything play out from his throne room with the crystal ball, Hades smirked viciously and laughed as his servant confronted them all again.

“Let’s get ready to RUMBLE!” he laughed.

Having enough with this game, the beast ran towards them as they had their weapons ready. Regina took the first strike and tried to send it flying again with her magic but had to watch as it easily dodged it and continued to charge them.

Robin and Snow let their arrows fly and watched as they pierced itself already bloody flesh. But it still wasn’t enough to stop the monster from coming at them. Hook, David and Boromir took the chance to kill it with their swords, but once again their attacks were dodged. It even came as more of a surprise when their foe fought back.

It grabbed David’s arm when his strike missed and elbowed him in the face before quickly kicking Hook in the stomach before twisting Boromir’s arm, swinging its legs over him and driving a powerful punch to his kidneys.

While this happened, Emma had no other choice but to stay back and defend Henry as everyone else fought. Not only for his sake, but without her magic, she wasn’t much use in a fight now; especially, since she hadn’t yet figured out how to control the powers she received with the Stone.

Not want to risk the safety of his friends, Robin disconnected his bow and charged at the ghoul with his hooks. Throwing one at it, he had hoped that it would work as this attack normally did, by digging into his enemy’s back as he pulled it in. At first, it seemed as though it was about to happen, but just as it was about to, the monstrosity ducked its head and grabbed hold of the hook before pulling the other one and Robin towards it. 

Tumbling towards it, Robin couldn’t do anything to stop it from backhanding him so hard that his head was knocked against a nearby fire hydrant. It may not have been enough to knock him out, but it sure as hell was plenty enough to ring his bell and put him in a daze; oddly enough, the creature had no desire to keep the bow, all it did was toss it aside before continuing its advance towards Emma.

“Stay back.” Snow warned with her bow ready to fire. But the monster only snarled at her in response. Seeing that it wasn’t going to heed her warning, the princess fired her arrow and watched as it landed in its chest. Unfortunately, and not in the least bit surprising, it hadn’t stopped coming after them.

“Alright, Hades,” Zelena said to herself with a fireball in her hand, “Enough of your games.”

Throwing her attack, which landed in succession, the Wicked Witch watched as the beast writhed in agony as her green flames consumed it; much to everyone’s disgust, however, they could all smell the burning flesh and blood coming from it. It was persistent, there was no doubt about that when it rose to its feet and tried to rush them again, but Robin stopped it by using his crossbow to fire a multitude of bolts, each one hitting their target and sending it back to the ground.

“Maybe this time you’ll stay down.” the archer remarked.

“Agh, even I’m not going to bother and said ‘bloody hell’.” Hook sighed as he finally noticed the bloody footprint on his shirt. From the ground, the creature panted in pain and looked up at them as they surrounded it.

“What do we do now?” Henry asked.

“I doubt this thing will be getting up anytime soon.” Emma observed, “Let’s just leave it here.”

“Agreed,” Boromir nodded, “Come. We still need to locate Flamel.”

As they all began to walk away, the creature managed to use what little strength it had left and grabbed the ankle of the last person to walk away, Zelena. Naturally, since it grabbed her ankle, this caused the witch to fall to the ground. In her frustration, she looked at it in anger, but this anger almost instantly went away when she looked at its one good eye. 

Sympathy for the beast consumed her as she continued to stare at it. It wheezed in pain and desperation as it looked back at her. On her knees now, she gently petted the ghoul’s head feeling sorry for the poor thing before she looked back to her sister and her friends.

“I’m sorry.” she whispered to it.

“I hope I never have to see that disgusting thing ever again.” Emma sighed as they all walked away. Feeling a chill run down his spine, Robin turned around to see Zelena use her magic to toss the creature, who barred its teeth at them, towards her.

“Emma, watch out!” he cried. But it was too late, it tackled her and sent them rolling across the pavement away from the others. Beneath them on his throne, Hades smirked as he watched what played out.

“My favorite part of the game.” he smirked while watching the creature sink its teeth into Emma’s neck, “Sudden Death.”

“Emma!” Snow and David cried as they scrambled to their daughter, but Zelena kept them back with her magic. Though they didn’t realize it, but the creature wasn’t trying to devour Emma’s flesh. No, instead it was trying to suck something out of her, something that didn’t belong to her.

Having enough of the bloody specter’s teeth around her neck, Emma tried to get if off her. But it wouldn’t let her. As her anger and frustration grew past her pain, Emma cried out and sent the beast flying with white energy from her hand. She checked her neck to find no wound left behind and then looked at her hand when she realized what she had done.

“Swan, was that-” Hook asked.

“Magic.” she gasped with her eyes wide before looking at the sprawled out monster, “It took it. It took the Stone!”

“You idiot!” Regina screamed at her sister who was still on the ground, “Why would you do that?! Do you have any idea what you’ve done?!”

But Zelena said nothing. She just stared sadly at the creature and pointed at it as a single tear rolled down her eye. Everyone then watched in horror as the scene began to play out before them.

Convulsing and twitching rapidly, the monstrosity slowly rose a few inches off the ground as it spasmed and cried out in pain. A moment later, its face and body became like the red souls that Emma had seen inside the Philosopher’s Stone and was absorbed into it. As this happened, the sound of a small piece of metal clinking against the ground could be heard; but no one paid it any attention.

When it was just the Stone floating in midair, they watched as it erupted a multitude of streams of red lightning as a body began to grown from it. When the gruesome process was done and the body was now wearing the same brown, tattered and bloody cloak as before, it collapsed to the ground with its back facing the heroes.

Rushing over, fully prepared to kill the thing that robbed their precious alchemist his one chance at returning to life, they stopped and gasped when they saw the creature’s face. As they did, Henry noticed his uncle’s coin on the pavement and picked it up in shock. The rest of them were all smart enough to know that since the ghoul had taken the Philosopher’s Stone, it would gain all its abilities and powers. What they didn’t know was who the ghoul was. Now they did. Looking down at his unconscious state, they saw Nicholas Flamel lying on the pavement without a single wound on his body.

“Oh, my God.” Emma whispered in shock. The most she could bring herself to do was gently caress his face. Everyone else was completely speechless. The thought that the thing that had been pestering them all day actually turning out to be Nicholas had never crossed their minds, not even once.

“He’s out cold.” Emma said to them while Boromir inspected him. But as he did, Nicholas jolted awake and quickly scrambled away with a look of fear in his eyes. To them, he looked like a frightened animal that wanted to hide and never be found by anyone.

“Nicholas?” Emma asked gently as he crawled away backwards, “Nicky, it’s okay.”

“Brother, please.” Regina pleaded trying to keep her composure. But just as it seemed like Nicholas was regaining his composure, he cried out in pain and clenched his head in agony as he rolled around on the ground. When he was done, and the yelling died down, he rose to his feet and, for some odd reason, began to pat himself down and take in the feeling of his body.

“Mate, are you alright?” Hook asked in concern.

“Nicholas?” Emma asked. Taking a deep breath, he faced them again and opened his eyes. But when he did, they were no longer brown, or even red like they would occasionally become. Instead, they were yellow; golden would be a more accurate description, actually.

“Not exactly.” he replied coolly through another, yet familiar to Emma, voice.

**OUaT**

“Watch out!” the soldiers of Gondor cried as the orcs fired their catapults. So far, Boromir’s plan involved leaving Faramir his troops while he took the men he brought with him to sneak past enemy lines.

“Captain!” one of them shouted to Faramir as their archers counter attacked, “We must fall back! Osgiliath is lost!”

“No!” he cried, “Hold the line! He’ll pull through!”

“He better pull through.” he muttered as he fired his own arrow.

On the other side of the city ruins, Boromir quietly led his men behind the orcs’ lines and took out as many as they could while staying as discreet as possible. Thankfully, he had discovered a flaw in the war chief’s pattern from moving from one place to another. Balgruth would move to one of eight different spots depending on not only to condition of his forces but the men’s forces as well. Going off that, and what he had seen on the map showing who was where, he had been able to pinpoint where the orc was at the time; and he was right. He could see the older orc staring down the city from his perch with his guards at his side. With no plans beyond this point, Boromir said this first and only thing that came to mind.

“Charge!”

His men needed no further orders. They all charged at the orcs and slew them where they stood. The only one that hadn’t been introduced to the steel of Gondor was Balgruth, the very orc Boromir wanted to kill the most, and the one he chased after.

“Running away, orc?” he taunted when he caught up to the war chief, “Your master would be displeased.”

“As long as the blood of men is spilt,” Balgruth snarled as he drew his blade, “I am fulfilling his wish!”

And thus, the battle began on the crumbling remains of Osgiliath. It goes without saying that fighting someone on uneven ground is difficult, but fighting against someone with armor restricting most of your movement on uneven ground that could crumble beneath you at any time is practically suicidal. With his sword in one hand and his shield in another, Boromir blocked Balgruth’s attacks and made his own while trying not to fall to his premature death.

Unfortunately for either of them, the building which they were fighting on was beginning to succumb to their battle. Smacking the orc with his Shield, Boromir was able to gain the upper hand, unfortunately, his brother’s forces had fired one of their own catapults and made contact with the lower half of the building which only made the fighting even more strenuous.

Falling through the hole forming beneath him, the man of Gondor caught himself and looked up and saw as the war chief tried to take his head. By fate, luck, chance, whatever anyone would call it when graced with the circumstance, Boromir fell through the hole, barely dodging the orc’s blade. That being said, Balgruth went in after him and resumed the fight inside the crumbling building.

Without his shield, Boromir was forced to use his sword to fend off the attack which proved that he had been backed into a corner; and in this case, that was also a literal statement. From the corner of his eye, he was able to spot a bonfire fueled with oil just below Balgruth.

“Any last words, manfilth?” he asked pointing his blade to the crouching man.

“Yes. Mind the fall.” he smirked before kicking a hole in the rubble sending Balgruth directly into the fire. As much he would have loved to stay and laugh at the expense of the orc’s pain and misery, the building was coming down on him and endangering his life.

As it came down, the son of Gondor was able to roll safely out through the debris and back onto the battlefield, which had fewer orcs than when he arrived, laughing as he got over the fear of dying by a falling building. Just then, a pair of boots came in front of his face. Looking up, he saw his smirking younger brother shaking his head.

“I take it that was part of your brilliant plan?” Faramir asked as he helped him up.

“Well, not exactly.” Boromir laughed as they hugged each other. 

Days later, the remaining orc forces were either dead or fleeing to refuge behind the Black Gate. Seeing that it was thanks to Boromir and his plan, Faramir convinced him to give a rousing speech to celebrate their victory over reclaiming Osgiliath. At the top of a fallen tower, with a white banner bearing the mark of Gondor clenched in one fist and his sword in another, Boromir gave his speech as the troops cheered his name.

“This city was once the jewel of our kingdom! A place of light, and beauty, and music, and so it shall be once more!” he declared as they cheered, “Let the armies of Mordor know this; never again will the land of my people fall into enemy hands! The city of Osgiliath has been reclaimed! For Gondor!”

“For Gondor!” they cried.

“For Gondor!” he shouted.

“For Gondor!”

“For Gondor!” Boromir yelled hoping the heavens themselves would hear him. After joining the others, he found his brother again equally happy over their victory as he was.

“Good speech.” Faramir praised, “Nice and short.”

“Leaves more time for drinking.” he pointed out as they laughed, “Break out the ale! These men are thirsty! Remember today, little brother. Today life is good.”

As they toasted their steins and downed their ale, Faramir’s happy expression faltered as he looked past his elder brother. “What?” Boromir asked chuckling.

“He’s here.” Faramir replied in distaste. Looking where his brother nodded, Boromir watched as his father Denethor praised the men as he moved past them to find him.

“Oh, one moment of peace. Can he not give us that?” Boromir sighed.

“Where is he?” he asked proudly finding his sons, “Where is Gondor’s finest? Where is my firstborn?”

“Father.” Boromir greeted putting on a fake smile as he hugged the steward.

“They say you vanquished enemy almost singlehanded.” Denethor praised.

“They exaggerate.” he laughed, “The victory belongs to Faramir, also.”

At the sight of his youngest, Denethor’s smile instantly dropped and was replaced by a frown filled with disappointment and partial disgust.

“If not for Faramir, this city would still be standing.” he said sourly as his other son joined them, “Were you not entrusted to protect it?”

“I would have, but our numbers were too few.” Faramir defended.

“Oh, too few.” Denethor nodded sarcastically, “You let the enemy walk in and take it on a whim. Always you cast a poor reflection on me.”

“That is not my intent.” he sadly argued.

“You give him no credit yet he tries to do your will.” Boromir defended before storming off. But Denethor had more to discuss and followed his son before stopping him. “He loves you, Father.”

“Do not trouble me with Faramir.” he lectured, “I know his uses and they are few. We have more urgent things to speak of. Elrond of Rivendell has called a meeting. He will not say why but I have guessed its purpose. It is rumored the weapon of the enemy has been found.”

“…The One Ring?” Boromir asked not knowing whether to feel afraid or downright terrified, “Isildur’s bane.”

“And it has fallen into the hands of the elves, but that is not all. A group of singular individuals has heard word of this, as well. They are traveling to Rivendell as we speak. They will try to take it for themselves, as will other men, dwarves and wizards alike. We cannot let that happen. This thing must come to Gondor. It’s dangerous, I know. Ever the Ring will corrupt the hearts of lesser men, but you, you are strong. And our need is great. It is our blood which is being spilt; our people are dying. Sauron is biding his time; he’s massing fresh armies. He will return, and when he does we will be powerless to stop him. You must go. Bring me back this mighty gift.”

Gazing at the look of madness in his father’s eyes, Boromir shrugged his hands off his shoulders and walked away; in fear. 

“No.” he denied, “My place is with my people; not in Rivendell!”

“Would you deny your own father?” Denethor hotly asked.

“If there is need to go to Rivendell send me in his stead.” Faramir offered.

“You?” Denethor scoffed, “Oh, I see. A chance for Faramir, captain of Gondor to show his quality? I think not. I trust this mission only to your brother, the one who will not fail me.”

Seeing that he had no other option, Boromir gathered his things and readied his horse. The ride from Gondor to Rivendell would be long, but the journey that would follow would be longer; and the heir of the steward’s last. With his beloved brother looking up to him sadly, Boromir bid his farewells and rode off to the land of the elves; never to return.

**OUaT**

“Who the hell are you?” Regina snarled as she readied a fireball.

“Calm yourself, Regina.” he advised raising his hands, “I’m a friend.”

“That voice.” Emma whispered, “I know that voice. You, you’re one of the souls in the Philosopher’s Stone, aren’t you?”

“Indeed. My name is Sergence, reendowed master carpenter of Xerxes; or rather I was back when I had my own body.” he introduced.

“What the bloody hell is going on?” Robin asked, “Why are you talking to us and not Nicholas?”

“I’m afraid Hades did more damage to Flamel than we all thought.” Sergence gently replied, “His mind is broken and his soul is damaged. He needs time to recuperate and regain his strength. Until that happens, I shall be filling in for him in controlling this body; for now.”

“Why you?” David asked.

“I believe the Savior can vouch for what I am about to tell you. However, I believe that it would be best to discuss this at the loft. If the Wicked Witch would be so kind?” he asked before Zelena poofed them back, “Thank you. Now, back to what I was saying. Since the Philosopher’s Stone was brought down here, we who reside in it and power it have awoken from the dormant state we were in on the surface world. Since then, most of us have been trying to give our support to Emma in finding Flamel and returning the Stone to him. Others, however, are not so keen on the idea.”

“How’s that?” Snow asked.

“Some of the souls have grown tired of Flamel being the only one to have a body of his own. So tired of this, that they are trying to take control and take the power of the Stone for themselves.” Sergence explained.

“Can they do that?” Emma asked.

“Before we all lost our individualities and went silent, there were times when these souls would try to take Flamel’s place and his body. Fortunately, he was strong enough to push back and prevented that from ever happening. Now, however, since he is weak from what Hades has done to him, that is no longer the case. Until he regains his strength, someone else must be in control to keep the would-be-usurpers at bay and at the moment, that’s me. I’m one of the souls that are trying to help Nicholas and return things to the way they were.”

“How long will it be before Nicholas’ strength is back?” Regina asked.

“Who can say?” he shrugged, “Flamel is resilient, as you all know, and has a strong and powerful will to back up that resilience. If I were to guess…no more than a day.”

“It’s just one bloody thing after another, isn’t it?” Zelena scoffed as she rolled her eyes.

“At least we’ve got him back.” Regina pointed out before muttering, “Mostly. Now we just need to find a way to get the hell out of here.”

“That may be even more difficult than before.” Boromir pointed out, “I honestly doubt that Hades is pleased that we’ve succeeded in restoring Flamel’s immortality.”

“In any case, we have all five once again.” Robin thought. Later that day, up in her room, Emma looked down at Sergence speaking with Robin and Boromir with a sad look on her face. She was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn’t notice her mother come up and sit next to her.

“Emma?” she asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Why does it feel like he’s still far away even though he’s downstairs?” she asked sadly. Snow realized that despite Nicholas being returned to them and that he wasn’t in control of his body, her daughter was still heartbroken and very much missed her true love. All she could do was hug her and try to soothe her as a few stray tears rolled down her face.


	60. Forgotten Souls

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, LXG or LoTR

Many years ago, in a secluded location where few knew of its existence, Allan Quartermain looked at the three members of his team with his signature scowl as they stood before him. The mission headquarters had informed him about was one that would take an unknowable amount of time; however, they were able to explain that no matter how long it would take, it would be possibly one of the most difficult missions in League history.

“This assignment comes straight from the director’s mouth.” he informed gruffly, “The three of you are the only ones in our branch that have the necessary skills and knowledge to complete it without raising too much suspicion or altering the course of the realm’s advancement. There’s no telling how long you’ll be gone.”

“Where exactly is it you’ll be sending us, boss?” Flamel asked with Mina and Nemo at his sides.

“Middle Earth.” he replied shocking them all.

“Why there of all places?” Mina asked.

“As you all know, our organization was founded centuries ago by the members of the first League of Extraordinary Gentlemen; one of them was a native to Middle Earth. He contacted the director not long ago and informed him of the threat the entire realm is facing and since the director considers us his best team, we have been assigned to assist in ending this threat. However, we were not permitted to send everyone, only those whose skills do not involve advanced weaponry that the realm has not yet developed; you three fit that description better than anyone.”

“Okay, I can see why you and Sawyer would be out, by why not Skinner or Jekyll and Hyde?” Flamel asked.

“Because Skinner’s combat specialty requires stealth and open space.” Nemo reminded, “If we are to engage in battle over there, he’d be out of his element due to needing armor and possibly a weapon.”

“And we cannot send Jekyll and Hyde because I don’t want their formula to be introduced there.” Quartermain added.

“So where exactly are we to go once we arrive in Middle Earth, Mr. Q?” Mina asked, “And just how covert do we need to be?”

“Discretion is not required in this mission, Dr. Harker. Everyone you will meet and interact with will know that you are a part of the League and what your purpose is. As for where you are to go, you will use the beans to transport yourselves by the hidden path of Imladris. Follow it, then you will arrive to your destination where you will meet with the founding member and your host. And, Flamel, no sarcasm; I expect you to show them respect.”

“Who do you take me for, Skinner?” he asked, “I happen to be one of the politest members here and I am always respectful to the higher ranks. Do you honestly think I’d behave that way to one of our founders? It’s Mina’s flirting you should be concerned with.”

“Point taken.” Quartermain nodded.

“Hey!” Mina snapped.

“When do we leave?” Nemo asked.

“Now.” he replied as he handed Flamel a vial with a bean, “Head outside and use this. Oh, and one last thing, you won’t be making contact at any time during this mission. Your main focus is the mission and the mission alone. No contact coming in and no contact going out.”

“So, we’ll call you tomorrow night?” Flamel asked humorously which earned a glare from Quartermain, “Right. Shutting up, sorry, boss.”

“Just get going.” he sighed.

“He’s going to shoot you in the head one of these days if you keep up that sarcasm of yours, Nicholas.” Mina warned as they left the hideout.

“Eh, not like it can kill me if he does.” Flamel shrugged as they uncorked he uncorked the vial and opened the portal. 

After landing in unfamiliar soil, the trio of agents found themselves in plains riddled with hills and rocks; the closest one to them seemed to have an odd mark carved into one of the boulders above an entrance. Looking back, if he was ever asked, Flamel would have said that it resembled a deer or sorts. Maneuvering their way past a narrow and jagged path, Flamel and his comrades were greeted with an awe inspiring sight; a beautiful structure built upon the cliffs next to a spectacular waterfall glistening in the sunlight.

“Imladris,” Nemo addressed with an impressed nod, “We have reached our destination.”

“Rivendell.” Flamel smiled using the word men use for the elven location. 

About an hour or so later, they reached the pavilion of the structure where they found elven guards to escort them to their host. When they found him, he was accompanied by an old man with a long gray beard, wooden staff, gray robes and a pointy blue hat with a pipe in his hand along with a small elderly gentleman with large hairy feet also smoking a pipe. Dressed in impressive auburn and white robes, their host turned to them and greeted them with a small smile.

“Lord Elrond Halfelven,” Nemo greeted with a bow, “It is an honor to make your acquaintance. I am Captain Nemo of the Nautilus, these are my companions and fellow extraordinary gentlemen, Dr. Mina Harker and Nicholas Flamel. On behalf of Allan Quartermain’s branch of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, we are here to assist in answering the threat of Mordor.”

“And we thank you for it.” Elrond nodded, “Your help is most welcomed in this hour of need. I trust that you have questions before the council begins, do you not?”

“Several, yes.” Mina nodded, “Pardon my bluntness, but it is rather obvious as to why such a council is being held. The One Ring has been found, hasn’t it?”

“Found is not exactly an appropriate word I would use.” Elrond replied glancing at the shortest member of the group, “It was ‘found’ over sixty years ago by Master Baggins here. We have only recently discovered he was in possession of it. Currently, his ward, Frodo is in possession of it and is keeping it safe.”

“And where might he be-Nicholas, what are you doing?” Mina asked when she spotted the look of admiration on her friend’s face.

“I can’t help it.” he said overly happy, “I’ve been on edge in excitement all day!”

In a blur, he was on one knee before the founding member of his organization with a shining look of respect. “It is such an honor to meet you, never in my wildest dreams did I ever even consider the possibility that I would meet a founder of the League in person. Truly, Lord Baggins, you are an inspiration.”

Surprised at first by the young man’s praise, Bilbo quickly regained his composure and patted Flamel’s head with a kind smile. It may have been many, many years since he last had anything to do with the League, but he was proud to see that even after all this time, the spark he helped ignite hadn’t died out.

“Thank you for that, my lad.” he smiled, “As it happens, I see great potential in you. Tell me, what seat are you in your branch?”

“Fourth, sir.” Flamel replied smiling, “I’m the fourth seat.”

“Really? So was I.” Bilbo replied like a grandfather would to his grandchild. Hearing this made Flamel suppress the urge to squeal. Off to the side, Mina whispered to Nemo.

“But wasn’t he the third seat like I am?” she asked.

“I think he’s just humoring Nicholas for the sake of being nice.” Nemo replied, “Keep it to yourself, though. No need in bursting the boy’s bubble.”

“If I may intervene,” spoke up the old man, “Perhaps the three of you would care to know more of the situation at hand?”

“Oh, yes, of course.” Mina replied before dragging Flamel back over to them, “Come on, Nicholas, you can chat with Lord Baggins later.”

“But I want to chat now!” he whined.

“Mission first, remember? Do I need to inform Mr. Q that you did not have your attention focused on our assignment throughout our time here?” she threatened.

“…No.” he muttered humorously looking downcast before perking up, “All humor aside, what is the severity of what’s going on?”

“Two days ago, my nephew Frodo was brought here with his companions to be healed.” Bilbo began, “The enemy is as desperate to reclaim the ring as we are equally desperate to destroy both it and him. He even went as far as to send the Nazgul after them to reclaim it.”

“Nazgul?” Mina asked.

“They were the nine kings of men who received rings of power from Sauron when he first rose to power.” Flamel replied, “Unlike the elves and dwarves, they succumbed to Sauron’s darkness and became his servants.”

“Indeed, and now they search aimlessly for the ring and whomever may bear it.” Elrond nodded, “In addition, the armies of Mordor are growing with each passing day behind the Black Gate. Orcs, trolls, even men are pledging their allegiance to him.”

“To make matters worse, Saruman has turned against us, as well.” Gandalf added gravely, “We now face the wraths of both Mordor and Isengard in this war.”

“Isn’t he one of the five wizards meant to keep peace here in Middle Earth?” Flamel asked.

“At one time, yes.” he replied almost sadly.

“So we must deal with two opposing sides at both the east and west?” Mina asked, “That doesn’t leave us much room to maneuver through.”

“No, it does not.” Elrond sighed, “But we will discuss more of this during the council. Not all of whom have been summoned have arrived. Until then, rest and make yourselves at home. The borders of Rivendell are well protected.”

**OUaT**

Inside Ms. Ginger’s diner, everyone looked at Sergence’s disgusting display of eating with cringed expressions. If you may recall, Nicholas had a similar display when he regained his human form after being freed from Nimue’s spell.

“Do you have to eat like that?” Snow asked finally speaking up.

“Madam, I haven’t had the chance to taste food in almost fifty years. I shall eat however I please.” Sergence retorted as he stuffed his face, “Besides, not much else to do around here as we wait for Flamel to regain his strength.”

“Well, can’t we just go home and wait for that?” Emma asked, “This place is creepy and depressing enough as it is.”

“I would advise against that.” he warned, “Myself and the others only awoke when we came here. There’s a chance that once we return to the surface world, we’ll go dormant again, and if that happens while Nicholas is not in control, he may end up going dormant himself and whoever is in control will take his place; permanently.”

“So we’re just going to stay down here and wait, then?” Hook hotly asked.

“Look at it this way,” Sergence began before belching into his fist, “The only difference between this Storybrooke and the other one is the red sky and everyone here is a dead stranger. Get past all that and you’re basically home. I can understand wanting to return home, but if you rush this, you will have defeated the very purpose for which you all came here in the first place. So, to be blunt, stop whining and be patient.”

“Well, excuse me for being anxious to return home to my fiancé and make her my wife.” he defended.

“Is there any way for you to tell if Nicholas is okay?” Zelena asked, “Can’t you talk to him, or something?”

“Well, he’s not exactly in a talkative mood right now.” Sergence replied, “As I said, Hades did quite the number on him. He should be fine soon, though. Just be patient.”

As he finished speaking, Sergence suddenly clutched his head in pain before slightly going limp and catching himself. While shaking his head to get his bearings, the others looked at him in both confusion and concern.

“Sergence?” Emma asked, “Are you okay?”

“Fine, but I’m not Sergence.” replied the soft voice of a woman.

“What the hell?” David asked bluntly. Just then, they all watched as Nicholas’ body transformed into a beautiful, female version of his body with a few alterations to his clothes and her long hair tied in a braid over her shoulder.

“Ah, that’s better, would’ve been weird to hear a woman’s voice come from a man’s body, don’t you think? Sorry about that, Sergence needed a break.” the woman replied with a kind smile, “I’m Kaya, a Xerxian florist.”

“What it is going on?!” Regina exclaimed.

“Oh, right, Sergence didn’t tell you.” Kaya realized, “You see, the longer a soul is in control of the Stone, the harder it will be for them to switch out with another. Sergence was in control a bit longer than we originally planned so I needed to take his place. Otherwise, he’d have run the risk of accidently remaining in control instead of Nicholas. I’ll be taking his place for now.”

“Love, the more I find out what makes your brother tick, the more bewildered and confused I become.” Hook remarked to Regina.

“You’re not the only one.” she admitted, “So what, is this going to be like some hourly-soul-change thing?”

“Well, I don’t know about hourly, but just until Nicholas is ready to take charge.” Kaya replied.

“Anything we should worry about?” Snow asked.

“Not unless someone who shouldn’t takes control.” she replied, “But for now, we don’t need to worry about that.”

**OUaT**

Shortly after the three agents arrived, the other invited members of the upcoming council arrived and took time to rest before they were to be summoned. While Mina and Nemo were elsewhere, Flamel took the time to explore as much of Rivendell as he could. He was able to see the representatives of each race ride in with their escorts; Gimli son of Gloin from Erabor, Legolas, prince of Mirkwood, and Boromir of Gondor. At first glance, he could easily tell that each of them were respective and great warriors in their own right. No doubt they were sent to use their skills in the upcoming battle against Mordor.

In addition to seeing the newest arrivals, Flamel also spotted four young hobbits eating and chatting amongst themselves; mostly eating. Based on what Gandalf had told him and the others earlier, he was able to tell which hobbit was which. The two that seemed joined at the hip were Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took, also known as Merry and Pippin, two of the biggest trouble makers in all the Shire and often the cause of the old wizard’s headaches. The portly one dotting on the youngest one was Samwise Gamgee, a loyal, yet slightly naïve hobbit that still could use some toughening up. Finally, Frodo Baggins was the last to be noticed. He had a kind face but also looked burdened with the weight of the world on his shoulders; no doubt because of the ring he bore. Having grown tired of wandering by himself, the young alchemist approached the ring bearer as he separated himself from his laughing companions.

“Greetings, Master hobbit.” he addressed kindly.

“H-hello.” Frodo replied, “Who might you be?”

“I am known as Nicholas Flamel, the Immortal Alchemist. I am one of the members of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen sent to honor Lord Bilbo’s summons.” Flamel replied.

“You are a part the League?” Frodo asked.

“Surprised?” he asked smirking.

“Oh, no, no,” Frodo replied not wanting to offend him, “It’s that I’ve never met a League’s men before. I’ve only heard Bilbo’s stories from when he helped found the League.”

“And for that, I envy you.” Flamel laughed, “I’ve always admired the deeds your uncle and the other founders had done. You hail from a proud lineage.”

“Thank you.”

“Also, Lord Bilbo informed us of the burden you carry.” he added gently, “You’re very brave to have come this far. Both you and your companions.”

“It is a great burden,” Frodo nodded, “One I hope will be removed from the world soon.”

“I know little of the ring’s history. Is it truly as terrible as I have heard?” Flamel asked.

“Yes.” Frodo whispered as he clutched his shirt, “I’m sorry. But I wish to speak of this no further.”

“Of course.” Flamel nodded, “Forgive me. I let my curiosity get the better of me.”

“There’s nothing to forgive.” Frodo said with a soft smile. As he turned to join the other hobbits, he tripped over his large feet and fell to the ground.

“Steady on, there.” Flamel chuckled as he helped the lad up. As he did, he realized that the One Ring had slipped out of his shirt and could be seen for all to see. It was simple, for a weapon of such dark power. Instead of it being riddled with jewels or enteric designs like he originally expected, Flamel saw that it was just a small golden band and nothing more. But despite this, he couldn’t help but stare at it intensely. Having noticed this, Frodo quickly tucked it away and joined his kinsmen.

**OUaT**

After leaving the diner and heading towards the docks, Kaya skipped through the depressing streets of the Underworld with a smile on her face. Everyone else, on the other hand, was behind her with befuddled looks on their faces; especially Emma and the two sisters. 

“I never thought I’d have one sister in my life,” Regina sighed, “Now I have two of them and the youngest is-”

“A knockout?” Emma asked bluntly.

“Not exactly the word I was going to use, but whatever.” she retorted.

“Swan, are you saying you’re attracted to…her?” Hook asked.

“I have no idea.” she replied, “On one hand, I kind of am because that’s Nicholas, sort of, and on the other I’m not because I’m not into girls. Sergence was different because the only thing different was his voice and eye color.”

“I think we can a few more differences to that list for this one.” Snow added.

“A few perkier differences at that.” Zelena dryly muttered causing the other women to sulk.

“Makes you wonder if that’s what she looked like when she had a body, or if she’s taken on what Nicholas would look like as a woman, or if she’s just being overly generous to herself.” Emma remarked.

“I can hear you!” Kaya called back to them, “And for your information, I only changed to whatever the Stone allowed me. So if you’re looking for someone to blame, blame Nicholas; this is his ability.”

“Wow.” David scoffed as shock overtook them, “And here I always thought that Nicholas was some bashful guy that would be embarrassed at the sight of a woman’s ankle.”

“He always told me he was a legs guy.” Emma said to herself sounding almost hurt.

“Mom!” Henry exclaimed in disgust.

“This is just getting awkward and all around odd.” Boromir muttered to Robin who nodded.

While Kaya was skipping, her feet got tangled mid-skip and caused her to fall and smack her head on the pavement. After a quick surge of alchemic sparks, she opened her eyes again. Only this time, instead of the chocolate brown eyes of Nicholas, or the hardened golden eyes of Sergence, or even her own soft and kind golden eyes, a pair of sullen and dilated golden eyes could be seen in their place.

“Ms. Kaya?” Robin asked, “Are you alright?”

“Better than ever,” she replied with the voice of a young man. In a split second, this new soul spun around and launched the ultimate spear at them before they got out of the way. “But I’m not that whore Kaya.”

“That voice.” Emma whispered, “I know that voice. You were the soul who tried to take my place.”

“That’s correct, Savior.” he replied as he took on the form of Nicholas with dirty blonde hair, “And this time, I don’t plan on giving up this body any time soon.”

“Swan, who the bloody hell is this?” Hook asked.

“His name is Andal.” she replied, “He’s one of the souls in the Philosopher’s Stone.”

“Not just any soul.” he replied with a mad grin, “I’ve got a story similar to one you already know. You see, I was a slave in the same household as Flamel. We’re virtually brothers born from the same hell hole. And this time, I’m the one who’s going to gain immortality; not him!”

“Here we go again.” Robin sighed as he readied his crossbow.

**OUaT**

Not long after everyone had arrived and was situated, Lord Elrond summoned everyone to a secluded pavilion with a chair for each of them around a stone pedestal. The three dwarves sat between the men of Gondor and the elves of Mirkwood, much to their displeasure. Sitting closer to Elrond’s personal throne were two elves and a man with shaggy brown hair. The three League agents sat between the Mirkwood elves and Gandalf who sat next to Frodo across from the mysterious man staring at him. The time had finally come; the fate of the One Ring would be decided.

“Strangers from distant lands, friends of old, you’ve been summoned here to answer the threat of Mordor. Middle Earth stands upon the brink of destruction; none can escape it. You will unite or you will fall. Each race is bound to this fate, this one doom. Bring forth the ring, Frodo.” Elrond said to the hobbit.

Doing as he was told, the young hobbit presented the ring to everyone before him and set the golden band on the pedestal. The moment they all saw it shining in the sunlight, the representatives of each race muttered to each other without taking their eyes off the enemy’s weapon.

“So it is true.” Boromir muttered before rising from his seat to speak to them, “In a dream, I saw the eastern sky grow dark. But in the west, a pale light lingered, a voice was crying, ‘Doom is near at hand. Isildur’s bane is found.’ Isildur’s bane.”

As he spoke, he slowly approached the pedestal while reaching for the ring. Seeing this, Lord Elrond shouted at the man, but his words fell deaf over the sound of Gandalf chanting in the black speech of Mordor. As he did, the sky grew dark and the earth trembled and shook with each word he spoke. Given their abilities’ dark background, Mina and Flamel felt the weight of his words as much as Frodo did after bearing the ring for so long. When the wizard was done, everyone, except Elrond who looked enraged, looked at him in fear.

“Never before has anyone uttered the words of that tongue here in Imladris.” he glared.

“I do not ask for your pardon, Master Elrond. For the black speech of Mordor may yet be heard in every corner of the west.” Gandalf defended, “The ring is all together evil.”

“It is a gift.” Boromir disagreed, “A gift to the foes of Mordor. Why not use this ring? Long has my father, the steward of Gondor, kept the forces of Mordor at bay. By the blood of our people are your lands kept safe. Give Gondor the weapon of the enemy. Let us use it against him.”

“The blood of your people is not the only one being spilt.” Mina hissed, “If it were, you would be here alone while the other races and kingdoms would be home oblivious to the evil of orcs and other servants of Sauron.”

“You cannot wield it,” the man lectured, “None of us can. The One Ring answers to Sauron alone. It has no other master.”

“And what would ranger and a woman know of such things?” Boromir snapped.

“Excuse you?” she asked as her eyes turned red and a growl began to creep up her throat.

“Mina,” Flamel whispered placing a hand on her shoulder, “Not now.”

“This is no mere ranger.” Legolas snapped rising from his seat, “He is Aragorn son of Arathorn. You owe him your allegiance.”

“Aragorn?” Boromir asked not believing it, “This is Isildur’s heir?”

“And heir to the throne of Gondor.” he added. Not wanting to be put on the spot for his shameful heritage, Aragorn pleaded with his friend to sit down in elvish.

“Gondor has no king.” Boromir spat taking his seat, “Gondor needs no king.”

“Aragorn is right. We cannot use it.” Gandalf agreed.

“You have only one choice, the ring must be destroyed.” Elrond informed.

“Then what are we waiting for?” Gimli asked before taking his friend’s axe and striking the ring. But as soon as he made contact, the axe was shattered and he was knocked off his feet while the ring remained unharmed without so much as a scratch.

“Anyone else see that coming?” Flamel muttered to his friends.

“The ring cannot be destroyed, Gimli son of Gloin, by any craft we here possess.” Elrond explained, “The ring was made in the fires of Mount Doom. Only there can it be unmade. It must be taken into Mordor and cast back into the fiery chasm from whence it came. One of you must do this.”

Silence briefly filled the air. It went without saying that the thought of charging into Mordor made all of them hesitate. It was the most feared place in all of Middle Earth for a reason and not just because of the thousands of orcs that lied there.

“One does not simply walk into Mordor.” Boromir sighed, “Its black gates are guarded by more than just orcs. There is evil there that does not sleep. And the great eye is ever watchful. Tis a barren wasteland riddled with fire and ash and dust. The very air you breathe is a poisonous fume. Not with ten thousand men could you do this. It is folly.”

“Have you heard nothing Lord Elrond has said?!” Legolas snapped hotly, “The ring must be destroyed!”

“And I suppose you think you’re the one do it?!” Gimli interjected.

“And if we fail, what then?” Boromir retorted, “What happens when Sauron takes back what is his?!”

“Are all you honestly going to bicker and debate this now at a crucial time such as this?” Flamel asked as tension grew in the air.

“I will be dead before I see the ring in the hands of an elf!” Gimli shouted as everyone began to argue, “Never trust an elf!”

“Do you not understand?” Gandalf asked while Frodo stared at their reflections in the ring, “Whilst you bicker amongst yourselves, Sauron’s power grows! None shall escape it; you’ll all be destroyed!”

Everyone found themselves shouting at one another over this pointless squabble. It was nothing but a waste of time and breath but they did so anyway. As they did this, another voice joined in.

“I will take it!” Frodo announced, “I will take it!”

When they all heard him, they looked to him with shocked looks. This act of bravery by one so small was enough to give them pause; including the three agents.

“I will take the ring to Mordor.” he declared, “Though, I do not know the way.”

“I will help you bear this burden, Frodo Baggins, so long as it is yours to bear.” Gandalf said with respect.

“If by my life or death I can protect you, I will.” Aragorn nodded with respect for the hobbit as he kneeled before him, “You have my sword.”

“And you have my bow.” Legolas added following suit.

“And my axe.” Gimli declared as he joined them.

“And you have us, as well.” Nemo nodded as he, Mina and Flamel smiled at Frodo and joined in.

“You carry the fate of us all, little one.” Boromir acknowledged, “If this is indeed the will of the council, then Gondor will see it done.”

“Hey!” a new voice called from behind the bushes. It was then that Samwise rushed in to join the group and stand by Frodo’s side. “Mister Frodo’s not going anywhere without me.”

“No, indeed.” Elrond smirked, “It is hardly impossible to separate you when he is summoned to a secret council and you are not.”

“Oi, we’re coming, too!” Merry exclaimed as he and Pippin joined in, “You’ll have to send us home tied up in a sack to stop us.”

“Anyway, you need people of intelligence on this sort of mission…quest…thing!” Pippin declared earning blank looks from everyone.

“Well, that rules you out, Pip.” Merry said dryly.

“I think I’m going to like these two.” Flamel thought while smirking.

“Twelve companions,” Elrond sighed, “So be it. You shall be the Fellowship of the Ring.”

“Great.” Pippin smiled, “Where are we going?”

“Oi vey.” Mina muttered.

**OUaT**

Unlike with Emma, and her brief use of the Stone’s power, Andal was able to use its abilities with ease as he fended off the heroes’ attacks. He fought similar to Nicholas, but his attacks were more vicious and had every intention to kill them.

Considering that he was already dead, Boromir charged ahead of the others and swung his sword. It may have costed being impaled in the chest by the spears, but he was able to hack away at the former slave and sever one of his arms; which quickly grew back, unfortunately. So to make up for this, Boromir struck Andal’s head with his sword’s pommel causing him to stagger. As he staggered and clutched his head, even for just a brief moment, his head shifted from blonde to brown.

“No,” he growled, “Stay out of this!”

“Did you see that?” Regina asked Emma, “He’s losing control. Nicholas is fighting back.”

“Maybe we can get through to him.” she said, “Nicholas, baby, I know you’re in there. You have to fight it. Fight him.”

“Shut up!” Andal hissed, “That bastard doesn’t deserve this kind of power! It should’ve been me!”

“ _You think I wanted this?!_ ” Nicholas shouted in his mind, “ _You think I wanted to be given this fate?! I had no say in what happened that night, Andal, and no say in being chosen for the experiment!_ ”

“Do you think I care if you had a say in what happened? He chose you! You, the mud-eyed bastard from another land!” he spat before losing control.

“Don’t call me that!” Nicholas shouted, “Don’t ever call me mud-eyes!”

“Nicholas,” Emma said rushing to his side as his eye color switched back and forth, “Fight back, you can do it.”

“I can’t!” he shouted in pain.

“Yes, you can!” she argued as his body surged with red lightning.

“No…I can’t!” he cried out as a shockwave erupted from him knocking everyone off their feet.

“I will not allow you to use me as a battery any longer!” Andal shouted as their personas switched back and forth, “I won’t be your pawn!”

“We have job to do, Andal!” Nicholas retorted taking back his body in their game of soul-tug-of-war, “You are needed in this as much as the others!”

“ _Put your petty jealousy aside!_ ” Sergence roared in the Stone, “ _The fate of all realms is at stake!_ ”

“I don’t care!” he shouted, “This is all his fault! Why should we have to pay for his mistake?!”

“ _Because if we don’t, millions of lives will be ruined just like ours were!_ ” Kaya retorted.

“Well, let them be ruined. Because I won’t be cheated out of life a second time!” Andal shouted.

“Is that really your decision?” Nicholas asked.

“Indeed it is!”

“Then I have no use for you!” he declared before shoving his arm down his throat and pulling out the red faced soul of Andal. He then chomped down on the soul and severed it from its source. Throwing it on the ground, the soul morphed into a young Xerxian teenager with long golden hair. Nicholas then grabbed him by the throat and spat in his face.

“Be gone, fool! Return to nothing!”

And with that, the would-be-usurper was thrown into the water of the River of Lost Souls and was engulfed in its cursed waves; but not before cursing the name of his fellow former slave. Now once again in control of his body and his Philosopher’s Stone, Nicholas took the chance to give a message to all the remaining souls fueling his immortality.

“Let this be a lesson to all who would dare oppose me.” he said enraged. The others only saw him yelling at the open space on the docks whereas he looked upon all of the hundreds of thousands of souls dressed in red hoods, instead.

“Should any of you even think about taking this body, or this Stone for yourselves, I will do far worse to you than what I have just done to Andal!” he shouted as most of the hooded souls shuffled in fear, “You have sacrificed much, and for that I am grateful. But should you abuse this gratitude, you will wish that you had died that night instead of being bound to me! I do not care who or what you were in Xerxes, for that no longer matters. But if you feel that it does matter, and this gives you the right to question me and take control, please, feel free to test the waters with Andal the fool.”

None dared to so much as shift after hearing the alchemist’s words, not even the group of the living watching and listening to every word he uttered. Their answer was clear as day. They would stand with him, and they would not dare to stand against him. He closed his eyes for but a moment, and all the hooded figures were gone.

None of the living onlookers were sure what to do. On one hand, they were beyond happy that Nicholas was back and in control once again. On the other, they weren’t sure if it was the best decision to embrace him given his current mood. However, there was one brave enough to go to him; the one who was tired of waiting most of all.

“I’m sorry about Andal.” Emma said gently as her true love stared down at the water.

“He made his choice.” he softly replied unmoved by the death, “He never was one to listen to others, not even when we were slaves.”

“Are-are you back? For good this time?” she asked only to see him smirk.

“You know me, Emma.” he chuckled, “There’s no getting rid of me.”

Not needing to hear anymore, the Savior flung her arms around her alchemist and held him tightly with a relieved smile on her face. The others pooled in to welcome back their friend and joined in on hugging him and patting his back; even Zelena managed to come out of her shell enough to hug her little brother.

“Welcome back, old friend.” Boromir nodded in respect. At first, seeing his departed friend gave him pause, but Nicholas quickly moved past it and nodded back to his comrade.

**OUaT**

After leaving Rivendell and spending several days journeying across Middle Earth, the Fellowship eventually decided to take the cold and treacherous path of Carhadas atop the Misty Mountains. The air was so thin and cold it proved difficult to breathe; even for the three conditioned LXG agents. Gandalf led them up the slope, having been the only one to have taken this path in his many years with the others behind him.

Losing his footing in the lose snow, Frodo slipped and tumbled down the path where he fell into Aragorn’s arms. Once he regained his bearings, he noticed that the ring was no longer around his neck, but lying on the snow before being picked up and examined by one of his companions.

“It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing. Such a little thing.”

“Nicholas!” Aragorn snapped drawing the alchemist’s attention away from the ring, “Give the ring to Frodo.”

“…Of course.” Flamel said with a tight smile as he returned it to the hobbit and ruffled his hair, “I care not.”

But Aragorn did not buy this act, nor did Gandalf or the other League agents. They all kept their eyes on Flamel as he continued to trudge up the mountain with the rest of them.


	61. A Father's Duty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Many years ago, in the Enchanted Forest, the Evil Queen and her younger brother, who was more preoccupied with scribbling his notes than what his sister was doing, approached the population of the small village they had just arrived at. Despite it being evil, the monarch had a happy smile on her face.

“Greetings, my subjects.” she said to them.

“Your Majesty.” a young girl said nervously as she presented Regina a homemade pie, “Happy birthday, my queen.”

Reveling in her subjects’ fear, she approached the girl and dipped her finger into the pie to taste the filling. Much to her disappointment, it wasn’t a flavor she was particularly fond of. “Blueberry. Not bad. But I prefer apple. Luckily for you, I’m not here for the pie. The present I want, none of you have. But you will get it for me; Snow White’s heart on a plate. I know she’s been here. And if someone doesn’t start talking,”

“Wait.” one of the villagers interrupted, “I think I can help you. I can tell you where Snow White is.”

“Then tell me.” she demanded.

“I want something in return.” he greedily haggled.

“Oh, I know how this will end.” Flamel dryly thought not even bothering to look up.

“How’s this for a deal? Tell me, and I’ll kill you quickly instead of slowly.” the Evil Queen asked as she used her magic to choke the foolish peasant, “Tell me where that wretched girl is.”

“Behind you.” Snow White alerted as Regine killed the man. At her sides were the seven dwarves and Prince Charming, all of them ready for a fight. “I’m right here, Regina, and I won’t let you hurt anyone else.”

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Grumpy warned as Regina created a fireball. 

“We’ve got you surrounded.” Charming added.

“So, what do you say?” Snow asked, “Shall we end this ridiculous conflict?”

Seeing that she was outnumbered, she blew out the flame and relented. “You’re lucky it’s my birthday and I’m feeling benevolent.”

She then poofed herself and her brother back to their castle where their father decided to give his daughter a long overdue lecture. “Is this really the way you want to spend today?” Henry asked in frustration, “Perhaps it’s time for a change. Perhaps it’s time to give up on revenge and move on.”

“I will never give up. Not until Snow White’s heart is in one of these boxes.” Regina denied.

“We know you loved Daniel, but if anyone is to blame, it’s your mother.” he argued, “She ripped out his heart so you could become the merciless queen that she always wanted. Don’t let her win. Don’t let her control you.”

“Mother does not control me.” Regine retorted, “I banished her to Wonderland, remember?”

“Sister, until you give up this quest for vengeance, Mother will always have a hold on you.” Flamel warned.

**OUaT**

The day after Nicholas regained control over his Stone, and after spending hours with his sisters and Emma, all three of which not wanting to let him out of his sight, the young immortal managed to convince them into letting him out of their sights long enough for him to grab them all some lunch over at the diner.

“I feel like I’m in the subconscious of my Stone down here.” he said as he took in his surroundings.

“It’s like Storybrooke?” Henry asked as they sat down at the counter.

“No, but everything’s in red and it’s filled with souls filled with regret and bitterness towards the thing that ruined/ended their lives.” he replied bluntly as the Blind Witch brought over four large to-go bags filled with food, “I didn’t even order yet.”

“She’s already figured out what we usually order down here, Uncle.” Henry clarified.

“What he said.” she nodded.

“Well, it’s certainly not the weirdest thing I’ve experienced down here, that’s for sure.” Nicholas sighed before his eyes widened with shock.

“Uncle?” Henry asked taking notice of his expression, “Uncle, what is it?”

“That bastard.” he whispered as he tore off something that should not have been pinned to the paper bag. Grabbing the rest of them, he stormed out with his nephew following him back to the loft. When he made it up the stairs, he kicked the door open and shocked everyone.

“That bastard has gone too far!” he shouted.

“Jesus, Nicholas!” Snow snapped as she clutched her heart, “You scared the crap out of us!”

“What’s happened now?” Robin asked as the alchemist showed them what he found.

“Hades decided to send me a little gift at the diner. This!” he snapped. In his hand was an onyx broach with an ivory design of a small happy family hugging.

“A broach?” Hook asked, “What’s so infuriating about a broach?”

“It’s not the broach, guy-liner, it’s who it belonged to.” Regina snapped once she recognized it.

“Well, who does it belong to?” Emma asked.

“Our father.” Nicholas replied.

“Henry?” Snow asked.

“What?” her grandson asked.

“Not you, kiddo.” Nicholas replied, “Your mom and I named you after your grandpa when we adopted you.”

“I don’t understand, why would your father be down here?” David asked while Regina looked away in guilt.

“Because of me.” she said, “I killed him to enact the first curse. He was the thing I loved most.”

“And now, Hades is reminding us that he still runs the show down here by threatening the very state of our father’s existence.” Nicholas spat, “But I will not let any more of my family suffer because of that so-called god.”

“What do you propose?” Robin asked.

There was still just enough of the soul calling ale to use for one more grave, and both siblings had a specific one in mind. While Regina emptied the contents after she and her brother returned to the cemetery, Nicholas held her hand as she tried to hold back her tears. 

“Regina,” he said softly with a sad smile. Looking up, she saw their father standing before them happy to see his children, yet sad that he was no longer alive to see them grow.

“Daddy.” Regina said as she finally let the dam burst, “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay, dear. It’s okay.” Henry soothed as he held his tearful children. Yes, even Nicholas, cold hearted as he could be, let a few tears run down his face as he felt his father’s warmth for the first time in decades.

“Is it?” she asked, “Am I really forgiven?”

“Of course. I love you no matter what.” he said with sincerity, “That’s what fathers do.”

“I’m not sure they do.” Nicholas disagreed, “I think you’re very special; you’d have to be to have put up with us. How have you managed to be so full of hope and good after all that’s happened to you?”

“Oh, Abba,” Henry said causing his son’s heart to skip a beat, “I’m not perfect. I have many regrets. Loosing you, not being strong enough for your sister, failing to stand up to your mother. I don’t even know which one is keeping me in this place.”

“Well, it doesn’t matter. Your suffering will not get any worse.” Regina declared, “I will not let Hades torment you any longer. We’ll both see to it.”

“No, Regina. That’s what I came to tell you.” Henry warned, “Hades is using me to bait you, both of you. He wants to you to leave but I want you to stay. There are people down here, like me, like Abba was, trapped here and suffering under Hades’ rule. They need you. They need your strength. Sweetheart, you finally put vengeance aside to be a hero. These souls, they need a hero.”

“But Hades will send you into that pit, a place worse than this.” Nicholas argued, “You’ve suffered enough. We won’t let you suffer more.”

“When your sister tore my heart out, it was driven by the worst motives, son. But if you stay, she, and you, will spread hope. That’s the best thing anyone can do. You’ve both been subject to darkness for too long. Let your old man see you two do the right thing. Then I truly will not have died in vain.”

And with that, in a cloud of turquoise smoke, the gentle soul of their father returned to where it came from leaving his beloved son and daughter standing under the red sky.

**OUaT**

Once night had fallen, the party thrown, forcefully, in honor of Regina’s birthday began. Sitting on her throne with her brother at her side, they both watched unamused as a mime tried, emphases on tried, to entertain them. Having enough, the corrupt monarch looked at two of her nearby knights and waved her hand at them.

“Kill him!” she ordered hoping _that_ would at least amuse her. But as they grabbed the mime, her brother stopped them.

“No, wait!” he said before looking to his sister, “You know, a mime is a terrible thing to waste.”

Oddly enough, she agreed and had her guards release the terrible excuse for an entertainer who ran out of the castle as fast as he could. As soon as he did, she went back to her typical, moody self.

“Let’s wrap this up. I’m tired of revelry.” she said dryly to her guests.

“Oh, don’t go yet.” a new voice said from the crowd. Making room, the guests stood aside for the two siblings to see their mother smiling wickedly at them with a present in her hands.

“Mother?” Flamel asked in shock.

“How did you get out of Wonderland?” Regina asked before growing worried, “Where’s Daddy? Did you do something?”

“Oh, I lost track of him hours ago when I had him wrap this. Happy birthday, darling.” Cora said fondly as she presented her gift.

“I don’t want anything from you.” Regina scowled.

“Oh, you’ll want this.” Cora disagreed as she revealed a bright, red heart in the gift box, “I did what no one else could do, Regina. I’ve brought you your revenge. Snow White’s beating heart. Crush it, and she dies at last.”

“Thanks a lot, Father.” Flamel sighed in his mind.

“Bring the Magic Mirror.” Cora ordered the knights. Giggling evilly, Regina took the heart and watched as the mirror used its power to show Snow White, Charming and the dwarves laughing and drinking outside a pub.

“To my stepmother!” she laughed, “May she spend the rest of her birthdays searching for me.”

“To the queen!” the dwarves laughed as they toasted their steins. Seeing that this was more than enough to make her angry, Regina began to crush the heart and watched as her stepdaughter clutched her chest in panic. But just before it became dust, everyone saw Jiminy Cricket pop out from her blouse as they laughed even harder.

“I don’t think I’d be laughing if I were Charming.” Flamel thought, “I wouldn’t be too happy if I just caught that bug running around my fiancé’s breasts like that.”

As he thought this, Regina finished off the heart and watched as one of her knights fell to the floor dead as a doornail.

“Someone switched the hearts.” Cora observed calmly as her daughter seething with anger.

“Who?” she snarled viciously.

“Oh, dear.” Flamel whispered.

Having the guests frightened to the point of emptying the room, Regina had her father summoned so she could let loose her anger on him. Flamel, of course, stuck around to make sure his sister didn’t do anything too brash while he smoked.

“You gave Snow White her heart back.” Regina said accusingly.

“I had to for your own good.” Henry defended.

“How could you say that?” she asked feeling betrayed, “She’d be dead right now, and all this would be over. Don’t you want me to be happy?”

“Of course, but not like this. If you crush her heart, you could be dark forever, Regina. You’ll be just like her; your mother. That’s what she wants.” Henry lectured, “Please. Please, Regina. Please, you have to listen to me. You can be happy.”

“Killing Snow White is the only way I will ever be happy.” Regina retorted.

“I’m sorry you think that.” Henry said.

“You betrayed me, Daddy. And you know what that means.” she threatened.

“Do what you will, dear. It matters not, because Snow White lives. And now so does your chance at redemption. Whatever happens to me was worth it.” Henry said standing his ground as he took the box from his daughter, “This box is as empty as your pursuit. I pray that it stays that way.”

“It’s won’t.” Regina growled, “Until Snow White dies, I will never be what you want let alone what I want. And this box was made to hold something precious. And that’s exactly what it’s going to do.”

“Regina, wait!” Flamel cried. But it was too late. Using her magic, Regina shrunk down their father and placed him in the box as punishment for what he had done.

“Don’t worry, Daddy. You’re safe in here.” she assured, “I just can’t let you stop me. But I would never do anything to hurt you.”

“Regina, please. Don’t.” Henry begged. But Regina simply closed the lid and held the box to her chest.

“This is madness.” Flamel thought in shock as he stared baffled at her, “This is utter madness!”

Later that evening, while Flamel was searching for a way he could undo the spell on his father, Regina banished their mother back to Wonderland, only this time, their father went with her on a one-way trip.

**OUaT**

Knowing that Hades would act soon, the two siblings and Henry hurried back to town and returned to the pit of fire where they saw their father standing at the edge while the deity watched.

“Let him go, Hades.” Nicholas demanded, “He had nothing to do with this!”

“Oh, but he does.” Hades disagreed with a dark smile, “He sired you two. And that’s reason enough for me.”

With a wave of his hand, Hades willed the fire to consume Henry before vanishing in his own blue fire.

“No!” Regina cried.

“Father!” Nicholas shouted as they tried to save him. But another wall of fire stopped them before they could reach him.

“Daddy!” Regina sobbed, “I’m so sorry.”

“Damn it all!” Nicholas cried as he fell to his knees and slammed his fist on the ground.

“Why am I not able to save my own family?” he thought hopelessly as tears fell from his eyes. But suddenly, the fires around the old man went back into the pit leaving him unharmed.

“Daddy?” Regina asked.

“Father?” Nicholas asked seeing that he was safe.

“Stop. Stay there. I’m okay.” he assured as a bridge began to form and connect to the other side of the chasm which broke away to reveal a bright, warm light where the sound of birds chirping could be heard.

“What’s happening?” Nicholas asked.

“I don’t know.” Henry said in awe, “There’s something down here. It’s so…it’s beautiful. It’s where I belong. I know what my unfinished business was now. It was you, my wonderful children.”

“Us?” Regina asked as her brother rose to his feet.

“For so long, I let your mother get in the way of who you really are, Regina. And I always blamed myself for not doing more to find you and keep you safe as a father should, son. Those were the biggest regrets of my life. But now I know, you’re free of her and you have the power to protect not just yourself, but others, people who love you and you love in turn, too. And I’ve never been more proud.”

“Hi.” Henry greeted finally getting the chance to meet his namesake.

“Is that-”

“This is your grandson, Henry.” Regina introduced to her happy father.

“Thank you, Grandpa, for believing in them like I do.” Henry thanked.

“Thank you, Henry; for being there when I couldn’t. You take good care of them.” he said, “It’s time for me to go. Regina, Abba, I love you both; so much. Never forget who you really are.”

Having no more words to say to his children, Henry walked towards the light and moved on from the Underworld to a better place; a place he deserved where he could be happy and at peace.

“Goodbye, Father.” Nicholas whispered as he clutched his father’s broach in his hand.

After making it back to the top, the three Millses rejoined the others in front of the broken clock tower.

“Tell me your father’s okay.” Snow pleaded.

“He’s better than okay,” Regina said smiling.

“He’s in a better place now.” Nicholas added happily.

“That means everyone here…” Snow carried.

“Can be saved.” David finished.

“Every soul in this town has unfinished business. And chances are, for a lot of them, you’re that business.” Boromir pointed out.

“You’ve all deluded yourselves if you think these people are worth your time.” Gold debated as he joined them, “They’re not the dearly departed. They are dead, wretched souls, and I want no part of it.”

“What you want doesn’t matter.” Robin retorted, “In case you’ve forgotten, Belle’s life is in my hands. And even I have ways of contacting my associates to finish her off.”

“Our agreement was to find Flamel and return his Stone to him; both of which have now been accomplished. If you lot want to distract yourselves with this other asinine pursuit, be my guest. I’m out.”

“Way to be a team player.” Nicholas muttered before speaking up, “Oh, and before you go, Rumple.”

“What?” he asked just before Nicholas ran up to him, grabbed his face in his tight grip and deconstructed his face with his alchemy causing him to fall to his knees and cradle his bloody face in his hands as he tried to heal himself.

“That was for trying to pull a fast one on me and take advantage of us. Do that again, and I do that to Belle.” he threatened softly in the Dark One’s ear so the others couldn’t hear him.

“So, who’s ready for Operation Firebird?” Henry asked.

“Is that what we’re calling it?” Regina chuckled.

“You referring to the mythological bird or the muscle car?” Emma asked as they headed back to the loft. As they walked ahead, Regina heard the sound of a loud tick from the fallen clock behind her.


	62. Our Decay

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

On the surface in Storybrooke, the usually silent mansion hidden in the woods was filled with the sounds of two crying infants. As Robin had hoped, his fellow agents found and took in his newborn daughter and the newest Charming baby while the others were in the Underworld. Surprisingly, they were handling them quite well.

“Aw, Neal, what’s the matter?” Mina cooed as she bounced the crying baby, “Do you miss your mummy and daddy? Aw, it’s okay.”

“I’m just glad little baby Hood is a bit more quiet than the little prince over there.” Sawyer smirked as he gave the baby her bottle, “When do you think they’ll be back?”

“No idea, Tom.” she replied, “I just hope Nicholas is okay.”

“Hey,” he said gaining her attention, “Our boy is tough as they come. Anything they throw at him, he’ll throw back tenfold.”

“Uh, guys?” Skinner hollered from the level above, “We’ve got company!”

“Oh, what now?” Sawyer groaned as he pulled up the security feed on his phone. On the screen, he saw Belle speed walking up the stairs to the front door with a blanket floating in midair in front of her.

“Dammit! That bookworm went looking for the babies.” he cursed.

“Oh, relax, Tom. It’s not like she can get down here.” Mina assured while rolling her eyes.

“Unless she knows about the secret entrance Nicholas’ nephew found.” Skinner pointed out causing them all to pause for a moment. Sure enough, Belle followed the blanket downstairs to the hall that led to their meeting room.

“Crap!” they all thought before scurrying to cover their tracks. Not a moment after they took care of everything, Belle pulled the lever and entered the room where she found the babies in their cribs. 

Skinner had it easy, all he needed to do was strip and he was safe from her gaze. As for Mina and Sawyer, they took the drastic approach and propped themselves in the ceiling above Belle, both holding on for dear life.

“There you two are!” Belle cooed as she checked on them in relief, “I’ve been looking all over for you. What were you two thinking coming here?”

“Not good, not good, not good, not good, not good.” Sawyer muttered past his gritting teeth while struggling to hold on.

“Well, everything’s okay now. Let’s get you both back home and wait for your parents to come back.” she said as she picked up the baby girl.

“Mina, what do we do?” Sawyer asked softly before realizing his friend was beneath him, “Mina?!”

“Put the baby down, girl.” Mina ordered from behind. Once Belle turned around, she saw that Mina was hunched over with her hair covering all but her left eye with her hands raised in the air like some sort of scary hag. But before Belle could ask any questions, the entire mansion shook as a portal opened beneath their feet bringing in not just Belle, but the baby that was in her arms as well. Needless to say, the three League agents had shocked and worried looks on their faces.

“Tell me we didn’t just lose Nicholas’ infant niece to some random floor portal.” Sawyer pleaded in dread.

“Don’t take this the wrong way, but for our sake, I truly hope he stays dead.” Mina said bluntly.

“Mina!” Skinner snapped as he bounced baby Neal as he cried, “That’s a terrible thing to say.”

“What the bloody hell just happened?!” Quartermain bellowed as he and Nemo stormed in.

“And where is Agent Locksley’s baby?” Nemo asked slightly calmer.

“It wasn’t our fault!” they all defended loudly.

“Start talking!” Quartermain ordered.

Down below, farther than any of them could ever dig to, Belle and the baby emerged from the portal outside the Underworld’s version of the mansion. Little did she know, a certain departed soul was watching her with a devious smirk on her face. On the other side of town, in the loft, Henry presented pages telling of how Snow and David found a way to contact their son that very morning at the diner. Although, Boromir seemed to be the only one unimpressed at what the young Author had done.

“Riveting tale.” he sighed, “Snow likes oatmeal. Is my morning breakfast in there, too? Henry, I thought you were going to use your Author powers to get us to defeat Hades.”

“I don’t even remember writing this. I just woke up and had it done.” Henry replied in a typical teenage tone.

“Okay.” Emma eased, “It’s really well-written.”

“Yes, and the illustrations are lovely.” Regina added.

“Maybe if you focus harder-”

“Oh. So you’re all Authors now? Everyone’s a writer. Everyone’s got an idea.” Henry said rudely as he grabbed his work, “I’m doing my best. Maybe if you just laid off for a little bit.”

“Hey!” Nicholas barked as he grabbed his nephew by the ear, “Don’t talk to your mothers like that.”

“Why don’t you just back off for once?” he snapped as he pulled away and stormed off upstairs.

“Henry? Henry!” Nicholas shouted.

“Well, we officially have a teenager on our hands.” Emma sighed.

“This is what happens when you guys constantly coddle him. He doesn’t listen!” Nicholas said to the two women as a knock on the door could be heard.

“Who the hell could that be?” Regina asked as she opened the door. Once she did, Belle barged in with the baby in her arms.

“Belle?” Emma asked.

“Is that my niece?” Nicholas asked.

“What?!” Robin and Zelena exclaimed.

“Love, what are you doing down here?” Hook asked.

“So it’s true?” Belle asked as she handed the baby to Robin, “This is the Underworld?”

“Yeah, and why are you and the baby here?” Nicholas asked.

“Nicholas? Oh, thank God, you’re okay.” she said while giving him a quick hug, “I don’t know what happened. I’ve been looking for the baby and Neal ever since you left. I used a locator spell on Neal’s blanket and-and it took me to the Sorcerer’s Mansion; both of them were in that secret room Henry found. I ran into some crazy woman whom I think was looking after them.”

“Crap!” Nicholas cringed in his mind, “She saw Mina!”

“Next thing I knew, I-I-I fell through a portal with the baby and landed here.” she finished.

“Why the hell did a portal open up to take you to the Underworld?” Regina asked.

“I know why.” Zelena spoke up, “Hades.”

“Is he just trying to get everybody to move down here?!” Nicholas exclaimed, “Sis, why would Hades do this and how do you know.”

“He wants to use her for a spell.” she informed, “My time-travel spell. He has the same thirst for vengeance as I did.”

“No,” Nicholas disagreed seeing there was more to it, “There’s more to it than that. What aren’t you telling us, sis?”

“Well, um, I-I didn’t want to say anything at first because of what he did to you.” she said awkwardly, “But, well, H-Hades and I have, well, rather, um, a history together.”

“…What?” he asked.

“When you say ‘history,’ you mean?” Emma asked.

“I mean, the King of the Underworld has a taste in green-skinned redheads.” Zelena retorted.

“Agh,” Nicholas groaned as he shook his head in his hand, “Just when I thought this family couldn’t get even more screwed up. Wh-wh-when did you two even have a…thing?!”

“Back in Oz, before we were all properly acquainted with each other.” she replied, “And you can relax, I didn’t return his affection; quite the opposite rather harshly, really.”

“My eldest sister and the deity who, literally, tore off all my skin and tortured me in the pits of hell. And I thought it was bad when I found out Mother and Rumple had a more than professional relationship back when she was his student.” Nicholas sighed.

“Oh, says the one who’s dating his great-step-niece/the biological mother of his nephew!” Zelena shot back.

“Alright!” Regina interrupted, “We get it. Our family members have odd love lives. Can we just stop, please?”

“Incest fetish lover.” Zelena sneered.

“Necrophiliac!” Nicholas retorted.

“Alright!” Regina shouted, “That’s enough!”

“And I thought my family had issues.” Boromir chuckled.

“Family squabbling aside,” Nicholas said hoping to change the subject, “Now that I’ve got my Stone back, can we please figure out a way to get out of here?”

“That’s easier said than done.” David said as he and Snow entered the loft.

“Belle, what are you doing here?” Snow asked upon seeing her friend.

“Long story.” she replied.

“What happened now?” Nicholas asked.

“You’ll want to see it yourselves.” he replied. Leading them outside, they returned to the graveyard where they found three tombstones that had Emma’s, Snow’s, and Regina’s names carved on them.

“What the hell are these?” Emma asked.

“I know.” Boromir answered, “Hades found a way to keep you all trapped down here. As long as your names are on these graves, you’re trapped down here as though you were already dead.”

“Flamel, I don’t see yours anymore, mate.” Hook observed.

“That’s because he came up with something else.” Nicholas said dryly as he spotted a mural wall up the hill. After they reached it, Nicholas nodded bitterly at what he saw.

“Yep, it’s just as I thought. This is Hades’ newest method in keeping me down here.”

“How? Whose names are these?” Belle asked.

“These are the names of all the souls in my Philosopher’s Stone. He’s clever, I’ll give him that.” he sighed.

“Are you sure all of them are on here?” David asked. As he did, Nicholas showed them a sticky note on the wall that read, “Soul Count: 536328.”

“Yep.” he sighed as he crumpled it.

“Well, can’t we just take you back without the Stone?” Hook asked.

“Oh, sure, _Killian_ , that’s a great idea!” Nicholas said sarcastically, “Let’s get rid of the very thing you guys fought tooth and nail from to give to me so I could return to life/the very thing that’s keeping me alive; that’s brilliant!”

“I just meant, seeing as you’ve built yourself another body, you don’t need the Stone anymore.” Hook defended.

“Did you not see the state I was in after I gave Emma the Stone?” he asked, “Even if I hadn’t impaled myself with Excalibur, I’d have dead in minutes. This Stone is the only that’s keeping me alive. I literally cannot live without it!”

“Maybe we can get Hades to remove them.” David offered, “There’s got to be some way.”

“I hope so.” Nicholas agreed, “Otherwise, the number 536331 is going to be taboo for us all.”

Having left the cemetery, the Charmings broke off from the group to try and make contact with their son while Emma, Henry, Hook and Boromir went back to the diner for lunch. As for the three siblings, archer and bookworm, they were trying to ignore the awkward tension emanating from happy couple.

“Well, now that we’ve established that we won’t be leaving this place any time soon, might I hold my daughter?” Zelena asked with her arms stretched out.

“Our daughter,” Robin corrected, “And, no, you may not. Zelena, despite coming down here to help us, you are far from being trusted enough to hold our child.”

“Robin,” Nicholas defended as the baby began crying, “Come on, man. She-she didn’t have to come down here for me; especially after what I did to her. She’s probably hungry. Why not just let Zelena feed her?”

“I-I have her bottle.” Belle informed as she pulled it out of her coat. Reluctantly, Robin nodded and gentle passed his daughter to her mother.

“Alright fine. But as soon as she’s done, you’re handing her back.” he ordered as Zelena cooed and fed her baby.

“There, there, my little sweet pea. There, there.” she said sweetly, “Are you hungry? Yes, you are. Your mummy knows exactly what you need doesn’t she? Yes, she does.”

Once the baby was done, she passed the bottle back to Robin without taking her loving gaze off her baby. “Okay. That’s it. She’s done. Hand her back.” Robin demanded impatiently.

“Now, Zelena.” Regina stressed while her sister rubbed her fingers together to spark green, magical energy.

“No, sis. Not now. Not ever!” she spat before facing her brother, “I’m sorry.”

With a wave of her hand, she pushed them back with her magic causing Nicholas to cry out in pain as it briefly tore through his skin. As she ran off, her baby began crying once again; only this time, it wasn’t because she was hungry.

“Oh, it’s okay.” she soothed as she gently bounced the baby, “I’m gonna find us a safe place, yeah? What is it, sweet pea?”

Taking a closer look, Zelena realized that the baby was crying in pain due to the slight scratch she had on her little cheek. “Oh, no, it’s okay. Let Mummy fix it.”

But just when the Wicked Witch was about to use her magic to ease the infant’s pain, she realized something. When she used her magic on the others, it brought harm to her daughter, as well. And that was more than enough for her to break down in tears.

“My magic did this. I did this.” she sobbed holding the baby to her heart, “I’m sorry.”

Hours later, after night fell over the Underworld, Nicholas, Regina and Robin journeyed over to the Underworld’s version of Zelena’s farmhouse where they knew she had herself and the baby locked up in.

“Zelena?!” Nicholas called out.

“We know you’re in there!” Robin shouted in anger, “Zelena, enough! It is not safe for you or our child out here!”

“Zelena!” Regina yelled just as her sister came out crying.

“I’m right here.” she sniffled.

“Zelena, are you alright?” Nicholas asked in concern.

“It’s all my fault.” she sobbed, “I can’t protect her. Not down here. Not from him.”

“What happened?” he asked as his concern grew. But Zelena refused to answer him.

“Take her.” she pleaded.

“What?” Robin asked.

“Take her. You can protect her, I can’t. I don’t want to hurt her again.” Zelena said heartbroken, “I don’t care if you never let me see her again! You have to save her, Nicholas, please! It’s more important than what happens to me.”

“We’ll do everything we can to protect her.” he promised as his sister said her goodbyes to her baby.

“Goodbye, little one. Mummy has to let you go.” Zelena sobbed giving her daughter one last kiss. Nicholas watched in sadness as his eldest sister ran back into her home while cradling the baby. Seeing her like that brought pain to his soul, but he knew that for the safety of his niece, he had to respect her wishes and let her make this choice; even it was the most painful one she ever made. 

Back in the loft, after Robin had left with the baby to hide in the woods and everyone had fallen asleep, Nicholas went upstairs to check on his nephew who had fallen asleep at his desk again. Smoothing out his hair, he looked at the boy in fondness; sometimes it was hard for him to accept that the young man before him was once his cute, little nephew. Hopefully, he would be able to have similar experience with his new niece as he did with Henry.

As he brought over a blanket to cover the boy, he spotted something he wrote underneath his arm. His eyes widened in shock when he saw that it was an illustration of the briefing room in the mansion with his team’s portrait drawn in. Taking a closer look, he found several pages of written text involving the League. With no other choice, he grabbed all of the pages, took them outside, struck a match and watched them burn away into ash.

“Sorry, Henry.” he whispered, “But my story isn’t ready to be told yet.”


	63. Ruby Slippers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Back in the cemetery, Emma, Nicholas and Snow stood before the three tombstones. “Hades thinks he can beat us. It’s time to prove him wrong.” Emma declared as she used her magic to try and take off the names as the wind picked up, “When I burn these names from the graves, there’ll be nothing keeping us here. We can all go back home.”

“Wait.” Nicholas warned, “Something’s wrong.”

“What is it?” Emma asked.

“The wind’s picking up and turning violent. A storm’s coming our way. We need to find shelter, now.” he advised as a cyclone formed up the hill. Fortunately, it didn’t last long and everything seemed to be okay.

“Well, that was quick.” Emma said bluntly, “Everyone okay?”

“Yeah, but something’s out there.” Snow warned as she readied her bow, “Something was in that storm.”

Before anyone could do anything, some sort of monster pounced on Snow and attacked her. Next thing Emma knew, she was waking up on the roof of the library trying to catch her breath.

“Bad dream?” Boromir asked from the ledge.

“Yeah.” she exhaled, “It was nothing. I just fell asleep.”

“Good thing you did. I don’t think you’ve slept much at all since you arrived down here.” he observed.

“I’ll sleep for weeks as soon as we defeat Hades.” she huffed. As Boromir was about reach his hand out in support, Emma immediately swatted it away before looking back down at the street.

“I was just trying to offer some comfort.” he defended, “It seems to me, Savior, that you don’t fully trust me.”

“Excuse me for being cautious.” she remarked, “You’re not exactly famous for being completely true to your word in protecting people.”

“What?” he asked as the lights shined beneath them.

“That’s the signal. They’re ready.” she said before heading down below with the sheriff. Once inside, she pulled her mother in for a big hug.

“Is everything okay?” Snow asked.

“Yeah.” Emma lied, “It’s just good to see you.”

“When you’re done hugging it out, Emma, we’re ready to get through.” Regina informed as Nicholas put the finishing touches on the large transmutation circle he was drawing around the elevator; with an excited expression, one might add.

“You seem pretty cheerful.” Emma teased.

“I have had the need to draw a transmutation circle since I was a kid.” he clarified, “It feels almost nostalgic.”

“And how are we supposed to defeat Hades and get back home with a circle covered in squiggly lines?” Hook asked impatiently.

“Hades put one hell of a protection spell on his elevator,” Nicholas explained, “And this circle covered in squiggly lines is the best way to crack it open without using magic; which would alert him causing even more problems for us.”

“Hopefully, that elevator will take us straight to him.” Snow said raring to fight.

“Maybe with surprise on our side, we can get a shot at him.” David added.

“That’s a lot of ‘maybe’s and ‘hopefully’s.” Hook remarked.

“It’s all we have right now. Do it.” Emma nodded.

Taking a deep breath, Nicholas prepared himself as he slammed his hands on the elevator doors and preformed the transmutation. Everyone else had to shield their eyes as the blue light radiating from the circle almost blinded them while the door began to unlock. Once it did open, and the lights died down, everyone looked at the brick wall covering the entrance in disappointment.

“So much for surprising him.” David sighed.

“Well, we’ll find another way. We always do.” Snow reassured.

“What if,” Emma suggested, “What if I could burn our names off the gravestones that Hades made for us, the ones holding us here?”

“I looked for a spell like that. It doesn’t exist.” Regina replied.

“Actually, it does.” Emma disagreed, “It kind of came to me in a dream.”

“A dream?” Nicholas asked.

“I know it sounds crazy, but I can remember every detail. It would be a long shot, but…”

“Well, as for maybes and hopefullys, I’ve learned never to question yours.” Hook nodded.

“Are you saying that because you actually believe in her, or because you’re just really desperate to get back to Ariel?” Nicholas asked earning a glare from the pirate, “Right, shutting up. In any case, Em, I’m coming with you.”

“Snow and I will take Henry back to the apartment, keep him safe.” David informed.

“No, actually, I’m gonna go with Emma.” Snow corrected.

“No, no, that’s not a good idea.” Emma disagreed.

“I promised to take down Hades and get back to our son, remember? If this is how we do it, I’m in.” Snow argued.

“Emma,” David smirked, “I wouldn’t argue with your mother. Trust me.”

“Well, that explains where she gets her stubbornness from.” Nicholas thought dryly.

“Get going, and I’ll meet you at the cemetery.” Regina urged, “First, I should go talk to my sister. Maybe she knows more about Hades than she let on.”

“You think she’ll talk to you?” Emma asked skeptically, “No offense, Regina, but she seems closer to Nicholas than you.”

“Only one way to find out.” she sighed as she left the building. Back at the cemetery, Emma tried to copy what she had done in her dream.

“The spell worked in my dream. Now I just need to make it happen.” she said as her hand began to glow while the wind picked up.

“Emma, wait.” Nicholas warned, “Something’s wrong. The wind’s picking up and turning violent. A storm’s coming. We need to find shelter, now.”

“Why did you just say that?” Emma asked looking frightened.

“Don’t worry, it’s fine, hun. It’s just a storm. We’ve been through worse.” he assured.

“No, I should not have brought you here.” Emma said over the howling wind, “My dream, it wasn’t just a dream. This is exactly how it happened.”

“Em, can we talk about that a bit later? We need to take shelter now.” Nicholas stressed as the cyclone touched down and brought the raging wind to an end, “Well, that was kinda anti-climactic. Maybe this is turning into a good dream.”

“It wasn’t the storm I was worried about. In the dream, the cyclone brought a monster.” Emma warned.

“What kind of monster?” Snow asked as it roared behind them.

“That kind.” she answered in fear.

“I’ll take a look.” Snow said only to be stopped by her daughter.

“No! Mom, you just have to trust me. I can’t let you do this.”

“Okay.” Snow agreed seeing how scared her daughter was, “Okay, Emma. It was your dream. You tell us. What do we do now?”

“We run.” she answered before taking off with them at her heels. With the only safe place close by being his sister’s vault, Nicholas led them inside and sealed the entrance. “Okay, I know it seems a little creepy, but we should be safe down here.”

“What was that thing, and why is it chasing us?” Nicholas asked.

“I don’t know, but if it comes close, you and I can take it down.” Snow advised.

“No, you cannot go back out there.” Emma shot down.

“Emma, what are you so afraid of?” she asked, “We’ve faced monsters before.”

“My dream, it’s happening. And there’s something I didn’t tell you. You died.” Emma admitted causing the room to become deathly silent; pun intended. Before anyone could say anything, Nicholas heard the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs. Extending his spear, he came close to piercing Regina’s neck.

“Hey, sis.” he said nonchalantly as he retracted the spear.

“Well, I’m glad death hasn’t slowed your reflexes.” she sighed, “Well, this has turned into quite a day. Why are you all in my vault?”

“Short version: thing with fangs trying to kill us.” Snow replied.

“And you’re hiding instead of fighting?” Regina asked.

“I saw the same monster in my dream.” Emma explained, “And in the end, it…”

“It killed me.” Snow finished.

“I thought it was a message or some sort of vision of the future.”

“Well, you dreamt it. It’s not like it’ll happen.” Regina assured.

“I wouldn’t be too sure of that.” Nicholas interjected, “It’s possible that you still have some of your Dark One powers, Emma.”

“That can’t be.” she argued, “All that power was transferred into Gold.”

“Maybe, maybe not.” he theorized, “Your magic is resilient, no arguments there. It’s possible that you may have traces of the same foresight magic Gold acquired when he was first the Dark One or you’re unlocking more of your powers. Either way, seeing glimpses of the future can be added to your list of abilities.”

“Maybe this dream isn’t just about the monster.” Regina suggested, “It’s about you working out some issues.”

“I don’t have any issues.” Emma lied trying to play it cool which earned her some looks.

“Emma, we don’t need your super power to see through that.” Nicholas pointed out, “What’s wrong?”

“Maybe I…feel like I failed everyone.” she admitted.

“Failed?” he asked, “Babe, you saved me. You endured the same kind of torment I used to go through so you could bring me back.”

“But we’re still trapped in the Underworld. What the hell was I thinking bringing everyone down here? Bringing Henry down here? This was a terrible plan.” she said on the verge of tears, “I should have done this alone. Now I’m always frightened. I’m frightened that someone will die, and it’ll be my fault. And I’ll never forgive myself.”

“Emma,” Snow gently said, “You didn’t force any of us down here. We all wanted to come with you. We knew it would be hard. These things always are, but some things are worth it. Love is worth it. Now, if you want to get home, let’s do what works. Let’s face this monster together.”

Seeing that her mother was right, Emma swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded with newly restored courage. Heading outside and following the monster’s tracks into the woods they found it running through the trees. Thankfully, Regina and Emma were able to knock it out with their magic.

“Wait, everybody stay back!” Emma warned as they approached it, “That thing could still be alive.”

“Emma, stop!” Snow halted, “Don’t kill it!”

“Oh, for God’s sake!” Nicholas groaned once he and the others saw the monster was actually a large wolf laying next to a familiar red hood.

“I think your dream was vision. But it wasn’t about saving me.” Snow realized as she threw the hood over the wolf, “It was about finding her.”

“It really is a cold day in hell when I find my ex was chasing after me and my girlfriend.” Nicholas bluntly thought as he looked down at Red dressed in her old Enchanted Forest clothes. After Regina poofed them all back to the loft, Nicholas placed her on the bed as the others barged in having received Snow’s message.

“Is she okay?” Snow asked.

“Why is she down here?” David asked.

“She’s not…” Henry asked.

“No, she’s still breathing.” Nicholas assured.

“Well, how long do you think she’ll be out?” Snow asked.

“I don’t know. We hit her with some strong stuff. Could be awhile-Nicholas, what are you doing?!” Regina exclaimed when she saw her brother pinch Red’s nose and kept her mouth shut. Sure enough, the lack of oxygen was more than enough to wake her up.

“Dammit, Nicholas!” she shouted hotly.

“Kept my distance from the girl for 2 ½ years and I still know how she ticks.” he said with a smirk.

“Lack of oxygen would wake anyone up, Nicholas.” Boromir flatly commented at his friend’s actions.

“Not you, it wouldn’t.” he dryly retorted, “Welcome to the Underworld, Ruby.”

“The Underworld?” she asked.

“It’s a long story. Emma became the Dark One, I died, etcetera, etcetera.” he said clearly unhappy to see his ex-girlfriend.

“I don’t understand. I used a tracking spell so the cyclone would bring me to Zelena.” Red explained.

“Ruby, she’s down here, too.” Emma replied.

“Wait, love, you came down here looking for Zelena?” Hook asked.

“Why am I not surprised?” Regina sighed, “What did our sister do now?”

“It’s my friend, Dorothy. Zelena wanted her magic slippers so that she could get back to her baby.” she replied.

“Ruby, what did Zelena do to your friend?” Snow asked.

“That’s why I’m here. I don’t know. Dorothy went to face her and just disappeared. Mulan and I looked everywhere, but we couldn’t find her.” Ruby said in a panic, “Snow this is all my fault. None of this would have happened if I hadn’t shown up in Oz. It’s just one more life that I have destroyed because of what I am.”

“That is not true, and you know it.” Nicholas sighed.

“Ruby, we’ll find out what happened to Dorothy. I promise.” Snow swore.

“There’s only one way we’re going to do that. It’s time to talk to Zelena.” Emma suggested.

“And here I thought we were actually getting somewhere with her.” Regina sighed. Once they reached the farmhouse, they saw Zelena try to escape with her slippers. Thankfully, Regina was able to stop that with her magic.

“Leaving so soon, sister dear?” Nicholas asked dryly.

“How do you expect me to become mother material if you won’t leave me be?” Zelena snapped.

“Well, we were planning on it until someone you screwed over literally dropped out of the sky.” Regina retorted.

“What did you do to Dorothy?” Red demanded. The witch didn’t answer.

“Zelena, please tell us what you did to Dorothy.” Nicholas begged, “Fight your instincts and help us. It’s the only way you’ll ever see your little girl again.”

“No.” she said, “I’m afraid I can’t fix this. Even I can’t help Dorothy now.”

“Why not?” Emma asked. Sighing in annoyance, Zelena summoned a mirror showing Dorothy lying in Oz surrounded by Munchkins.

“You killed her?” Ruby asked feeling like she had the wind knocked out of her.

“Not quite.” Zelena smirked, “I took a page out of your book, Regina.”

“Sleeping curse.” she groaned.

“You need to wake her up.” Ruby ordered.

“That’s what I’m trying to tell you; I can’t. Dorothy may have the love of the people of Oz, but there’s only one thing that could help her now.” Zelena explained.

“True love’s kiss.” Nicholas sighed.

“No family, unmarried, unloved, all alone. There’s no one that can give Dorothy what she needs. I’m afraid sometimes I’m just too clever.” Zelena said reveling in what she had done.

“Inside, now.” Nicholas growled pointing to the house. Once inside with his sisters, he grabbed a chair and began to smoke. “Okay, sis, I’ve had more than enough experience to tell when a person wants something. So tell me, what do _you_ want?”

For her answer, she took off her slippers and placed them on the table. “It’s a simple trade really. The slippers for my daughter.”

“Of course.” he sighed.

“Really?” Regina asked, “You think you’re in a position to bargain with your own child? You trapped Dorothy in an unbreakable curse.”

“I’m sorry if I’m good at what I do.” she smirked.

“Stop hiding behind all that bluster, Zelena.” Nicholas said blowing out his smoke, “You’re not proud, you’re caught.”

“Look, we get it.” Regina sighed, “You did a terrible thing, but just because you made one bad move, or thirty, doesn’t mean you can’t make a good one now. Zelena, you can come back from this. Trust us, we know.”

“Think so?” she scoffed.

“Well, there’s only one way to find out if you try, sister dear.” Nicholas said with a smirk as she handed over the shoes.

“Here. You can keep your pep talks.” she said to them while grabbing a bottle of whiskey, “I have no delusions that anything will change. Not either of you, not me. I hope they wake her. And if you need me, I’ll be right here.”

“We have to do something.” Ruby said in panic on the porch, “Dorothy is all alone back there. She doesn’t have anyone.”

“Not for long.” Regina denied holding up the slippers, “These can at least get you back to Oz.”

“How did you get her to hand those over to you?” Snow asked.

“Believe it or not, all we did was ask.” Nicholas chuckled.

“What good are slippers if there is no one back in Oz that can give Dorothy true love’s kiss?” Ruby asked frantically.

“Are you sure there isn’t anyone?” Snow asked.

“Her family was awful to her.” Red replied, “The only person that she had ever loved was her deceased Aunt Em.”

“She may still be here. All we have to do is find her.” Emma pointed out. Once they reached the cemetery they found Auntie Em’s grave.

“That’s her. That’s Auntie Em.” Ruby said.

“It’s not cracked or tipped. She’s still down here.” Snow observed.

“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s find her.” she stressed.

“Cool your jets, Eliza.” Nicholas said trying to calm down, “It’s not that simple. Unlike me, she’s still dead so she can’t just leave the Underworld to give Dorothy true love’s kiss.”

“Maybe she doesn’t have to.” Snow offered, “The other day, the Blind Witch bottled David’s breath.”

“What?” Emma asked, “Why would she do that?”

“Well, she roasted children in her previous life. Do we even want the answer to that?” she asked.

“Fair point.” Nicholas shrugged.

“The point is maybe we can do the same thing with a kiss from Aunt Em.”

“Ruby could use the slippers to deliver it to Dorothy in Oz.” Emma said catching on.

“Snow!” David called as he, Hook, Henry and Boromir came running over to them with worrisome looks, “We’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

“What is it? Did you talk to Neal?” she asked.

“Hades ripped out the phone.” Boromir replied, “He’s cut you all off from Storybrooke.”

“What? Why?” she asked.

“Snow, Neal’s fine.” David eased.

“Wait, no, we don’t know that. I mean, maybe Hades did this for a reason. Maybe he’s gonna make a move on Storybrooke now that we’re trapped down here.” Snow panicked.

“This is exactly what he wants, for all of us to lose hope.” David reminded.

“Well, it’s hard not to when not only might our child’s life be in danger, but Hook’s fiancé’s, too.” she retorted.

“Bloody hell.” Hook whispered, “She’s right. I haven’t even used the phone myself, I don’t know if Ariel is alright.”

“All of you, relax.” Boromir interjected, “If you are worried about Hades wreaking havoc in Storybrooke, then don’t. He doesn’t have his powers in the realm of the living. All he can do is visit it for brief periods of time to cause mischief. Your loved ones are safe from him.”

“Maybe so, but I think it’s time.” Emma spoke up.

“For what?” she asked.

“For you, Dad and Hook to go home.”

“Swan?” Hook asked, “N-no, we-we can’t just leave you down here. We haven’t defeated Hades yet.”

“You’ve done more for me than you know and so many down here.” she said sincerely.

“And I meant what I said, we came because we wanted to.” Snow argued.

“Because I needed you.” Emma corrected, “Now your other kid needs you more. And Storybrooke might, too. Hook, you’ve been putting off your happiness with Ariel for my sake for too long.”

“Well, what about Hades?” David asked, “We don’t even know how to begin to fight him yet.”

“Well, we’ll just have to find a way to wage our war without you guys.” Nicholas said, “Guys, I appreciate you all coming down here for me, I really do. But I’m no longer Hades’ prisoner, I have my Stone back. Don’t continue to waste your time down here now that what you set out to do has been taken care of.”

“But this is the Underworld. We can’t just walk out.” the shepherd argued.

“You can with the slippers.” Emma reminded, “Go to Oz with Ruby. Once you help Dorothy, you can click your way back to Storybrooke. Mom, Dad, Hook, you’ve done enough. Go take care of the rest of our family, and go marry that mermaid before she comes to her senses. We’ll be okay.”

“You all are forgetting something.” Regina interjected, “Hades carved Snow’s name on a tombstone. Emma, you couldn’t take it off. Even with the slippers, she can’t leave.”

“I can’t, but you can.” Snow said to David. Seeing no point in arguing with his wife, David relented and accepted that he would be leaving without her. Afterwards, with the information provided by the Blind Witch, the group found out that Auntie Em ran another diner in town. Naturally, they went over there in hopes of her being able to help.

“Welcome to Auntie’s!” she greeted kindly, “The potpies are my own family recipe, but we do a good roasted chicken, too. Rotisserie, any way you want. But the soup, well, the soup is to die for. Unless you’re already dead. Then it’s, uh, well, you know what I mean.”

“At least the old girl’s still got her spirits and sense of humor up.” Nicholas thought humorously as she had some of her soup.

“We’re trying to help Dorothy.” Emma informed gaining the old woman’s attention.

“You know my Dorothy?” she asked, “She’s not down here, is she?”

“No, she’s alive, but she needs your help.” Red replied.

“She needs true love’s kiss. All you need to do it blow a kiss into the bottle.” Emma explained as she handed Em the bottle.

“Maybe helping Dorothy is your unfinished business. Maybe that’s why you’re down here.” Snow guessed. As Em was about to blow a kiss into the bottle, her body began to turn into water.

“What? What?” she asked in panic, “What’s happening?”

“Emma, what did you do?” Snow asked, “Emma?”

“Can somebody help her?” Red pleaded.

“I didn’t do anything.” Emma replied.

“Somebody do something!” Red cried. But it was too late. Auntie Em became nothing more than a small puddle of water to be cleaned up by her busboy.

“What the hell was that?” Regina asked.

“I don’t think the soup agreed with her.” Hades joked from behind them in a booth.

“You did this.” Emma accused.

“Mm. Guilty.” he smirked, “A little water from the River of Souls gives the soup a little something special. Isn’t that right, Number 23?”

Hearing that number caused Nicholas’ eyes to narrow in on the god in pure utter rage as veins began to bulge on his forehead. “Call me that again, and I’ll test the limits of your immortality.”

“Oh, forgive me. Would you prefer I call you ‘mud-eyes’ instead?” Hades asked while smiling when he saw Nicholas’ anger be replaced by fear, “Not that one either, huh? Shame, I figured you would’ve liked to hear those old names after all these years.”

“Leave him alone.” Red defended before Emma or Regina could.

“Why would you hurt her?” Snow asked, “She was just a sweet old lady.”

“Isn’t it obvious?” he asked, “Because you’re trying to help her.”

“And Dorothy, who happens to be Zelena’s sworn enemy. Did she put you up to this?” Regina asked.

“Trust me, she has no idea I’m here. This is so much more than about jut your sister.” Hades replied, “Let’s call it a teachable moment.”

“You wouldn’t be here unless you were scared we might actually win this fight.” Emma challenged causing the god of the Underworld to chuckle.

“Is that so, Savior? Because I don’t think Dorothy’s dear old aunt would agree with you.” Hades taunted as he mopped up the water and emptied it into a jar, “Citizens of the Underworld, from now on, this is what happens to anyone who deals with these so-called heroes. So, who’s next in line for their help? Oh. No? Mm, it’s to be a Savior when no one wants you to save them.”

After leaving the diner, they all returned to Ms. Ginger’s where Nicholas confronted his worrisome ex. “So, when exactly did you realize you preferred chasing skirts to your own tail?” he asked bluntly.

“Wha-what?” she asked taken aback.

“Come on, Red, I know you better than anyone, even Snow.” he said getting to the point, “Despite you breaking my heart, I still consider you my friend. Not as close of a friend as I used to, but still a friend none the less.”

“…I really am sorry for all that.” she said softly in guilt.

“Come on, I was just giving you trouble.” he smirked, “But I can tell that you’ve fallen for this girl, Red. Admit it.”

“Aren’t you freaked out that your ex-girlfriend is actually bi?” she asked allowing herself to smile.

“Well, to be perfectly honest, _Ruby_ didn’t know what it meant to be subtle, if you catch my drift.” he clarified.

“Oh, God!” she groaned laughing.

“You flirted with everyone, Red. And I do mean _everyone_.” Nicholas laughed, “If anything, I used think at some point in our relationship, you were going to try to talk me into having a threesome with you and some other girl; at one point, I thought you were going to suggest either Snow, Emma or Regina.”

“Hmm.” she hummed thinking it over.

“Oh, my God! Red?!” he exclaimed.

“I’m kidding! I’m kidding!” Red laughed, “I missed this. You and me laughing together like old times.”

“Hard to believe that everything was simpler back then, huh?” Nicholas asked feeling nostalgic, “If only I had known then that even after dying, the past will still find a way to haunt you.”

“Is that what Hades did?” she asked in concern, “When he called you…those names?”

“Yeah.” Nicholas sighed, “That’s exactly what he did. 23 was the number I was given by my master when I was a slave. As for…the other one. That’s what the slave traders called me after they captured me. Every time I hear it, or even think about that name I remember their greasy, filthy faces laughing as they lashed us, raped the women they captured or when they would play guessing games on how much money they would make off of us. It’s funny, isn’t it? I start having a panic attack hearing a name so simple that a kindergartener could come up with it.”

“I don’t think it’s funny at all.” she said looking serious, “Nicholas, why do you always do that?”

“Do what?”

“Put yourself down every time you think about your past. You shouldn’t do that, you’re better than that and you know it.” Red lectured gently still concerned.

“Heh, I forgot how caringly stern you get with me.” he chuckled, “I don’t know. I guess I just still blame myself for what happened to all those people.”

“You were fourteen and had no idea what was going on.” Red pointed out, “You make yourself feel miserable over something you had no control over. Let me guess, you’re still wearing those ratty, old sandal straps around your legs, aren’t you? I knew it. You still won’t let go of the past; even after all these years. Don’t you think that’s why you can’t sleep at night? Why you’re constantly plagued by those nightmares?”

“How do you know that?” he asked.

“You still have that tired look in your eyes. Oh, Nicholas, you have no idea how much worse that’s gotten since we met.” she said sadly, “You used to be so full of life and spirit. Now all that is just an act for Emma and the others, and for you, too.”

“I’m never gonna understand how you’re the one person out there who can read me so easily.” Nicholas sighed with a faint smile.

“I’m your girl, remember?” she asked.

“You’ll always be my girl.” he smiled as he brought in his first love for a friendly hug. After they separated and Red began to walk away, Nicholas spoke up again. “I did love you, you know. You never let me finish saying it that day. Just thought I’d say it now.”

Trying to swallow the lump in her throat, Red quickly wiped away her tears and headed out the diner leaving the man she too once loved behind. Despite having found a new source of love in her life, and fully knowing that he too found love with another, the pain of ruining what they had still had a way of striking her heart every time she recalled the way she left things at the diner. The looks of utter devastation and betrayal she saw on his face still racked her body with guilt even to this day. Back at the cemetery, everyone prepared to say their goodbyes to Red, Hook and Charming.

“Put these on.” Regina instructed as she gave Red the slippers, “Think of where you want to go then click your heels three times. David, you and the one-handed wonder should take her hands and hold tight.”

“So, I guess this is goodbye.” Snow said as she hugged her husband.

“We have done this before, we can do it again.” he lightly chuckled.

“When you get home, tell Neal that I will be there as fast as I can.” she pleaded.

“Well, actually I was hoping that you could tell him that for me.” he requested.

“David, you know I can’t leave.” Snow reminded.

“Now you can.” he replied.

“What?” she asked.

“I removed your name from your headstone.” Boromir explained as he twirled an old chisel in his hand, “One thing I’ve learned being down here for over forty years, people are terrible at keeping track of their things; Pan’s no exception.”

“The rule down here is simple; a life for a life.” David informed as he showed them his name etched underneath Snow’s scratched out name, “So, I traded mine for yours.”

“David!” Snow snapped.

“If one of us gets to go home and see our son, it should be you.” he said with love.

“Why did you do this?” Emma asked Boromir.

“Let’s just say, I’ve grown rather fond of you lot. It was the least I could do. Besides, I’ve rather enjoyed pissing off Hades since you arrived.” he replied smirking.

“Wow,” Nicholas said in surprise, “Merry and Pipin’s mischief rubbed off on you more than I thought.”

“Mom,” Emma said as she hugged her mother, “I’m not very good at goodbyes.”

“I know.” she said, “It runs in the family.”

“Take care of yourself, Hook.” Nicholas said shaking the pirate’s hand, “Thank you, again for coming down here to help me.”

“You’re my friend, Nicholas.” Hook said kindly, “I didn’t need any other reason to convince me to do this. To be honest, I was hoping we’d leave together so you could be my best man.”

“You’ve still got Smee, right?” the alchemist joked before pulling him in for a quick bro-hug.

“…Aye.” Hook sighed in distaste, “That I do.”

“Ready?” Snow asked as she and Hook took Red’s hands.

“Let’s go find Dorothy.” she nodded, “And, Nicholas? I did, too.”

“I know, Red.” he smiled before they vanished in a puff of white smoke. Thankfully, thanks to Henry’s Author powers, they were able to see that Snow made it back to Neal after Red was reunited with Dorothy, and as an added bonus, Hook was able to make it in time for his own wedding.


	64. Brothers & Sisters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

A few days after Snow and Hook left with Ruby, Regina returned to the loft late one night after spying on Zelena having a picnic with Hades out in the woods. Naturally, Regina tried to make Zelena the one at fault for doing something as small as having dinner with the god.

“They were on a date?” Emma asked slightly disgusted.

“Match made in hell, it would seem.” Boromir remarked.

“So let me get this straight,” Nicholas sighed, “You thought it would be a good idea to admit to her that you were spying on her as you lectured her like you’re Mother? Regina, are you an idiot or just plain stupid?”

“Excuse me?!” she snapped.

“Oh, shut up!” he barked, “You are just making this a hell of a lot more complicated for us. Zelena does not like you, Regina; she hates you. And you hate her! What part of you thought it would be a good idea to do something like that?!”

“Oh, yeah? And what would you have preferred that I did, little brother?” she asked.

“Gee, I don’t know.” he said sarcastically, “Maybe, nothing! Or perhaps, let me talk to her considering she and I actually get along and I treat her like a sister instead of a petulant child like you do! Agh, you’re acting just like Mother.”

“Uh, guys.” Emma said awkwardly.

“Wait, say that again.” Regina said.

“I said, you’re acting just like Mother.” Nicholas said gritting his teeth, “A stuck up old crone set in her ways and unwilling to listen to anyone but herself.”

“Who also has knack for tearing apart blooming love.” she added.

“Oh, come on.” he sighed, “You’re honestly going to go that low just to keep Zelena and Hades apart?”

“Am I missing something?” Emma asked.

“Regina is going to have our mother pull the same stunt on Zelena she did to her; ruin her chance at love like the anti-matchmaker she is.” Nicholas replied.

“Oh, God.” she muttered.

“How do you plan on doing that?” Boromir asked, “Hades has had her working at the mill underground ever since she failed to get you all to leave when you first arrived. I know for a fact that he cut off her magic, as well.”

“That’s where you come in.” Regina replied, “You’re going to break her out.”

“Lucky me.” he groaned.

Down beneath the town, Cora, still dressed in her rags, was working non-stop to haul heavy sacks of flour as per her punishment for having failed Hades. Having to do the very work she despised in death as she did in life brought her no joy and made her want to kill anyone who so much as looked at her as she worked. Especially the guards keeping watch on her.

“No time for rest.” one of them said, “There’s more flour to mill. There’s always more. Now get to work!”

As she reluctantly continued to carry the heavy sacks, she went over to grab more straw. However, in one of them, she found a certain chisel she knew was enchanted. When the guards weren’t looking, she used it to remove the magic sealing cuff on her wrist.

“Where’d you get that?”

“I have my suspicions.” Cora smirked, “Shall we see if I’m correct?”

Without waiting for an answer, she used her newly restored magic to send the guards flying as she made her escape. Making her way through the tunnels, she ran into Boromir who was waiting for her.

“Madam Mayor.” he nodded politely.

“Sheriff Boromir,” she said still smiling, “Unfortunately, I am no longer the mayor of this…fine community. To what do I owe the pleasure?

“Well, first of all, I’m no longer the sheriff. Not since I decided to help your daughters locate your son. Which we have, in case you were wondering.”

“Abba?” she asked, “Abba’s safe?”

“And alive.” Boromir nodded, “Though, I wasn’t aware that was his true name. Regardless, he and your youngest daughter sent me to liberate you. If you will follow me, I shall take you to them.”

With a wave of her hand, Cora traded her old rags and mangled hair for a stylish pantsuit and soft, groomed hairstyle. “Lead the way.” she said sweetly yet deviously.

On the other side of town, David was leaving the pharmacy with baby supplies for Robin and his daughter. As he was about to cross the street, the sound of a patrol car’s siren stopped him in his tracks. He couldn’t see who at first, but was able to tell that there were at least two people in the car. Coming out of the driver’s seat, David saw an all too familiar face, his own, or rather the face of his identical twin brother, James.

“Well, well, there he is. The shepherd.” James mocked arrogantly, “Looks like you lost your flock.”

“James.” David exhaled.

“It’s Prince James to you.” he snapped as he slammed the door shut.

“Alright.” David agreed seeing that his brother was angry, “Prince James it is. I’m just glad to finally see you so we can talk. I know why you’re so angry with me because-”

“Mother gave me up and kept you?” James cut off, “Is that what you think? Oh, brother. Guess you’re not as good at reading people as you think.”

“If that’s not the problem, what is?” he asked.

“Well, it’s simple. You stole my glory.” James replied, “You were never half the man I was, and yet you got everything. Everything that was mine. Well, now you’re gonna pay.”

“It’s not my fault you got yourself killed.” David argued.

“Well, we’ll see what happens now, shepherd.”

“You want to prove you’re so much better than me? Fight fair.” David challenged.

“Why bother?” James chuckled, “What could you ever do to me? I’m already dead.”

Seeing that his brother had no intention of fighting fairly, David was about to grab a nearby piece of wood so give himself the upper hand. However, just as he was about to grab it, sharp, black spears nicked his hand.

“You didn’t think I came alone did you?” James asked smugly as David saw the one who was using the spears was in the patrol car, “No. Not while you’ve got that alchemist running around town with you.”

“Th-that-that was the Ultimate Spear.” David said in shock.

“Yes, it is.” a smooth and seductive female voice said as the other person came out of the patrol car and retracted the spears, “I happen to use it a bit more elegantly than Flamel does, however.”

Taking advantage of his brother’s shock, James sucker punched him in the face causing him to fall the ground and cradle his jaw. “Who the hell are you?” David asked as he saw his brother wrap his arm around her waist.

“Who, me? You can call me Lust the Lascivious; while you still can.” Lust giggled evilly before knocking David out with her stiletto.

“Nicely done, babe.” James chuckled, “Well, brother mine, you’ve had your fun playing prince. Now let’s see what happens when I play shepherd.”

“Just don’t forget, James.” Lust reminded as her lover traded shirts with his brother, “If we run into him, the alchemist is mine.”

“Of course. And when we’re done, you’re all _mine_.” he said perversely.

After being escorted to her vault by Boromir, Cora was greeted by her daughter’s loving hug before being led inside. “I’m so sorry I didn’t come for you sooner. If I had known-”

“Sweetheart,” Cora interrupted, “I can take care of myself.”

“Mother.” Nicholas said before giving her a tight and slightly tearful hug.

“Oh, my sweet Abba.” she whispered lovingly as she hugged him and rubbed his back, “Hades will pay for what he has done to us.”

“That’s actually one of the reasons why we helped you escape.” he clarified.

“Why? What’s he done now?”

“Well, for starters, he put not just Regina’s name on a tombstone, but the names of all the souls powering my Philosopher’s Stone on a mural wall keeping us trapped down here so he can go to Storybrooke without us following him.”

“Impossible.” Cora shook her head, “I know the Lord of the Underworld can’t leave this realm for good.”

“No, he-he can,” Regina said awkwardly, “If he restarts his heart with true love’s kiss.”

“Who could possibly love that man?” she asked completely baffled.

“…Zelena.” the siblings replied.

“Zelena?” Cora asked.

“Apparently, they have a past.” Nicholas nodded.

“That’s how he knew about her. We need to change her mind.”

“Regina already tried; and failed miserably.” he remarked.

“Because she thinks she can change him and make him a better man.” Regina retorted while glaring at her brother.

“You were right to come to me, darling. She’s in more danger than either of you realize.” Cora warned, “Hades has spent far too long down here to be changed by something as simple as love.”

“How do we stop Hades from hurting Zelena?” Regina asked.

“We have only one option. We have to make her forget Hades ever existed.” she replied before poofing them to the woods at the bank of a small stream, “This spring flows from the River Lethe.”

“The River of Forgetfulness.” Regina nodded.

“One drop of its waters, and it will be as if Zelena never even met Hades.”

“Yes, Mother, we know how it works.” she replied, “I have dabbled with forgetting potions before.”

“As have I.” Cora nodded, “In fact there was a spring from this very river near our estate in the Enchanted Forest.”

“Who did you use it on?” Nicholas asked.

“That’s not important.” Cora replied as she bottled the water, “What is important is that you find a way to get Zelena to drink this.”

“Good luck there.” Regina scoffed, “After I crashed her date, I don’t think she’ll let me or Nicholas within a mile of her farmhouse.”

“She will.”

“What do you have in mind?” Nicholas asked.

“After all these years, I think it’s time she finally gets to meet her mother.” Cora replied.

In the depths of the woods, James, Boromir and Emma were walking down the road to meet up with Robin to drop off his supplies. “How much further?” James asked.

“This is where Regina said Robin would meet us.” Emma replied.

“Great. So what do we do now?” he asked growing impatient, “Rob from the rich and hope he shows up?”

“Uh, no.” Emma said finding his question odd, “Robin will just find us.”

“In the middle of the woods?” he asked.

“Hello.” Robin greeted with the baby behind them, “Not everyone needs magic to be stealthy. Where’s Regina and Nicholas?”

“Uh, condensed version?” Emma asked, “Zelena and Hades are on the verge of being the world’s worst power couple. Regina and Nicholas are taking care of it.”

“Never would have thought old flame-head would find love with a wicked witch.” Boromir chuckled as James slapped a cuff on Emma’s wrist.

“Siblings,” he scoffed as he pulled his gun on them, “They can be a real pain, can’t they?”

“Dad, what the hell?” Emma asked.

“That’s not your father, Emma.” Boromir growled, “It’s been awhile, Deputy.”

“It’s sheriff now, Boromir.” James smirked, “Thanks to you jumping ship to help these idiots, I got promoted, even though I should have been in charge from the start.”

“Same old James, jealous and bitter towards those who have what he wants.” Boromir sighed, “I bet it made your stomach turn to be a prince working for the son of a steward all these years, didn’t it?”

“Stop talking.” James warned, “Or one of them is stuck down here with us, permanently.”

“Now, now, James,” Lust eased after coming up in the patrol car, “The archer and his brat can die, but leave the Sacrifice alone.”

“Sacrifice?” Emma asked while Robin tried to keep his cool despite knowing exactly what Lust was, “Wait. James? Where’s my dad?”

“Oh, he’s locked up in the Sheriff’s station. I’ve been trailing him for some time. Figured when Snow blew this joint, well, that was my chance.” he smirked.

“And what? You were waiting on your arm candy to back you up?” Emma taunted only to be silenced and shocked when on of Lust’s spears came to her throat, “How did you do that? That’s just like-”

“Flamel’s?” she asked with her own wicked smirk, “So it would seem he has yet to tell you about your upcoming role, let alone what I am.”

“What are you talking about?” Emma asked.

“She’s a Homunculus, Emma.” Robin replied while glaring at Lust, “An artificial human created through alchemy. That tattoo on her chest is a dead giveaway. So you were Nicholas’ target that year before the second curse. I can only imagine how much pain he inflicted on you before you died.”

“Continue to taunt me and I’ll let your daughter feel a similar kind of pain.” Lust warned as she aimed a spear at the baby.

“That tattoo…I’ve seen that tattoo before.” Emma remembered.

“You have?” Robin asked.

“Yeah, there was this fat guy who attacked me back when we were dealing with Ingrid. He-he had it on his tongue.” she stammered.

“Ah, so you ran into Gluttony, then.” Lust sighed, “That oaf never did know when to keep tabs on his insatiable hunger. I’ll have to discipline him once I get back if our father hasn’t already done so.”

Thankfully, Boromir stepped in with his sword cutting off Lust’s arm. “Maybe I should discipline you first? You know, perhaps Flamel managed to kill you because you had your guard down?” he taunted.

“Is that what you think?” she asked before everyone watched as it grew back.

“That’s impossible.” Emma gasped, “You-you shouldn’t be able to do that…unless-”

“Unless I have one of these?” Lust asked as she tore open her chest to reveal a Philosopher’s Stone, “You have no idea how long it took for me to make another one of these after Flamel destroyed mine. Thankfully this place is like an all-you-can-eat-buffet of souls.”

“You wench.” Boromir snarled only to be impaled and sent flying into a nearby tree by the Homunculus.

“What do you want?” Robin asked with a glare.

“Out.” she simply replied, “As you probably know, all the fun up top will begin in less than a week, and I don’t plan on missing out while you and your friends try to ruin our plans. All we need is for Hades to open a portal for us.”

“And why would he do that? You have nothing he wants.” Boromir denied.

“Oh, but we do.” Lust corrected while smiling at the sleeping baby, “At least, now we do. I’d imagine the god of death would listen once he knew the life of the woman he love’s child was on the line. No idea why, though. Humans at any age are still just utterly pathetic and foolish creatures.”

“Now, hand her over.” James demanded.

“Not gonna happen, mate.” Robin replied as he fired an arrow from his wrist crossbow. Not even bothering to move, James let it impale his heart and chuckled before yanking it out in amusement.

“Arrows, they can’t hurt me.” he grinned as he pointed his gun directly at Robin’s head, “But one pull of this trigger and, well, you’re not just a visitor in the Underworld.”

“You pull that trigger, and all you’ll do is keep me down here so I can just make your afterlife a new kind of hell.” Robin warned, “If you want to put a permanent end to us, then I suggest you throw us in the River of Lost Souls.”

“Hmm, that’s actually not a bad idea.” James agreed, “Let’s take a drive, shall we?”

“What are you doing?” Emma whispered.

“Relax, I’ve got a plan.” he assured as they crammed into the car.

Back at the farmhouse, Zelena was sitting in her kitchen while gazing at one of the dead flowers Hades had given to her. Her thoughts were soon interrupted upon hearing a knock on the door. When she answered it, her eyes widened with shock as she looked at Cora.

“Hello, Zelena.” she greeted.

“Mother.” Zelena said taken aback.

“I wasn’t sure you’d know who I was.”

“I don’t know what you’re doing here, but I don’t need anything from you!” she sneered as she slammed the door only to see it swing back open with a flick of Cora’s finger.

“We both know you’ve been waiting for this moment your entire life. Let’s not pretend otherwise.” Cora said gently. Knowing that her mother was right, Zelena nodded and let her in.

“I don’t like this.” Nicholas said while he and Regina waited outside with the water, “We’re taking advantage of our sister’s last chance to actual get to know Mother.”

“Suck it up,” Regina said harshly, “It’s our best bet in hurting Hades.”

“Hurting Hades, or hurting Zelena?” he asked glaring at her.

“What?”

“I think you only agreed to this because you still resent Zelena for getting pregnant with Robin’s baby.” he accused, “You only want to do this because you want to take away Zelena’s chance at love because she tried to take away yours. You don’t care what happens to her, you want her to get hurt.”

“Oh, and you care?” she asked.

“As a matter of fact, I do.” Nicholas retorted, “Zelena is my sister, too, Regina. If you try to hurt her out of something petty like getting even or some other bitter reason, I will make you regret it and join up with her.”

“She killed Marian-”

“Don’t give me that bullshit.” he interrupted, “That’s Robin’s reason to be angry with her. Need I remind you, the first time it happened, you killed her. No. You hate Zelena because you’re jealous that Robin had a child with her and not you.”

“How dare you?” Regina asked.

“Hey, I’m not the one who made herself barren.” he calmly retorted, “You made that choice all on your own, sister dear.”

“So,” Zelena began as she sat down with Cora, “You just happened to be in the neighborhood, taking a little stroll in Hell and decided to stop by?”

“No,” Cora replied softly, “I’ve, um, been in a kind of prison, Hades’ version of one, anyway. And when I hear you were here, I knew I had to come.”

“Regina sent you, didn’t she?” she asked, “To try and talk me out of it.”

“No, it was actually your brother.” Cora lied, “He was concerned about you and thought that, perhaps, meeting me would offer you some sort of clarity in your choice regarding Hades; to give us the chance to finally meet before you leave with or without him. As for stopping you, I’m the last person to do that, not when it was my doing that put you in this position in the first place.”

“And what’s that supposed to mean?” Zelena asked.

“I’m sure your feelings for Hades are real. But isn’t it obvious? You’re still trying to fill the hole in your heart I created when I abandoned you.” she explained.

“I’m not interested in talking about this.” Zelena said stiffly, “I’m over it. I have been for years.”

“No, you aren’t.” Cora said seeing through her eldest child, “What I did left a wound that’s been festering for decades. You want to know if I regret my decision, if after all these years, I’m sorry I gave you away.”

“Well, are you?” she asked on the verge of tears.

“Of course I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Cora said with the utmost sincerity.

“Then why?” she asked.

“I thought it would be the best for you.” she said before scoffing at her answer, “For me. And I was wrong. Don’t you understand why I can’t leave the Underworld yet? I thought it was Regina or Abba, but now I know. It’s all three of you. You’re my unfinished business.”

Seeing her daughter about to break down in tears, Cora finally gave her a long overdue hug filled with love and warmth while Regina and Nicholas snuck in.

“I’m sorry.” Zelena apologized as she took a seat and wiped her tears, “It’s just all a bit much.”

“It’s alright, sweetheart.” Cora chuckled, “Here, why don’t I get you some water?” Leaving the kitchen, Cora went into the hall to take the glass Regina had filled with the enchanted water. 

“This should help.” she said handing over the glass.

“You know, it’s funny. I’ve imagined this day a thousand times; finding you, hearing that you’re sorry, that you really did love me. I mean it almost feels like a dream.” Zelena said happily.

“For me, too.” Cora smiled.

“There’s just one thing that’s different. See, in my dreams, your apology was genuine. I never thought you’d try to poison me.” Zelena said dropping smile and dumping her glass into the fireplace, “You can come out now, Regina. You too, Nicholas.”

“For the record,” Nicholas began to say as they came in, “I was against this the whole-”

“Oh, shut it.” Zelena sneered.

“Okay.” he said as he put his hands behind his back.

“Did you really think I’d believe all that drivel?” she snarled.

“It wasn’t drivel.” Cora gently defended, “I know you’re upset, sweetheart.”

“I am way more than that, sweetheart!” she shouted as she kicked back her chair and rose to her feet.

“Please, Zelena, let us explain.” Regina tried to ease.

“You know I expected this from them, but you?” she said glaring at Nicholas in heartbreak, “You were the last person I expected to betray me! And here I actually believed you when you said you were willing to give me a chance.”

“I did mean that.” he said gently, “I meant every word. Just hear us out.”

“Hear what out?” she asked, “That you’re trying to ruin my life again? What, Regina couldn’t do it by herself, so you went along with her to go running to Mummy?”

“I wasn’t trying to ruin anything.” Regina snapped before calming down.

“Of course not. You were just doing what’s best for me.” Zelena sneered, “You three are cut from the same dark cloth. You’ve never cared about what happened to me. None of you! I can’t believe that I thought that things could be different between us. All you ever care about is yourself. No matter what I do, we will never be on the same side!”

“You know what? You’re right” Regina said as Zelena conjured a green fireball and she summoned a red one to match it, “You want to fireball this place? Then let’s do it.”

“Okay, I’ve had enough of you two.” Nicholas growled as he had his hand surge with red alchemic lightning, “If neither of you will act like the mature, older siblings, than I will.”

“Enough!” Cora shouted using her magic to nullify all their attacks, “If the two of you should hate anyone, it’s me.”

“This isn’t about you, Mother.” Regina said while glaring at her sister.

“But it should be.” she said with guilt laced in her voice.

“Mother, what are you talking about?” Nicholas asked.

“It happened about four years after we lost you. There was a time when your sisters cared about each other.” Cora confessed.

“What are you talking about?” Zelena scoffed

“There’s a chapter in our family history the two of you have forgotten.” she began to explain as she took her daughters’ hands, “It was a long time ago. Now it’s time you remembered.”

Using her magic, she filled both Zelena and Regina’s minds with the long forgotten memories of when they had first met and loved each other as children; and how Cora had ripped that love apart. When they were able to remember everything, both sisters looked at one another with new eyes. It was clear to Nicholas that the love they once had for each other was enough to toss away the hatred that had been festering in them towards one another for so long.

“You see?” Cora asked, “You were sisters once, who loved and needed each other. I thought that love, any kind of love, was weakness. I was a fool. Look at you, Regina. You stay here to help your brother, your father and your friends. You’re stronger than I ever was. And that’s the strength you got from the people you love, not from me.”

“Thank you, Mother.” Regina said tearfully.

“My Zelena,” Cora began with love, “I meant what I said earlier. I am so sorry. Sorry I never gave you the family you deserved or the love. I should have been there for you, instead of wasting my life destroying people. Maybe now you won’t have to make the same mistakes I did.”

“What if it’s too late for me?” Zelena asked as she cried.

“If being here’s taught me anything, it’s that it’s never too late, especially for family. You never stop being connected, right up to the end. And sometimes…even after.” Cora assured, “And, Nicholas, my dear, sweet Abba, I will never be able to forgive myself for having lost you and allowing you to suffer so much pain and torment for all these years. And though I know you have forgiven me, I want you to promise me something. Promise me that you will let go of the past. Let it go and allow yourself to find peace of heart and mind. Only then will you truly be free of those shackles.

“I-I will try, Mother.” he nodded as tears brimmed in his eyes before they all hugged. Believing that her unfinished business had been taken care of, the three siblings thought it would be best to take Cora down below and see her off before she moved on.

“How did this work with your father?” Cora asked as they all stared at the fiery chasm.

“He just crossed the bridge.” Regina replied as a storm of emotions swirled inside her and her siblings, “And it took him to where he belonged; into the light.”

“Will that work for her?” Zelena asked.

“Whatever my fate is, I deserve it.” Cora decided.

“Mother, you don’t have to-” Nicholas began.

“I can face it. Knowing I brought the three of you together, that’s-that’s all the peace I need. Just promise me that you’ll hold on to each other.” Cora requested with a sad smile to her crying children. Ready to say her goodbyes, she stepped up to Regina and Nicholas first, “In the real Storybrooke, when I died, we never got the chance to say goodbye.”

Taking this last chance, even as she herself cried, Cora tightly hugged her son and daughter as they cried on her shoulders while hugging her back. Breaking away, she then turned to Zelena who was also crying and brought her in for a hug.

“We never even got to say hello.” she choked, “Oh, I love you all.”

With the hugs shared, the tears shed, and the final goodbyes shared, Cora whipped away her tears and prepared herself for whatever came next. Stepping to the edge of the bridge, the fire began to form around her. But just as her children were about to step in and save her, the fire returned to the pit and the light that welcomed her husband shined on her as well. By opening up her own, and mending her children’s, the Queen of Hearts had been redeemed.

“I’ve waited my whole life to have a mother, and now she’s gone.” Zelena sobbed.

“Oh, it’s okay.” Nicholas said through his own tears, “You may not have a mother’s love in your life, but you have something else. You have a brother’s.”

“And a sister’s.” Regina nodded sending love into the void in Zelena’s heart, “And I think you have another love to find.”

“What are you saying?” she asked.

“Hades.” Regina replied, “Go to him.”

“You two trust me?” she asked through her sniffles.

“Maybe, just maybe, you can change him, too.” Nicholas chuckled as they all hugged each other.

Unfortunately, this tender family moment was interrupted when Nicholas’ sharp hearing picked up the sound of a horn blowing in the woods.

“I know that horn.” he said softly, “Boromir! Something’s wrong. I think the others are in danger.”

“Let’s find out.” Regina nodded as they all headed outside.

Continuing to blow his horn from Gondor, a memento that appeared with his sword when he arrived down here, Boromir hustled through the woods in hopes of making it to town. He was interrupted, however, when Nicholas met up with him thanks to his sound-breaking super-speed.

“Boromir, what happened?” he asked.

“That infernal deputy of mine and some seductress with powers similar to yours posed as David and kidnapped Robin, Emma and the baby.” Boromir explained.

“Lust?” Nicholas asked as his temper grew, “You ran into Lust?”

“That’s what she called herself, yes.” he nodded, “Robin said she was a, uh, a-a Homoclus.”

“Homunculus, yes.” Nicholas corrected, “Where are they?”

“I believe I heard Robin trick James into taking them to the pier. They’re going to toss them into the River of Lost souls.” he warned.

“Not if we can stop them.” Regina denied as they caught up. Waving her hand, she transported them all back into town. As they hurried back, David had broken out of jail to confront his deceased twin by clocking him in the jaw before he could throw Emma and Robin into the river. Lust, on the other hand, simply watched with an unamused look with her arms crossed on the sidelines.

“Whoo!” James laughed as he got back to his feet, “Oh, that was quite the escape, David. Quite frankly, I didn’t think you had it in you.”

“The cell at the station was the last place you should’ve left me. You don’t think I don’t know how to break out of my own jail?” David asked.

“So what?” James asked, “Now you can swoop in and play the hero?”

“That’s up to you, James. Neither of us wanted to go through what we did. I was angry about it, too. But that doesn’t mean it has to end this way. We’re family.” he reasoned while James laughed, “I can help you move on. I can help you find some peace.”

“Yes,” James nodded, “Yes, you can. Because killing you is my unfinished business.”

And so, the long awaited fist fight between the two brothers began. However, it didn’t last as long as either brother thought. After exchanging several punches, David managed to get the upper hand and brought James to the ground. In his anger, the dead prince pulled out a hunting knife while David’s back was turned, ready to literally stab him in the back.

“Dad, watch out!” Emma cried as James was about to finish him. But before he could get out of the way, David’s eyes widened when he saw the sight before him. Having been impaled by five of Lust’s spears, he was unable to move as pain racked through his body.

“Oh, James,” Lust sighed in disappointment, “Even for a dead man, stabbing your opponent in the back is very unattractive.”

“What are you doing?” he croaked.

“I can’t have you running around going after these meddlesome pests with you annoying vendetta driving you to kill them. Especially since half of them are Sacrifices.” she said with a bored tone as her fingers surged with red lighting up to his body, “However, you can still prove to be of use to me. Or to be more precise, your energy can be.”

As she gave a light, evil giggle, James cried out in agony as the alchemic lightning engulfed his body. In a matter of seconds, everyone watched as the prince was absorbed into Lust’s spears leaving nothing behind.

“The one good thing humans are good for.” Lust smirked as she retracted her spears and wiggled them as the new source of energy gave her strength.

“Wha-what the hell are you?” David asked in fear while Lust giggled at them.

“She’s annoying bitch that sound never have existed, that’s what!” Nicholas shouted as he shot a bolt from Robin’s crossbow at Lust’s head.

“Glad you could finally join us, Flamel.” she greeted as her wound healed, “And I see you decided to make this a family affair, as well. Three candidates for human sacrifice, all gathered together here, in Hell.”

“We’re not in Hell yet, Lust. And that’s enough out of you.” he growled before firing again only to see the bolt be sliced away by her spears.

“As much as I would enjoy causing you pain again, I’m not going to risk dying a second time at your hands.” Lust replied as she pulled out one of the transport rocks she took from Robin from her cleavage, “Until next time, little alchemist.”

Before they could stop her, she crushed the rock and made her escape. “Dammit!” Nicholas shouted before calming himself down, “Is everyone alright?”

“The baby?” David asked Robin.

“Yeah. She’s fine.” he nodded.

“Nicholas,” Emma said hotly, “Who in the hell was that? And if you tell me that you can’t answer, I’m going to kick your ass.”

“I think we’re getting backed into a corner here.” Nicholas said to Robin who nodded, “Ugh, I never thought I’d be explaining everything in the Underworld of all places. Okay, let’s all just head back to the loft and I’ll explain as much as I can. Zelena, you might wanna tag along because this involves you, too.”

As soon as he said this, he realized that his sister was nowhere to be seen. “Zelena?” he asked looking around.

“Zelena?” Regina called out in concern.

“Nicholas,” Boromir interrupted while pointing at a nearby car, “I believe that is some sort of message for you.”

Indeed, it was. Sitting on the hood of a nearby wreaked car was a single green apple. It wasn’t much of a message, but Nicholas was smart enough to decipher its meaning. His sister had been taken from him he knew exactly who had done it.

“Gold.” he growled as clutched the apple tightly in his hand before crushing it, “Gold!”


	65. Firebird

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, LXG or LoTR

“I don’t understand,” Emma said in confusion, “Why would Gold kidnap Zelena?”

“Because of me.” Hades answered as he appeared behind them.

“Why am I not surprised?” Boromir spat.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Nicholas hissed.

“Oh, relax,” Hades sighed, “I didn’t come here to hurt you. I came for your…wow, this is hard…help.”

“And why should we help you of all people?” David asked.

“Simple. I’m the only one down here that give you people what you want; the way out.” he replied hotly, “If you help me save Zelena from Rumplestiltskin and his boyish father, I’ll take your names off your tombstones.”

“And?” Nicholas trailed.

“And the mural wall.” Hades sighed in annoyance, “All 536328.”

“Wait, Pan’s helping Gold?” Emma asked, “Why?”

“My guess would be that he wants out of here like the rest of us.” Boromir replied.

“What I wanna know is why Gold’s doing this in the first place.” Nicholas said glaring at the god, “What have you got on him?”

“Nothing much.” Hades shrugged, “Except a contract saying that he owes me his and Belle’s unborn child.”

“Then tear it up.” Regina snapped, “I just got my sister back. I’m not going to lose her now.”

“Neither will I. I’ll give them what they want, but I know the Stiltskins and their tricks. They’re not going to keep their word.” Hades warned.

“Oh, what gave you that impression?” Nicholas asked sarcastically in frustration.

“Not unless I have an ace up my sleeve.” Hades finished.

“Luckily for you, you’ve got one.” Regina replied.

“I’m sorry, you’ve been Zelena’s doting sister for all of what, three hours?” Hades asked, “No. And if you don’t help me, I’ll send Lusty back to cause you some more trouble.”

“Go ahead.” Nicholas challenged, “Send the bitch back. I killed her before, and can easily do it again. Only next time, she’s not staying down here. She’s going through the gate like she should have done the first time around.”

“Gate?” Regina asked, “What gate?”

“Not important.” Nicholas replied not taking his eyes off of Hades, “You don’t want her down here anymore than I do. She’s not a human, she doesn’t belong down here with the rest of these people. You’re not as clever or smooth as you may think, Hades. You want me to get rid of her for you. Admit it.”

Matching the alchemist’s glare with his own, Hades stood his ground before giving out a tired sigh. “Fine.” he admitted, “You’re right. I want that filthy creature out of my Underworld. I may hate this place as much as everyone else, but no one undermines my authority by making a meal out of my subjects. Get rid of the Homunculus and help me get back Zelena, and then I’ll let you all leave.”

“Another condition to this deal. You’re pushing your luck.” Nicholas warned.

“Need I remind you that no one else can set you free?” he asked, “If you want to get out of here before your little friend upstairs starts causing trouble, and yes, I do know about that, then I suggest you agree to my terms. So what do you say, Immortal Alchemist? Do you want to send your family home or not?”

**OUaT**

Many years ago, in the land of Middle Earth, the Fellowship of the Ring journeyed silently through the mines of Moria as they continued their venture to Mordor. When they first heard Gimli’s praise for the mighty dwarven kingdom, they had expected to see hundreds of dwarves hard at work in search of riches in the caverns. However, they were instead greeted by corpses of dwarves, many of which were impaled by goblin and orc arrows and with the way they came in being sealed off, they had no choice but to face the dangers waiting for them in the darkness of the mine.

They spoke as little and softly as possible so as not to give the enemy notice of their presence and the only light they used was that which shined from Gandalf’s staff as he led the way. Everyone’s guard was up for they knew, at any moment, something could jump out and attack them. Unfortunately, given the smell of decay, dust and metal, Flamel was unable to properly smell out any nearby adversaries. As for Mina, who had the ability to see, smell and hear at great distances by using the senses of other creatures, she too was unable to tell if anyone else was nearby. 

“The wealth of Moria was not in gold or jewels but in white Mithril.” Gandalf said educating those who did not know this as they journeyed through the caverns.

“ _White_ Mithril?” Flamel asked, “As opposed to some other color?”

“Yes,” the wizard chuckled, “Legends tell of a second sort of Mithril found in other realms beyond Middle Earth. It is called, as I recall, black Mithril.”

“What’s the difference?” Pippin asked.

“Well, white Mithril is quite possibly the strongest and sturdiest of metals in all of Middle Earth.” Gandalf explained, “In fact, Bilbo had a chain shirt of white Mithril that was given to him by Thorin.”

“Ooh!” Gimli gasped, “That was a kingly gift!”

“Yes,” Gandalf chuckled, “I never told him, but its worth was greater than that of the Shire. Ahem, as for black Mithril, while it may be no sturdier than elven armor, it has a rather unique quality unlike any other metal. It is capable of nullifying any sort of magic that attempts to reach its proximity. Most people will forge it into chest guards, or neck braces to prevent dark magic users from tearing out their hearts or breaking their necks.”

Giving a very impressed whistle, Flamel nodded in approval at those useful armor pieces. “Now I could use some of those.”

Upon making it through the tunnels and mines for four days, they had reached the dwarven city that would lead to the way out.

“Let me risk a little more light.” Gandalf said as he shined his light even brighter, “Behold, the great realm and dwarf city of Dwelodaf.”

“Now there’s an eye opener, make no mistake.” Sam said as they all looked at the city in awe. As they made their way through empty stone city, Gimli spotted a light shining from a room and broke away from the group in hopes of finding any of his surviving kin.

“Gimli!” Flamel called as they chased after him. But when they caught up, they found more corpses of dwarves lying around a grave and Gimli sobbing as he saw the name of who’s grave it was.

“Here lies Balin son of Fundin, lord of Moria.” Gandalf read somberly over Gimli’s wails, “He is dead then. It is as I feared.”

“Shh,” Mina gently soothed rubbing the dwarf’s back, “I’m sorry, Gimli.”

“Gandalf,” Flamel alerted as he held up an old journal from a corpse, “Perhaps this will reveal what happened here.”

“Perhaps.” the wizard nodded before reading the last entry.

“We must move on.” Legolas advised, “We cannot linger.”

“They have taken the bridge and the second hall.” Gandalf read aloud, “We have bared the gates but cannot hold them for long. The ground shakes. Drums, drums in the deep. We cannot get out. A shadow moves in the dark. We cannot get out. They are coming.”

While Gandalf was reading the tome, Pippin decided to take a closer look at a corpse he found sitting on the edge of an old well. But the moment he touched it, its head fell down the well causing everyone to turn at look at the source of the loud noise while Pippin cringed with each clang the head made. Followed by the body, and the chains, and the iron bucket all of which echoed and rang throughout all of Moria. They waited a moment to hear for any sign of the goblins, but when they heard nothing, Gandalf took the opportunity to scold the young Hobbit.

“Fool of Took!” he snapped, “Throw yourself next time and rid us of your stupidity!”

“Um, guys.” Flamel said worriedly as the sound of goblins charging towards them.

“Barricade the doors!” Nemo ordered grabbing some old axes, “Quickly!”

Following his lead, Aragorn and Boromir helped bar the door with more axes while the Hobbits gathered behind Gandalf with their swords drawn, Gimli readied his axe, Legolas his bow, Flamel his alchemy, and Mina her fangs. As the men continued to provide cover, the sounds of a ferocious roar could be heard with the goblins’ cries.

“They have a cave troll.” Boromir sighed in annoyance.

“Grah!” Gimli snarled, “Let them come! There’s one dwarf left in Moria who still draws breath!”

“Stand back!” Flamel advised as he sealed the door with his alchemy. With each of their weapons drawn, the Fellowship stared at the door and awaited the enemy.

“How long do you think that will hold, Nicholas?” Mina asked softly.

“For goblins? Quite a while.” he replied, “For a cave troll? Well…”

Her answer was given when the abominations broke through the door and tried to crawl their way in. The goblins were easy to deal with given the Fellowship’s numbers and skills. It was the cave troll, however, that proved to be nuisance; even for the League agents. They all struggled to bring it down after killing the goblins, but when they saw that the beast had stabbed Frodo, their rage fueled their attacks even more which brought an end to the troll.

“Frodo!” Sam shouted as they all went to help their friend. But when they did, they found the little ring-bearer to be breathing. “He’s alive!”

“I’m alright.” Frodo panted, “I’m not hurt.”

“But how?” Mina asked, “A spear like that would skewer a wild boar.”

“I think there’s more to this Hobbit than meets the eye.” Gandalf smirked as everyone took notice of a white chainmail shirt under Frodo’s clothes.

“White Mithril.” Gimli gasped, “You’re full of surprises, Master Baggins.”

But their joy was cut short by the sound of more goblins closing in. With no other option, Gandalf nodded to them all before quickly ordering them, “To the bridge of Khazad-Dum.”

They all ran as fast as their legs could carry them with their weapons still drawn while goblins spawned from every crack, hall and hole in the mine towards them. True, they weren’t the strongest of dark creatures, but given that they were surrounded by a small army of the pests, the Fellowship knew it would be difficult. But just as the fighting was about to begin, drums could be heard. Drums so loud and booming that the goblins fled the way they came leaving their prey behind.

At first, Gimli was actually laughing at the fleeing goblins, but his laughter quickly stopped when he and the rest of his companions saw that the great hall on the other side was glowing red with fire.

“What is this new devilry?” Boromir softly asked Gandalf who looked like he was trying to control his fear while a roar that sounded like metal tearing through stone could be heard.

“A Balrog. A demon of the ancient world.” the wizard answered as fear consumed them all, “This foe is beyond any of you. Run!”

Not wanting to argue with the old man, everyone did as he said and ran faster than they thought they could ever run with terror fueling their legs. Behind them, Flamel could see that the light of fire was only growing as the dreaded Balrog drew near.

“What the hell is a Balrog?!” he asked as they ran.

“A massive demon of fire and shadow made by Morgoth; the fallen god who taught Sauron the dark arts in the first age of this world!” Nemo shouted.

“So how do we kill it?!” Mina asked.

“We don’t!” Nemo replied, “We just keep running!”

“You know?” Flamel asked over the Balrog’s roar, “I think this might be the one time I’m okay with running away from a fight!”

As they continued to run, the bridge leading to the only way out was in sight. But unfortunately, the goblins returned and began to fire their arrows while they made their escape. Legolas was able to take care of them with his own arrows, but it only delayed them and gave the Balrog the chance to get closer.

“Over the bridge! Fly!” Gandalf shouted as the others ran. As he did, the Balrog came up behind him and roared in his face before the old wizard ran with the others. When they were able to cross the stone bridge over the seemingly bottomless chasm, Gandalf stopped to face the demon with his sword and staff.

“You cannot pass!” he shouted.

“Gandalf!” Frodo cried out as the Balrog readied for its next meal.

“I am the servant of the secret fire. Wielder of the Flame of Arnor.” Gandalf said to the beast while creating a shield of magic, “The dark fire will not avail you, Flame of Udun!”

Creating a giant sword of fire, the Balrog struck the shield thus destroying its weapon making it all the more angry.

“Go back to the shadow!” Gandalf ordered. But the Balrog only flared its nostrils at him, took one powerful step forward and unfurled a whip of fire so long, it nearly struck the entire cavern. “You shall not pass!”

With a might slam of his staff, Gandalf struck the bridge and stared down the flaming beast with no fear in his eyes. But the Balrog was not impressed. It accepted the wizard’s challenge and stepped forward only to feel the bridge collapse and crumble underneath it. Satisfied, Gandalf turned to join the others, but he was stopped by the Balrog’s whip causing him to hang on to the ledge for dear life.

“No, no!” Boromir cried as he grabbed Frodo before he could reach the wizard.

“Gandalf!” the Hobbit cried. But it was too late, the old man’s strength was not great enough to pull himself up. Knowing it was the end, it gave one last order to the Fellowship before falling into the chasm with the Balrog.

“Fly, you fools.”

Frodo’s cries rang louder through the mind than anything else that day. Everyone had to overcome their shock at the loss of the great wizard in order to flee the remaining goblins. After running out of Moria’s main entrance, they finally stopped. It could have been because the Hobbits were too heartbroken to carry on as their tears blinded them, or perhaps Gimli was trying to run back inside to unleash his anger and grief on the goblins, or even because Flamel had to take off his red coat to shield Mina from the sun. No one knew for sure. All they knew was that they had lost someone dear to them so early in their journey.

“Legolas, get them up.” Aragorn ordered as he picked up the Hobbits.

“Give a moment, for pity’s sake!” Boromir choked in sympathy.

“By nightfall these hills will be swarming with orcs!” Aragorn warned, “We much reach the woods of Lothlorien. Come, Boromir, Legolas, Gimli, Flamel, get them up!”

“Frodo?” Flamel asked looking for the young Hobbit only to see wander ahead, “Frodo!”

Hearing his immortal companion’s call, Frodo turned to them and let them all see his heartbroken face and the single tear roll down his red face.

**OUaT**

Inside the loft, Nicholas stared out the window in anger while the others thought over their plans of attack. “He’s not making this easy for us.” Nicholas said gritting his teeth, “First it was rescue Zelena from Gold and his father, now he wants us to get rid of Lust, too. Is anyone unsure of the merit of his word?”

“What choice do we have?” Regina asked, “It’s clear that he won’t take our names off unless we do as he says. Rescuing Zelena was going to happen without Hades’ deal, so it’s no big deal.”

“Yeah, but killing a Homunculus ain’t no picnic either, sis.” he retorted, “Especially since I don’t have my flame alchemy gloves down here.”

“And that we have no idea where she might be.” Boromir added.

“Yeah. That, too.” Nicholas said flatly.

“How did you kill her the first time?” Emma asked, “I thought the Philosopher’s Stone made anyone who has one immortal?”

“A perfected Stone will.” Nicholas replied, “Lust’s, however, is an imperfect Philosopher’s Stone. Unlike mine, hers doesn’t continuously recycle the energy of the souls powering it. Once the energy is spent, that’s it, the Stone and Lust become dust in the wind. The only problem is, last time I had my gloves, crates full of grenades and a bunch of bullets. None of which I have down here, so killing her is going to take a little while longer this time.”

“Wouldn’t she have the same weakness to magic that you do?” David asked.

“Yeah, she does.” he nodded, “But it would take a lot of magic to do enough damage to her. Not to mention, she would still be able impale anybody who would be using the magic. No, it’s for the best if I take her on alone.”

“I can help.” Boromir offered, “It’s not like she can kill me.”

“Maybe not, old friend. But she can still do to you what she did to your former deputy.” Nicholas reminded, “You guys rescue Zelena and I’ll finish off Lust.”

“Never thought I’d willingly help the woman who tricked me into getting her pregnant.” Robin muttered bluntly.

“Agh, please don’t remind me that you slept with her.” Nicholas groaned, “It’s bad enough you did it with one of my sisters, but both?”

“Okay! Moving on.” Regina said as she blushed.

“I still don’t trust him.” Emma whispered to her father while looking at Boromir.

“Neither do I, but we need all the help we can get if we want to get out of here and go home.” David whispered back.

Going their separate ways, Nicholas began his search for the lady Homunculus while the others joined up with Hades to get back Zelena. It didn’t take too long for him to find out where she had run off to. In fact, it was the first place he guessed where she might be; the mansion. Letting himself in, the alchemist found his target standing in the entryway waiting for him.

“I was beginning to think you would never figure out where I was staying.” Lust taunted.

“You’re not welcome in this mansion.” Nicholas warned pointing his finger as he approached her.

“Please,” she scoffed, “It’s not even the real thing. Why bother getting all flustered about it?”

“This place is for deceased League members with unfinished business, and them alone. A filthy Homunculus like you has no place being here disrespecting it.”

“Typical humans.” she sighed, “Always squabbling over what belongs to who. You spend entire lifetimes arguing with each other about such things only to lose it all when you die. What could possibly be the point in making such a fuss over a few measly possessions?”

“It’s not the possessions we fight for.” Nicholas retorted, “True, humans are greedy, selfish creatures. However, when something important to us is on the line, we will do whatever it takes to ensure no harm comes to it. I guess you can say that it’s a matter of pride.”

“And I’m sure my brother would understand that better than I would.” Lust chuckled, “All I can understand about humans is their desires and need for pleasure. James managed to prove my point every time he looked at me let alone when we would fool around.”

“And that’s just the kind of ignorance that makes you Homunculi so naïve to the way humans are.” Nicholas remarked causing Lust to narrow her eyes at him.

“What?” she growled.

“All you see humans as are sources of energy and grasp only the basics of what makes them who they are. It baffles me how a creature whose entire existence relies on the souls of humans could be so clueless as to what humans truly are. I guess you’re more like your father than I gave you credit last time.”

Not even giving a word of warning, Lust shot five of her spears at the disappointed alchemist who easily stopped them by making a wall erupt from the floor in front of him.

“Let’s get this over with.” he sighed while reading his own Ultimate Spear, “My sister’s life is on the line and I would very much like to go home by the end of today.”

Elsewhere, Hades was closing the blinds of the empty diner while Emma was waiting by the back door to give him a hand if need be. “Show yourself.” he ordered. In two clouds of red smoke, the father and son appeared with Zelena in Pan’s grip with a magic cuff on her wrist.

“Glad to see you followed instructions and came alone.” Pan said.

“Zelena.” Hades said softly.

“I tried to stop them, but,” she said showing the cuff.

“It’s not your fault, it’s theirs.”

“Oh, is that so?” Gold asked, “Because we wouldn’t be here if you’d ripped up that contract when I asked you to.”

“You didn’t have leverage.” Hades reminded as he brought up the parchment.

“And now I do.” he smirked, “So, you stand there and don’t move except to rip up that contract. Then you get the witch.”

Still glaring at them, Hades tore the piece of paper in half and tossed it aside while the Dark One smirked at his obedience.

“There. Now give her back.” Hades demanded.

“Oh, you can have her back.” Gold replied.

“But we didn’t say anything about her hear, did we?” Pan asked, “You see, my body is ready to walk the earth again. Except for one thing. A living heart. So, if you don’t mind.”

“My heart has a protection spell on it.” Zelena warned.

“You may be good at magic, but we’re better.” Pan smirked ready to tear out the organ. Just as he was about to, Emma stepped in and blasted the boy with her magic.

“You sure about that?” she asked.

“I was beginning to think you couldn’t get in.” Hades remarked.

“Locks don’t bother me much.” Emma retorted, “He ripped up the contract like you wanted, so leave.”

“Since when does the Savior answer to the king of death?” Pan asked.

“Since he’s the one getting my family home.” she snapped.

“You picked the wrong team to back, Ms. Swan.” Gold lectured, “You won’t get what you want from him.”

“Really?” she asked, “Because you just did, which is making me wonder why you’re still here.”

“…Yeah, I suppose you have a point.” he grinned before poofing away without his father.

“Rumple?” Pan asked feeling betrayed.

“Looks like your little boy only came for what he wanted.” Zelena mocked.

“I don’t think you’re gonna be that lucky.” Emma warned before Pan poofed away.

“Zelena.” Hades said rushing up to see if she was alright and removing the cuff, “Are you alright?”

“You tore up that contract for me.” she said gazing into his eyes, “I didn’t think you’d do it.”

“When will you believe I’d do anything for you?” he asked as she placed a hand on his chest.

“I think I’m getting there.” she said softly before pulling him for a kiss. As soon as their lips met, a wave of magic erupted from them as the god’s heart started beating furiously. “Is that?”

“My heart.” Hades gasped, “It’s beating.”

As they kissed again, the entire Underworld shook for a second. “What the hell was that?” Emma asked.

“My banishment.” Hades realized, “It’s over. I can finally leave this place for good. Very soon, at the cemetery, there will be a fully formed portal back to Storybrooke, but it will close at sunset.”

“First things first.” Emma interrupted, “We wait for Nicholas. I came all this way to bring him back, and I am not letting anyone leave until he gets back and our names are off those tombstones. We’re going home through that portal, too. All of us.”

“What was that?” Lust asked as her fight with Nicholas paused for a moment.

“Ew,” he cringed, “That sadistic creep just kissed my sister, didn’t he? Well, Lusty, old girl, looks like you have no possible way to get leverage over Hades now.”

“I guess that means you no longer have any reason to continue this fight, then?” she asked.

“Not quite.” he flatly replied before pulling out a gun and shooting her in the head, “Bet you didn’t realize your boy toy dropped this earlier, did you? See, aside from the countless personal reasons I have for fighting you, mostly hatred towards your kind thanks to your despicable father, you went and did something rather stupid today. Do you know what that was? You threatened the safety of my precious, little niece. And for that, your second death is going to be even more painful than the first one.”

Using his shadows this time, Nicholas had them attack Lust like wild dogs, biting and tearing off her limbs. “Here’s another idiotic mistake you made!” he shouted viciously over her pain filled screams, “Did you honestly think I just popped down here right into Hades’ torture chambers? No, I showed up here first. And I know for a fact, that this place is the exact same as the one up top! Activate security sequence 5, 8, 9, 3, 3! Access code: 4, 8, 0, 2, 6, 1, 0, 9!”

“Access Code: Accepted. Security Defense Sequence Request: Acknowledged.” the computer replied as Nicholas stopped his attack. Coming from two openings in the ceiling, two, large Gatling guns drop right above his head as he crossed his arms and began to fire at the artificial human. They didn’t have as many bullets as Nicholas would have liked, but they certainly did one hell of a job on Lust who was in a world of pain.

As she healed herself, Lust was too slow to stop Nicholas as he ran up to deliver a powerful blow to her face with his knee. Practically snarling as he did it, he grabbed her by the head, twisted it until her neck broke, wrapped his legs around her waist as they fell to the ground and began to pull.

“The next time you abominations wanna try to wipe out humanity for your own selfish gain,” Nicholas shouted as he tore her head off, “Maybe don’t take on someone who’s already kicked your ass!”

“You bastard!” Lust cried as her head slowly grew back while she impaled him with all of her spears. But Nicholas was once again able to prove he was the better fighter by grabbing her arms and using his alchemy to obliterate them.

“Get it over with.” she panted, “Kill me again. I’ll just stay down here even longer. If you want to be rid of me, you’re gonna have to toss me into the river.”

“And give access to an unlimited source of souls to fuel your Philosopher’s Stone?” he asked as they healed before grabbing her by her dress, “No. You wanna know what your death is gonna be like this time? I’ll tell you this, it ain’t gonna be a wet one!”

Pulling out a transport rock, he crushed it and threw the dust at their feet taking down below the town the fiery chasm. Snarling in her face, Nicholas used all his strength to toss Lust over the bridge and into the fires below.

“You damn human!” she cried out as the flames engulfed her. Staring down the ledge with eyes that would frighten even Hades, Nicholas spat at where the Homunculus fell in disgust.

“Filthy Homunculus.” he spat before transmuting himself back to the surface. At the cemetery, the others found themselves staring at the fallen clock tower as its hands began to turn faster and faster with each passing moment.

“How’d it get here?” David asked.

“The hands are moving. Is that a good sign or a bad one?” Emma asked.

“It’s a great one if you want to leave.” Hades replied, “When those hands spin fast enough in just a few minutes, it’ll turn into an open portal back.”

“Which we can’t go through because of those.” Nicholas said pointing to the graves and mural as he transmuted himself back, “So, get on with it.”

“First things first. The Homunculus?” Hades asked.

“Dead.” he replied flatly, “Again. Thanks to me. So now that I have fulfilled my end of the bargain, take our names off, now.”

“Of course.” the god smirked as he waved his hand and removed the names, “A deal’s deal. Your friends and the souls in that rock of yours are no longer tied to this realm.”

“I told you love could change him.” Zelena said to Regina happily.

“Happy now?” he asked.

“Not quite.” Nicholas replied before head-butting Hades’ nose, “That was for my parents.”

“And the only shot I’ll allow you to take.” he groaned while clutching his nose for a moment.

“Good thing for you.” the alchemist remarked, “You’d have hated to feel what I planned on doing to you on my behalf. Wait a minute, where’s Boromir?”

“Don’t worry about him, the portal’s about to open.” Emma reminded.

“But-but, I wanted to say goodbye and thank him.” Nicholas said looking hurt while the others looked downcast, “Guys, what’s going on?”

“We…told him it would probably be best if he went back to the sheriff’s station after Hades’ heart started beating.” David answered.

“What?” he asked in shock, “Why would you do that if you knew we were going to be leaving? Guys, Boromir has done nothing but help us this whole time.”

“Mate, I think they may have gotten the wrong idea about your friend’s story.” Robin suggested.

“We weren’t sure if we could trust him.” Emma replied looking guilty, “We thought he was gonna pull a fast one on us and-”

“And what?” Nicholas asked, “What could possible make you think Boromir would betray us? He’s been nothing but a good friend who put his soul on the line.”

“Well, after what he did to Frodo, who could blame us?” Regina scoffed, “The man doesn’t have the best track record in staying true to his word.”

“Frodo?” he asked baffled, “What are you talking about?! Boromir never did anything to Frodo. Oh, my god! You guys are going off of those damn books and movies, aren’t you?”

“Apparently.” Hades scoffed as the portal opened behind them, “That’s our way out. You’ve got about an hour before it closes. If you plan on saying your goodbyes to the sheriff, I’d do it quickly.”

“He’s right. Nicholas, let’s go.” Emma said pulling his arm only to watch him pull back.

“No.” he said shaking his head, “I’m not leaving without saying goodbye to Boromir.”

“Nicholas, the portal’s open.” Regina stressed, “We can finally leave.”

“And we have an hour until it closes.” he snapped with a slight glare, “Which is plenty of time for me to head into town and say goodbye. Look, you guys may think you know what happened back in Middle Earth, but you don’t. He’s down here because of me, and last time, I didn’t get to say goodbye or even how sorry I was. I’m not passing that up a second time.”

“What are you talking about?” Regina asked, “What happened between you two?”

“Between us? Nothing.” he replied, “It has nothing to do what he did. It has to do with what I did to Frodo after Lothlorien.”

**OUaT**

Over a week following what happened in Moria, the Fellowship managed to arrive in Lothlorien and were taken in as guests of the Lady Galadriel. They stayed for several days to recover their strength and refresh their supplies for the journey ahead. The morning they departed from the elven kingdom, Galadriel presented each of them with an enchanted cloak to help shield them from dangerous eyes as well as a unique gift that best suited them. For many hours, they rowed down the great river from the Golden Wood while a pack of orcs trailed them. Once they reached the end of the river and its mighty waterfall, they made camp along shore.

“Hide the boats and cover our tracks. From here, we make our way into Mordor.” Aragorn instructed.

“Oh, yes?” Gimli asked knowing what they would face ahead, “It’s just a simple task of maneuvering through an impossible labyrinth of razor sharp rocks, and after that it gets even better! Festering, stinking marshlands as far as the eye can see.”

“That is our road.” Aragorn said dryly at the dwarf’s attitude, “I suggest you rest to recover your strength, Master Dwarf.”

“Recover my-oh!” he grumbled while Sam, Merry and Pippin prepared some food, “Pay no heed to him, young Hobbits.”

“Well, Gimli, you certainly painted a lovely mental picture for us which I dare say, we all look forward to comparing to the real things once we get there.” Mina dryly remarked under her new, elven hood.

“Where’s Frodo?” Sam asked looking for his friend.

“He and Nicholas went to gather more firewood for supper.” Nemo replied as he sharpened his sword.

“I’ll go find them.” Boromir grunted as he rose from his seat, “We mustn’t linger here too long.”

Not far into the woods, Flamel stared intently at the young Hobbit while they gathered branches. “You know, Frodo? For a long time, I’ve looked up to your guardian, Bilbo and the deeds he accomplished when he helped found the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.” he said breaking the ice, “To think that he managed to do all that and still carry around the same ring you have around your neck. Funny how an instrument of evil has been used for so much good, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” Frodo nodded looking feared while clutching the ring under his shirt, “Bilbo was lucky not to have fallen to the ring’s influence during those times.”

“I don’t know about you, but it’s made me wonder if _we_ simply can’t use the ring for good ourselves?” Flamel pondered suspiciously.

“I know what you would ask,” Frodo cut off, “And to you, it would seem like reason instead of madness.”

“Madness?” he asked dropping the wood and stepping towards the Halfling who backed away, “What madness is that? We’re all afraid, Frodo. That ring is a burden on you. I can see it wear you down day by day; we all do. One so small, such as you, should not have to carry such a great burden as that. You’ve earned my deepest respect in taking this burden, Frodo Baggins, but you don’t have to carry it any further if you wish.”

“I swore an oath to destroy the ring, Nicholas.” Frodo reminded, “I plan to see this through to the end.”

“We all do.” Flamel nodded, “We all want to see Sauron defeated. But, Frodo, you and your kinsmen are not like the rest of us. Brave, yes, you all are very brave for facing such dangers and not wavering in your quest. But warriors? Fighters? No. You may have stared down a cave troll and survived the Nazgul, Frodo, but you Hobbits are not nearly ready to face the forces waiting in Mordor. You rely on us too heavily. All you need to do is give the ring to me, and I can take you and your friends back to the Shire where Sauron can never hurt you. Just-just give me the ring, and all this can end for you.”

“No.” Frodo whispered shaking his head with betrayal in his eyes as he walked back towards the camp. However, that was not the answer Flamel was wanting to hear.

“Fool!” he spat marching towards him and pushing him to the ground to take the ring, “That power doesn’t belong with the likes of you. It could have been mine. It should be mine; give it to me!”

“No!” Frodo cried struggling.

“Give it to me!” Flamel shouted. But amidst the struggling, Frodo managed to put on the ring and vanished after shoving Flamel off. “You think you’re the first person to turn invisible on me and run? Guess again. Give me the ring, Frodo. Don’t make me kill you!”

“Perhaps we should have sent one of the others in your place.” Nemo said with his sword at his friend’s throat while Mina had her daggers out on the other side.

“Oh, Nicholas.” she sighed feeling sorry for the young agent, “Not you.”

“Come on, don’t tell me you guys haven’t been wanting to rip that thing off his neck since we started this damn journey.” Flamel said raising his hands in surrender while trying to scope out the Hobbit.

“Perhaps,” Nemo replied coolly, “But we pushed those feelings aside because we knew that we have a job to do; and so do you.”

“Don’t do this, Nicholas.” Mina pleaded, “Please.”

“I’m sorry, Mina.” he whispered before growling with feral eyes, “But I want it!”

By making two extra arms sprout from his torso, Flamel was able to knock the wind out of his teammates before taking off in search of Frodo.

“Where is that damn Halfling?” he growled as he stomped through the woods. Picking up Frodo’s scent, Flamel followed it deeper into the woods with his desire to take the ring clouding his judgement. But as he was pursuing his friend, he was tackled by a swarm of bats that tried to bite and claw his face before a burst of alchemy shook them off. Taking cover in the trees’ shade, Mina returned to her human form from the bat swarm and glared at him under her hood.

“Nicholas, you’re not thinking straight.” she tried to reason, “Frodo is our friend. We want him to destroy the ring. That’s what the director sent us here for, remember?”

“I know all that, Mina.” he replied madly, “I don’t know why I’m doing this. I just want the ring so badly. Do you really think it’s wise to fight me like this? You may be able to withstand sunlight longer than most vampires, but even you can’t take the heat for long.”

“I don’t want to fight you,” she said as her eyes slowly turned red and her canines extended, “But I will if I must to protect the Hobbit.”

“Then you had better hope that hood of yours stays on tight.” he challenged as he hardened his shield and she lunged at him with terrifying snarl.

“Wonderful,” Nemo sighed as he ran towards them, “Now they’re fighting each other.”

“Nemo!” Boromir hollered as he joined up with the captain, “What’s going on? Where is Frodo?”

“Nicholas tried to take the ring from him. I don’t know where Frodo is, but Nicholas and Mina are in the middle of fighting each other.”

Before they could properly react, one of the two agents managed to knock over a large tree causing a loud impact sound to ring through the hills. Unfortunately, this gained the attention of the very same orc pack that had been trailing them since Lothlorien.

“Now, what?” Mina asked as she and Flamel halted their fight once they heard the orcs, “How wonderful. Your head cleared yet?”

“It’s getting there.” Flamel nodded as he drew his sword once the orcs charged towards them, “Finish this up another time?”

“Gladly. But first,” she said before punching an orc in the face so hard, it’s neck broke, “Let’s give these boys a proper LXG greeting.”

“With pleasure.” he agreed as they began to fight the orcs. As they took down orc after orc, Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas fought their way towards them to back them up while Nemo assisted Boromir defend the Hobbits.

“Run!” Boromir shouted to Merry and Pippin, “Run!”

“Come on!” Nemo roared as he slashed through their armor with ease. While Boromir was holding his own against the others, a leading orc drew back one of his black arrows and aimed directly at the man’s chest.

“Boromir, look out!” Nemo cried once he saw the arrow fly. But the steward’s son was not fast enough. The arrow lodged itself directly above his heart and caused him to fall to his knees.

“No!” Flamel cried as he ran over to them with Aragorn following. As he did, Boromir used what strength he had left to continue to kill more orcs while defending Merry and Pippin and while more arrows found their way into his flesh. 

Wanting to make sure that their friend’s sacrifice was not in vain, the two Hobbits raised their swords and cried out as they charged the monstrosities only to be hauled away. In its arrogance, the archer stood before Boromir with one final arrow drawn. However, Nemo and Flamel were not about to let the filthy orc get one last shot at their friend.

Flamel simply tackled the beast before rolling to his feet with his sword drawn while Nemo, with expertise, spun and sliced away at its armor before being punched in the face; even though it did little more than anger the agent. Flamel took the chance to stab the orc with his sword and head-butt it before Nemo sliced off its right arm. Knowing what to do next, both agents, one on each side of the pain filled orc, they lunged forward as they threw their swords forward and grabbed the others’ and pulled it back, tearing through the orcs body just before Aragorn came charging in and beheading the beast.

Mina and the others were able to join up with them, but by the time they did, Boromir’s life had slipped away after dying in Aragorn’s arms. All of them bowed their heads in silence and respect for their comrade, but Flamel mostly bowed his in shame. If not for his actions, the orcs may never have known where to find them and his friend might still be alive.

**OUaT**

While Boromir was sitting at his old desk with a glass of scotch in his hand, Nicholas barged in looking for him. “Ah, you made it back. Good.” he said raising his glass to his friend.

“What the hell, Boromir?” Nicholas asked, “Were you seriously just going to sit here and drink scotch while the rest of us went back to Storybrooke?”

“Seems like your friends wanted it that way.” he shrugged as he smelled his drink, “I guess you never told them what really happened at Amon-Hen, did you?”

“Well,” the alchemist trailed looking towards the window while scratching behind his ear, “I did kind of tell one of them what happened between me and Frodo a while back.”

“Nicholas, if you’re concerned about me being angry with you for how I died, I already told Robin, I don’t blame you.” Boromir reassured.

“No, I know. I just came to say goodbye and give you my thanks.” Nicholas replied, “But now that you mention it, I do have a question for you.”

“You wish to know why I am still down here.” he stated while finishing off his glass.

“It can’t be because of the ring. Frodo destroyed it decades ago. I know that you know this.” Nicholas pointed out, “Is it because of your brother?”

“No. No, it’s not because of Faramir.” he replied while freshening his drink.

“Then what the hell are you still doing here, man?!” Nicholas snapped, “I mean, why stay here? This place sucks! Alright, enough beating around the bush. Just what the hell is your unfinished business?”

“It _was_ not knowing what happened to the ring.” Boromir replied dryly, “When I first arrived, I already knew that my unfinished business was not knowing the fate of the One Ring. When I finally heard word of Sauron’s destruction, I knew my time here was finished.”

“So why didn’t you move on?” he asked. The deceased sheriff did not reply. “Boromir, I’ve got less than an hour before my ride home takes off. I can either stand here, tired of asking you questions while you just sit there and drink, or you can give me an answer and get some closure before I go; your choice.”

“Fine.” he huffed, “While you may have been the one who attacked Frodo and tried to kill him to take the ring, I did it a bit more discreetly.”

“Say what?” Nicholas asked.

“There were times when I would try to take the ring from Frodo while he was sleeping on our journey.” Boromir admitted sheepishly, “If Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas and Mina hadn’t kept such a close eye on me when they would take watch, I probably would have succeeded; but then again, I would have had to have dealt with the wrath of one Samwise Gamgee if I did.”

“Yeah,” Nicholas chuckled, “Sam always was very protective of Frodo.”

“That’s why I haven’t allowed myself to move on.”

“You feel guilty about what you did. Or rather, what you wanted to do.” Nicholas nodded finally understanding, “Man, you can’t beat yourself up over something you didn’t even do for all eternity. Hell, I nearly killed Frodo and he forgave me; and I’ve forgiven myself.”

“You’re used to such work, my friend. Oh, no offense.” Boromir replied.

“None taken.” he shrugged, “Trust me, what I did to Frodo was definitely not the worst thing I’ve done in my line of work; and it certainly won’t be in the future, either.”

“Now that, I can believe.” he chuckled taking another drink.

“Boromir, you’re a good friend.” Nicholas said sincerely, “You put your very existence on the line for me, helped my friends, my family and the woman I love simply because it was the right thing to do. Out of all the souls down here, you deserve to move on more than anyone.”

As he made his way to the door, Nicholas stopped one last time and spoke to his friend and deceased comrade again. “And if it makes you feel any better, Frodo fell to the ring’s temptation, too. He almost left Sam in Mordor because of it.”

Not knowing this, Boromir’s eyes widened as he watched his immortal friend leave the station. With a deep sigh, the sheriff stirred his scotch and mulled over his thoughts while shaking his head before taking another big drink.

Outside the station and along the docks, Nicholas stared down at the cursed waters and took a deep breath as he remembered both Red and his mother’s words. Pulling the sleeves of his pants up, he kneeled down and undid the ratty, old sandal straps around his legs and held them tight in his grip.

“No more.” he whispered before throwing them both into the river and walking away, “I am no longer slave number 23; nor am I Abba. I am an agent of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. I am the Immortal Alchemist. I _am_ Nicholas Flamel.”

After transmuting himself back to the cemetery, Nicholas found everyone there except Hades, Zelena and the baby. “Where’s Zelena and the baby?” he asked them.

“They went on ahead while we helped some last minute people move on.” Robin replied as the portal began to close.

“And Rumple and Belle?”

“Made it out just before we got here.” he assured, “Now, everyone, get through. Hurry!”

“Nicholas!” Emma urged as the others jumped through, “Nicky, come on!”

“Goodbye, you red skied hellhole.” he said to the Underworld in distaste before jumping through with Emma just before the portal closed behind them.

Feeling the portal close, even down below the town, Boromir sighed in content as he stood before the stone bridge leading to his fate. Once he reached the ledge, the two sides joined together and opened up the warmth of the light. On the other side, he could hear the sounds of familiar laughter, laughter he had only heard during his time in the Fellowship. Knowing that was where he belonged, Boromir embraced the light and moved on from the Underworld.

But as soon as the bridge disappeared after the light was gone, a scorched claw dug itself into ledge and pulled its owner up from the fire. Panting in pain while she healed, Lust picked herself up with a look of pure rage and headed back into town, ready to feast on whatever poor, unfortunate soul that she could find.


	66. Last Rites

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Taking in his newly restored freedom, Hades chuckled while breathing in the moist air of Storybrooke at the toll bridge with Regina and the baby. “The land of the living. I never thought I would see this world again; not with a beating heart. And I owe it all to you.” he said happily to Zelena, “I’m finally becoming myself again.”

“I’m so glad.” she giggled even though Hades could tell that something was wrong.

“Something’s troubling you.” he stated.

“It’s my brother and sister. They’re still not here.” she said in concern.

“I wouldn’t worry.” Hades assured, “I’m sure they made it back safe.”

“Then why are we still in the woods?” she asked, “We should go back into town and check.”

“I can’t. Snow White still thinks I’m a villain. These people are always looking for villains to blame.” he warned.

“I’ll tell them you’ve changed,” Zelena promised smiling, “That love changed you.”

“It certainly did.” he nodded as she began to walk away only to see her stop.

“But…in case they don’t believe me, would-would you mind taking the baby?” she asked as she passed her to him, “Just take her to my sister’s office. You’ll be safe there.”

“What, you-you would trust me with your daughter?” he asked feeling touched.

“I trust you with anything.” she replied still smiling as she left him alone. But just a few moments after she left, Hades found himself in the company of Camelot’s deranged king after having run towards him and slip on the soaked bridge with his hands cuffed.

“Hello there.” Hades greeted nonchalantly.

“Don’t let the shackles fool you. I’m King Arthur of Camelot. I was unjustly imprisoned.” Arthur explained desperately before Hades helped him up.

“Unjustly imprisoned. That, I understand.” he nodded, “But tell me, what happened to land you in such an awful predicament?”

“I was destined to rule a kingdom, a broken kingdom. But not everybody is as understanding as you.” Arthur huffed.

“Well, that I understand as well. I, too, was destined to rule a kingdom.”

“Who are you?” he asked becoming intimidated.

“My name is Hades; god of death.” Hades replied sending chills down the king’s spine while the baby began to cry as he bounced her, “And I think I was destined to rule this very kingdom, right here, but I will need your help.”

Before Arthur could even ask, Hades twisted his hand and snapped the monarch’s neck causing him to drop to the ground, dead as a doornail.

“And that will do nicely.” he smiled while continuing to bounce the baby. Seeing everything that happened through the trees nearby, Sawyer gulped while reaching for his shell, not being able to take his eyes off of the god.

“Uh, boss? We’ve got a situation out here at the toll bridge. Respond; please.” he relayed with his voice shaking in fear.

“Report back to the mansion.” Quartermain advised while munching on a sandwich on one of the rooftops across from the loft, “Flamel, Locksley and I will be there shortly.”

“Roger. Out.” Sawyer nodded while Quartermain loaded two, small transport rocks into a riffle topped with a noise canceler. Keeping his eyes on the other agents as they followed the others to the loft, he fired both rounds at their feet causing them to be transported back to the briefing room at the mansion before crushing his own rock.

“We’re just gonna check on my mom and Neal, then we’ll start searching for Zelena and Hades, okay?” Emma asked before turning around to see that she wasn’t talking to anyone at all, “The hell?”

After they realized that they were no longer outside the loft, the two agents looked befuddled as they stood in front of the roaring fireplace. “What just happened?” Nicholas asked.

“I think we should consider ourselves lucky that Quartermain is on our side.” Robin replied as he deduced what happened. Before Nicholas could ask, he felt himself being tackled by two different people; and hearing/feeling a loud cracking sound in the process. Looking up, he saw that Mina and Skinner was tightly hugging him while practically crying on his chest.

“Our little Nicky is back!” Skinner wailed.

“Don’t ever die on us again, you stupid, adorable idiot!” Mina cried.

“What was that cracking sound?” Robin asked.

“My ribs!” Nicholas croaked as he healed himself and while Nemo laughed as he helped him up.

“Just wait until Quartermain and Sawyer get here.” the captain laughed as he pulled the young alchemist in for a quick hug.

“Thanks, guys. It’s good to be-” But Nicholas was cut off by receiving a bullet right in between his eyes, knocking him to the ground. “Dammit, boss! Why’d you-Tom?!”

Seeing that it was Sawyer glaring at the alchemist with his riffle aimed where he stood and not Quartermain, everyone’s eyes were wide with surprise. “That’s what you get for dying without our permission!” he shouted as happy tears brimmed in his eyes.

“Why the hell would I ever ask for your permission regarding something like that?!” Nicholas exclaimed as Quartermain entered the room heading towards him, “Oh, crap. Boss, please. Please-boss, please! I just got shot in the head, I don’t need any more shrapnel in me after what Sawyer just did-”

But his rambling was stopped as Quartermain pulled him in for a warm and fatherly hug with his eyes closed and a happy smile on his face. “Welcome home, Nicholas.” he said softly patting the shocked, and somewhat terrified alchemist on the back before leaving him stunned as he took his seat.

“Did he just?” Skinner asked in shock.

“Yeah,” Mina nodded equally surprised, “He did. I didn’t even know if he knew what a hug was. Should I be offended that he’s never hugged me despite all the times we’ve had sex?”

Quartermain’s response was looking over his should with an unamused glare sent towards his subordinates. Straightening up, they rushed to their respective seats while Robin and Nemo chuckled before joining them as they pulled the still frozen Nicholas to his chair. It took several minutes to sum up what happened in the Underworld, but what really gained everyone’s attention was when Robin, Nicholas and Sawyer informed the rest that Hades was in Storybrooke with his powers restored; and that he killed Arthur, not that anyone really cared.

“You’re telling me,” Quartermain growled as he rubbed his temple in anger, “That the bloody god of death is roaming about in Storybrooke as we speak? And that he happens to be in love with one of the human sacrifices?”

“Yeah,” Nicholas cringed as the room trembled as a dark purple aura surrounded Quartermain as he grew angrier by the second, “Not exactly the ideal situation we need less than a week before the Promised Day, huh?”

“You think?!” he shouted causing several glasses to shatter in the room, “First we had to deal with your sister, then the Snow Queen and her curse, then it was Stiltskin and those Queens of Darkness and the Author, then it was Emma Swan becoming the Dark One and you getting yourself captured by Nimue resulting in your death. And now you tell me, that we have a murderous god wandering about with the obvious intent to kill anyone who stands in his way. Does that just about cover it?!”

“Uh, boss?” Sawyer asked nervously as the mansion shook, “I think you might wanna tone it down, just a bit. We’re still trying to remain incognito, here.”

“Oh, really, Thomas?” he growled as the shaking on got worse and the atmosphere almost felt heavy, “You find that to be more important than anything else right now? Is that it?”

“Well, I just-uh, I, uh, uh…I’ll be quiet.” he said sheepishly sinking into his chair. Calming himself down to get rid of the shaking and the aura around him, Quartermain sighed while rubbing his forehead.

“I’m at a loss.” the hunter sighed, “We’ve killed countless monsters, demons and people over the years, but even I don’t know how to kill a god.”

“I think I do.” Nicholas informed as he recalled something.

“What?” Mina asked.

“Well, during my time as Hades’ little torture victim/wine bearer, I caught a glimpse at something interesting.” he remembered rising from his seat over to the bookshelf, “There was a, no, not that one, a storybook Hades kept down there, not that one either, with him. It was an Underworld version of my nephew’s book, filled with the stories of everyone down there who made a name for themselves when they were alive; mostly the villains. And in it, Hades’ story was among the tales.”

“What did it say?” Nemo asked taking an interest while Nicholas started tossing back book after book.

“Well, it was kind of hard to read all of it given that the one eye I had left was damaged from his torturing sessions.” he replied, “But I did see some kind of illustration, one that had something important regarding Hades. It kind of looked like a lightning bolt being held up in someone’s hand.”

“Not a lightning bolt, something worse.” Mina gasped as she went over to pull the book Nicholas was searching for and flipped through the pages before finding what they were looking for, “Was that it?”

“Yeah, that’s it!” he nodded as he put on his reading glasses to read the name, “The Olympian Crystal?”

“What hell is that?” Sawyer asked clearly confused.

“A weapon of the gods.” Mina whispered knowing fully well what it was, “Legends say that Zeus, Poseidon and Hades poured their godly strength into a single crystal to use as a weapon when they waged war against their father, Kronos. It has no equal. After Kronos was overthrown, Zeus broke the crystal in two which was stolen by Hades before he was banished to the Underworld to serve as its ruler.”

“…What do you think the chances are that Hades left it down in the Underworld instead of bringing it up here?” Sawyer asked with false hope.

“The same that Skinner has when it comes to getting into bed with Mina.” Nicholas flatly replied.

“But-but it’s broken.” Robin reminded, “He can’t use it. Can he?”

“If he made it, he can fix it, too.” Mina replied slamming the book shut.

“So the only weapon powerful enough to destroy Hades, is probably on Hades’ person.” Skinner stated with dread, “Well, that’s just _grand_.”

“Why can things never be easy for us?” Nemo asked looking to the ceiling to whatever god, not planning to kill them, was listening.

Out by the lake, Emma and Regina were searching for Zelena and Hades on their own while David went to get Hook’s help. They had tried contacting both Nicholas and Robin, but every time they called it went straight to voicemail. They were beginning to grow worried.

“Regina!” Zelena said happily as she approached them and took her sister’s hands in her own, “You made it back.”

“Where the hell-”

“Wait.” Regina interrupted the blonde, “We need some answers.”

“Where the hell is Hades?” Emma asked.

“What?” Zelena asked taken aback by her brother’s lover, “Look, I came to explain to everyone that he’s changed.”

“I hate to break it to you, Zelena, but, no,” Emma said showing her a picture of Arthur’s corpse, “He hasn’t.”

“Is that-is that Arthur?” she asked.

“We found his corpse at the toll bridge, Zelena. That’s where you left Hades, isn’t it?” Emma asked.

“N-no,” she denied looking at the picture, “He-he helped you. He took your names off your graves.”

“It was a trick so we’d trust him.” Regina replied.

“Then maybe Arthur threatened my daughter. I left her with Hades when I-”

“I’m sorry, you did what?” Emma interrupted.

“Well, I couldn’t very well bring her with me if there was a chance your mother was going to try something once I found her to explain everything.” Zelena snapped, “Hades is different now his heart is beating. Love has changed him. I’ve changed him.”

“Oh, you mean from the psychopath that tortured your brother in hell for his own entertainment?” Emma asked hotly, “How could you defend him after everything he did? Did you not see the state Nicholas was in when he was after the Stone? Hades did all that, Zelena!”

“Emma!” Regina snapped before speaking calmly to her sister, “Look, sometimes the truth hurts. Why don’t you just tell us where he is?”

“And what are you planning to do when you find him?” she asked.

“Well, that depends on him.” Regina replied, “But we’ll do whatever we have to to protect this town.”

“You mean imprison him.” Zelena clarified.

“We’ll do whatever we have to.” Regina repeated, “I know this is hard to hear, but he is not the man you think he is.”

“Actually, he is not a man at all. He is a god.” she retorted defensively, “And if you try to hurt him, you do so at your own peril.”

And with that, the Wicked Witch tossed her hand up and vanished in a puff of green smoke. “Well,” Nicholas said dryly behind the two women startling them, “That could have gone a hell of a lot smoother.”

“Where the hell were you?” Emma snapped, “We’re not home for five minutes, and you disappear again?!”

“Hey, this time, I had no say in the matter.” he defended raising his hands, “I was just as surprised that it happened as you.”

“Where’s Robin?” Regina asked.

“He’s out looking for our niece.” the alchemist replied just as he received at text with the god’s location, “And it looks like he found them.”

Having poofed/transmutated to the town hall, everyone watched as green magical energy covered the building. “My sister cast a protection spell on the building.” Regina groaned.

“We can’t just stand here and do nothing.” Robin protested.

“I wasn’t planning on doing nothing.” Regina snapped, “As a matter of fact, I know exactly what to do. There’s a secret tunnel that goes right under the town hall. We don’t know how to defeat Hades, but maybe we can get your daughter back and talk some sense into Zelena, if you’re with me.”

“Of course I am.” he nodded.

“You’re wrong about one thing, Regina.” Nicholas corrected, “We do know how to defeat Hades. All we need to do is wait for him to give us the chance to exploit his carelessness.”

“How do we do that?” David asked.

“Leave that to me. You guys just keep yourselves and everyone else out of my way.” he replied.

“Wait,” Robin interjected looking unsure, “Nicholas, are you sure?”

“I’d rather not go back to the Underworld, Robin. I’m gonna need their help.” he replied.

“Who’s help?” Emma asked only to be silenced by a kiss.

“Make it through the night, and after we beat Hades, I’ll tell you everything tomorrow.” he teased before transmuting away.

Night eventually fell over town and as per Nicholas’ request, Emma, David and Hook evacuated everyone from the town square. While they did so, Hades used his godly powers to slowly repair the Olympian Crystal on Regina’s desk while Zelena watched.

“My brother didn’t want me to have this,” he explained, “So he stopped my heart and broke the crystal. Without a beating heart, I didn’t have the power to put it back together, but now, thanks to you, different story.”

“I’m sorry your brother didn’t believe in you.” Zelena said grabbing his arm soothingly.

“Don’t be. I’ve only had a few thousand years to dwell on it.” Hades joked, “And once I make this whole, we can show everyone they were wrong about us. We can live any life we want.”

“That sounds lovely.” she smiled.

“We could even rule this place together.” he suggested.

“Rule Storybrooke?” she asked, “But I thought we were just planning to live here, you know? Nice little house, my daughter playing in the garden.”

“Yeah,” Hades chuckled fondly, “I want that, too, but these people, they’re leaving us no choice. We might have to make a show of strength to survive. Especially…against the alchemist.”

“What, Nicholas?” Zelena chuckled.

“Your brother has…lied to you, Zelena.” he softly explained, “He’s been keeping secrets from all of you; dark secrets. He plans on using you and the others for his own agenda.”

“What are you talking about?” she asked.

“Long ago, a group of…singular individuals banded together to accomplish many deeds across the realms. Since then, they’ve expanded into a secret society hell bent on ensuring that anyone that disagrees with them is severely punished. They do whatever it takes to get the job done, and they don’t care who gets hurt in the process. They’re cutthroats, liars, thieves, tyrants, murderers. They don’t care who they kill so long as they’re…compensated. And your brother, he’s one of them. And unless we deal with him, before the week is out, you will see firsthand what he and his associates have in store for you and the others.”

By the time he was finished warning his true love, the Olympian Crystal had been fully restored to its former glory. Once it was, a loud boom could be heard outside just before an explosion hit the main entrance to the town hall.

“What was that?” Zelena asked.

“What did I tell you?” Hades asked knowing who it was, “Not a care in the world over who gets hurt. Stay here with the baby, I’ll handle him.”

“Hades, wait-” she pleaded only to watch as he vanished in a vortex of blue fire, “Nicholas.”

“Come on,” Nicholas said impatiently in the center of the town square with an empty bazooka over his shoulder, “That had to have gotten your attention, so get out here, you son of a whore.”

“You of all people should know better than to insult another man’s mother.” Hades warned appearing behind him.

“And you of all people should know what happens when you anger an Extraordinary Gentlemen.” Nicholas retorted ditching the bazooka and standing his ground and popping his knuckles and neck, “I’ve been waiting weeks for this.”

“So sure of your skills, are you?” he asked, “You know, I find it ironic that after everything you’ve done to establish your relationship with Zelena, you would practically throw it away by shooting the building she and her daughter are in with a, what is that, a bazooka?”

“Please,” Nicholas scoffed unimpressed with the god, “You honestly think I don’t know how strong my sister makes her own protection spells? I know her better than you do, Hades. So stop trying to guilt trip me, it ain’t gonna work. You knew I only did that to get you out of there.”

“Indeed, I did.” the god nodded as he summoned a ball of blue, godly fire in his hand, “But you really should’ve thought this through. You shouldn’t have challenged me alone.”

“Who said anything about him being alone?” Sawyer asked as he and the others, all dressed in black, appeared from the mist with their weapons ready and trained on to Hades. They had him surrounded. Now they just hoped they had him outmatched.

“Oh, now this is a surprise.” Hades chuckled, “Looks you people are about to go down in history as the only Extraordinary Gentlemen to have ever faced the god of death; too bad you won’t live to tell how it all went down. And this crystal, will be the only legend worth mentioning.”

“What crystal?” Quartermain asked. Pausing for a moment, Hades blinked twice before looking at his hands to see that he had left the crystal back at the office with Zelena.

“Uh-oh.” he muttered.

“Lucky us!” Nicholas cheered before delivering a powerful knee strike to Hades’ abdomen, causing him to spit up a bit of his lunch. Nemo then delivered a hard kick to the deity’s jaw, sending him face first to the pavement.

Jumping to his feet, Hades readied himself as the agents around him took their positions. Nicholas made his move by using his lightning claws to electrocute the god while Sawyer and Quartermain began to fire their guns at him. Unfortunately, he was able to stop their attacks with ease by freezing them all in midair before they could harm him.

“Here,” he said redirecting their trajectory back at them, “These belong to you.”

“Scatter!” Quartermain ordered just before the bullets and lightning could get them. Skidding across the pavement like a baseball player, Nicholas had his shadows lunge at Hades only to watch them strike his barrier and go off in every other direction.

“Foolish mortals.” Hades scoffed as he grabbed Quartermain by the throat and lifted him up.

“Boss!” Sawyer shouted.

“You should know better than to take on a god.” he sighed while Quartermain’s eyes turned purple just as they did when he dealt with Nimue. He then grabbed Hades’ wrist and began to try and crush it in his grip causing the god to drop him.

“The same can be said of you!” Quartermain roared as he punched him hard enough to send him flying down the street and skipping across the ground like a stone on water before having the back of his neck make contact with Quartermain’s arm after having appeared down the road in an instant.

Nicholas then decided to get in another shot at the fallen god by stretching his arm to grab Hades’ leg and began to slam him on the ground like a rag doll; repeatedly. No longer wearing his trench coat, Skinner pulled Hades’ leg out from under him after got up and body elbow slammed him against the pavement.

“Enough!” he cried sending them all back with a blast of his power. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that once again, someone was trying to get past the barrier and get inside. “Zelena.”

“Hey!” Sawyer protested as their foe vanished, “Hey, we ain’t done with ya!”

“Oh, no.” Nicholas realized picking up the familiar scents of Regina and Robin, “He’s going after them. Boss-”

“Get him!” he ordered jerking his head angrily. Needing no other words, Nicholas nodded and transmuted himself back to the building. Inside her office, Regina and Robin snuck in while Zelena was busy checking on her barrier.

“Shh, shh.” Robin said soothing his crying baby, “Your father’s here.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure.” Hades debated as he appeared behind them with the crystal now in his hands.

“You stay away from my daughter.” Robin warned with his dragon bow drawn back.

“Believe me. She’s not the one who’s in danger.” the god warned pointing the crystal at Regina.

“Hades, stop.” Regina pleaded, “This isn’t worth it. If you kill me, you will lose Zelena forever.”

“Shh.” he hushed, “Only if she knows about it. And this isn’t going to kill you, it’s going to _end_ you. No Underworld, no moving on. One minute you exist, and the next, you don’t. That’s what you get for trying to turn Zelena against me. Plus, your little brother and his gaggle of friends just _really_ pissed me off, so after I’m done with you, Abba goes next.”

“It was my idea to break in here.” Robin defended, “Just use that on me. You let her go.”

“Oh, sorry.” Hades said darkly as Nicholas reached the doorway, “Ladies first.”

“No!” Regina cried as the crystal fired its attack the moment Robin jumped in front of her. Nicholas was frozen in place when he saw his friend struck by the light. With what strength he had, Robin turned to Regina as tears brimmed in her eyes and gave her a sad, but thankful smile before his body dropped to the ground and his soul floated in front of her cupping her cheek. He then turned to Nicholas and gently nodded his head with respect before vanishing in a cloud of blue mist, all while Hades chuckled.

“Don’t worry. You won’t be apart long.” he promised pointing the crystal at her now.

“Bastard!” Nicholas cried as he ran up to punch the god in the face again. But the loss of his friend and fellow agent made him sloppy and his attacks weaker.

“Not this time.” Hades smirked before knocking the wind out of Nicholas with a bit of magic to render him to the ground next to Regina. It was then that Zelena returned to the horrific sight.

“Regina? Nicholas, what happened?” she asked taking notice that Robin wasn’t moving, or breathing for that matter.

“Hades did this.” she snarled past her tears and heartache.

“He said he was going to kill you, Zelena. I had to protect you.” Hades lied.

“That’s a lie!” she spat.

“Is it?” Zelena asked, “Hades told me about you and your friends, Nicholas. You wanted to kill him!”

“Zelena,” Nicholas groaned in pain clutching his abdomen, “Whatever Hades told you about us, it-it’s not the whole truth. He’s a threat to this town and everyone in it. We had to act before it was too late. I’m-I’m just trying to protect all of you. But him? He’s been lying to you ever since his heart started beating. All he wants is to rule us, like a tyrant!”

“Is that true?” Zelena asked as her heart began to shatter, “Are you just doing all this so you can rule Storybrooke?”

“I’m doing it for you.” Hades replied keeping his eyes on the siblings, “Those people he works with? Those so-called _gentlemen_? They’ve only kept you alive because they want to use you, but the moment you have served their purpose, they will dispose of you like common trash. The only way to be safe is to use this power to create a new kingdom; _our_ kingdom.”

“Can’t we just be happy together?” she asked, “I mean, why do we need a kingdom?”

“This is about getting back at the families who never believed in us.” he reasoned, “Remember what I told you, there’s no better revenge…”

“Than having it all.” Zelena finished. Seizing the chance, Nicholas made a break for the crystal by tackling Hades and knocking it out of his hand. Unfortunately, he wasn’t quick enough and Zelena grabbed it before anyone else could. Instinctively, Regina rushed up to her brother and held him in her arms to protect him from any harm as he struggled to heal.

“It’s okay.” Hades assured, “Use it. End them.”

“Zelena,” Regina said as her voice shook, “We do believe in you. Nicholas defended and loved you when no one else did. We both wanted so badly for you to find love. But sometimes love blinds us. Hades tried to kill me already.”

“No, she’s lying.” he lied.

“Robin died to protect me. Emma went down to the Underworld for Nicholas. That’s what true love is. It’s sacrifice. It’s giving up everything for the person you love.” she said choking back her sobs while Zelena was on the verge of tears, “But Hades won’t give up a single thing for you. Like he said, he wants it all.”

“Listen to her. She doesn’t think you deserve to be happy.” Hades accused pointing at the sister, “Look at this office. Look at this town. This all belonged to them when you had nothing, remember?”

“Of course I do!” Zelena cried.

“All you have to do is kill them, and you can have everything you ever wanted.” Hades seduced as she raised the crystal, “Do it. If you won’t, I will.”

“Zelena,” Nicholas said gently with a small smile, “Whatever you do, you’re still our sister. We will still love you.”

Her brother’s sweet and sincere words were more than enough to pierce her heart to the point where tears spilled out from her eyes. “All I ever wanted was love. You told me that was enough for you, but now I realize,” she choked as the crystal shined bright, “Nothing ever will be!”

Shocking everyone, Zelena stabbed Hades heart with the crystal and watched as his body was engulfed in blue fire before crumbling into a pile of dust, all while Zelena looked at her true love in horror. Regina then went over to Robin’s corpse and finally began to sob while Zelena went over to comfort and grieve with her sister over the loss of her own love. All Nicholas could do was watch his sisters in sadness before going over to them and letting them sob against his chest as he tried not to shed a tear over the death of his brother-in-arms.

The following day, as the sky shed its own tears of sorrow, everyone gathered together to mourn the loss of Robin and pay their last respects. Despite having a falling out with the archer long ago, Will Scarlet suggested the proper way to say goodbye to which everyone agreed to. Being the first to do it, he placed one of Robin’s arrows with a rose tied around it on his coffin followed by Little John, then Friar Tuck and the rest of the Merry Men. After them, Snow, David, Hook, Ariel and Henry placed their arrows alongside the others before leaving. Emma gave hers and choked back her tears while Nicholas rubbed her waist soothingly. After her, Regina placed what seemed to be the last arrow on the coffin as Zelena joined her while calming the crying baby.

“He never even got to name his daughter.” Regina said sadly.

“There’s only one name I can think of that’s proper.” Zelena informed with a sad smile to her sister, “Robin.”

“Robin.” she nodded sadly as they left. Standing alone, it was just Nicholas and Emma staring at the arrow covered coffin in sadness.

“Emma?” he said softly, “Could you go on ahead without me? I’d like to say goodbye alone.”

“Okay.” she nodded kissing his cheek before leaving him standing in the rain without an umbrella. Looking up to the heavens, he asked a mysterious question as the tears finally escaped his eyes and blended with the rain.

“Is this your legacy?”

Wiping his eyes and sniffling the snot trying to pour from his nose, Nicholas pulled out his friend’s final arrow. But unlike the rest, this one did not have a small rose wrapped around it. Instead, linked by a chain wrapped tightly around the stem, was Robin’s League coin. Placing it by his sisters’ arrows, Nicholas took one last deep breath before waving his hand over the top of the coffin and using his alchemy to carve in the crest of the League for his comrade before leaving to join the others for the wake.

On the other side of town in the mayor’s office, Rumplestiltskin sauntered in with confidence and crouched down by the ash pile that was once the god of death. Digging his finger in it and twirling it around, he found exactly what he was hoping for, a fragment of the Olympian Crystal.

“You should have realized when you waltzed in,” he said to the pile darkly, “This is _my_ kingdom.”


	67. Only You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Since Robin Hood of Locksley was such valued and beloved friend, his wake carried on from morning to nightfall at Granny’s diner. Understanding her pain, Emma gave Nicholas back to Regina whose shoulder was simply used to rest her head on as she stared blankly at the back wall. She hadn’t said a single word since she left with Zelena and the baby.

“Regina,” Snow gently said as she came over with David and Emma, “Look, I know that there’s nothing we can really say, but we just want you to know you don’t have to go through this alone.”

“She won’t have to.” Zelena said cradling Robin, “I think what my sister needs is a little time with someone who understands what she’s going through.”

“Zelena, we’re sorry.” David apologized, “What happened with Hades that…can’t exactly be easy. We’ll leave you three alone.”

“Actually,” Nicholas spoke up, “It’d be best if you stuck around, David; all of you.”

“Why?” Snow asked.

“I told you that I would tell you guys everything after all was said and done. Now that Hades has been taken care of, and since Robin’s gone, I can’t think of a better time. Besides, I’ve been running low on time to tell you, anyway.”

“If you’re finally coming clean, mate, we’d like to hear it.” Hook said as he and his new wife came over to join them.

“Good, because I actually have a confession to make to the both of you, as well. And you are not going to like it.” he confessed sheepishly before taking a deep breath, “Okay, here we go. Well, as you all know, I’ve been keeping a lot of secrets from you all. Last time I tried to tell you this, things weren’t as severe as they are now. I had hoped to tell you this sooner so everyone could be prepared for when it’s all gonna go down. However, we’ve been dealing with a lot of interruptions lately.”

“Is this about what Hades said?” Zelena asked.

“Yes.” Nicholas sighed, “I don’t know what he said exactly, but whatever it was, that’s not the whole truth.”

“Then what is it, Nicholas?” Emma asked.

“Oh, there’s easy way to say this.” he groaned running his hand down his face, “I don’t even know where to begin. Okay. Well, as much as you all would like for this to be untrue, very soon, Storybrooke will be facing yet another threat, one that puts all the others to shame and will make you wish we’d be facing them again, instead. And unfortunately, in a manner of speaking, it’s because of me.”

“What?” Regina asked softly as they all looked at him in confusion and concern.

“A long time ago, when I was still a slave in Xerxes, I was, uh, a test subject for an experiment my master conducted.”

“Wait,” Emma interrupted, “I think I know what you’re talking about.”

“They showed you what happened, didn’t they? The other souls?” he asked.

“Yeah.” she nodded while shivering at the mere memory of what she saw, “What was that?”

“Well, the procedure itself is a bit difficult to understand if you’re not an alchemist. But in a simple way to put it, it was my master playing god for the kingdom’s ruler. It was that very experiment that led to the end of Xerxes, and the beginning of my immortality.” Nicholas explained, “You see, the thing is, I’m-”

But once again, he was interrupted from telling them about the League and the Promised Day. This time, however, it was for a good reason. Everyone felt the entire town shake after a loud boom could be heard from outside.

“What the hell was that?” Regina asked.

“Given that that was a blast of magic, and that a certain someone isn’t here offering their condolences, I think we know who’s behind this.” Nicholas sighed.

“The bloody crocodile.” Hook spat, “Count yourself lucky, mate. Looks like you get to keep your secrets secret for a little longer.”

“I’ve actually been trying to avoid that recently, believe it or not.” he muttered as they all headed towards the clock tower, “Does anyone have an idea of what that midget’s done now?”

“He’s got the Olympian Crystal.” Zelena replied feeling traces of its power, “Or part of it, anyway. Some of it must have survived. I can still feel the aura from it.”

“Yeah, you’re not the only one.” Regina said sensing the spell Gold had used on it, “He used it to cast a tethering spell.”

“Tethering spell?” Emma asked, “What was Gold attaching it to?”

“Storybrooke’s magic.” she realized, “That’s why he cast a spell here.”

“With that crystal, he can harness all of this town’s magic for his own purpose.” Zelena added.

“I don’t get it.” Ariel said confused, “Gold already has the power of all the Dark Ones. Why does he need more magic?”

“To wake Belle.” Emma replied.

“Wake Belle?” Nicholas asked.

“Oh, yeah, you were saying goodbye to Boromir when we found out.” she remembered, “Belle used a sleeping curse on herself to prevent Hades from taking her baby incase he sped up her pregnancy like you did to Zelena. Guess true love’s kiss didn’t work because she doesn’t want to be with him.”

“Aye,” Hook nodded, “But once the crocodile wakes Belle, do you think he’ll stop there? Do you think he’ll just turnover the bloody crystal and all of its power over to us?”

“He’s right.” Emma nodded, “Let’s go get that crystal.”

“Let’s. Where should we start?” Regina asked as the others left.

“Actually, um,” Emma gently said while Henry eavesdropped on them, “I was thinking maybe you should sit this one out.”

“Oh, that’s why you all were being so delicate with me today. You’re worried the Evil Queen is about to come out to play.” Regina accused with an unamused smile.

“No, I just want what’s best for you.” Emma defended.

“No, you don’t.” Regina argued, “When you’re upset, we follow you to Hell. But when I’m upset, I get a timeout.”

“Regina,” Emma stammered, “You’re not in any state to think straight about this.”

“And you don’t get to tell me what to do.”

“Moms, please.” Henry pleaded stepping in.

“Henry, now’s not the time.” Emma cut off, “Maybe just take a minute to cool off and think about it.”

“You don’t want my help? Fine. I’ll fix this on my own.” Regina said before poofing away.

“Kid,” Emma sighed putting her hands on his shoulders, “Go to my place and stay there. You’ll be safe there, okay? We got this. I mean it, Henry. Go right home.”

But instead of heading home, Henry once again disobeyed his mother and went elsewhere. This time, as opposed to when he was younger, he didn’t just run off, he went over to the pawn shop to steal a large amount of his grandfather’s money for his plan. As he locked the safe, Violet walked through the front door looking nervous.

“Henry. What’s-what’s going on?” she asked, “I got your text.”

“It’s my grandpa. He’s trying to steal Storybrooke’s magic.” Henry explained, “It made me realize how bad it is. It’s always magic. Always. Magic turned my mom into a Dark One, it killed my uncle, it took away the man my other mom loved, and now…now I think it’s gonna tear my family apart. I used to think there was light and dark magic, but it’s all bad. Look around this shop.”

Walking from behind the counter, he pointed to the examples of his grandfather’s deeds he kept in the shop. “These puppets, they’re Geppetto’s parents. This needle has put dozens of people under a curse they can’t wake from, and this snow-globe, it has an entire village frozen inside. It’s hurt so many people.”

“My mother, that’s how she died; magic.” Violet confessed in pain. Seeing the girl he cared for in pain, Henry quickly made up his mind on what he had been planning.

“Come with me on a road trip. It’s like a quest, but on a bus, which is like a horse, but with wheels and seats. J-just-just come with me.” he said fumbling his words as his girlfriend laughed, “What do you say? I think I can fix this.”

“My father would probably kill me.” Violet reasoned, “But yes. Of course I’ll come.”

“Great. Great. We’ll call it ‘Operation Mixtape’.” Henry said in excitement as he brought out his Author’s pen, “There’s just one more thing we’re going to need. I promised I’d never use this pen to do anything besides record what happens, but what we’re about to do is for the greater good.”

With the power of his pen, Henry used it to take the Olympian Crystal from his grandfather and made it appear in the palm of his hand. “What’s that?” Violet asked in amazement.

“The crystal my grandpa tethered Storybrooke’s magic to.” he replied stuffing it into his backpack.

“Wait, I-I-I don’t understand. You said magic is bad. Why are we going to take it out of Storybrooke?” she asked.

“To destroy it.” Henry answered, “Once and for all.”

The following morning, Emma and the others were at the loft looking over a map of the town marking off places they already searched in their pursuit of the Dark One. Little did they know, he no longer had the crystal and Henry and Violet were already past the town’s borders.

“So far no sign of Gold which means we need to expand our search perimeter to include the woods.” Emma advised as Regina barged in.

“Where is he?” she hotly asked.

“I told you. We got this.” Emma sighed, “We’ll find Gold.”

“Not Gold. Henry.” Regina replied pulling out her phone.

“Oh, don’t tell me that he’s run away again.” Nicholas groaned as Regina read the text the boy sent her.

“Mom, there’s only one way to fix everything that’s tearing us apart.” Regina read in frustration, “I have to destroy-”

“The source of all our problems.” Emma finished reading the exact same text on her phone.

“What does he mean?” Snow asked, “What is the source of all of our problems? What is he going to destroy?”

“Oh!” Nicholas exclaimed tossing his head back in annoyance, “It’s the ‘well and dynamite’ thing all over again! He’s gonna try to destroy magic again!”

“My thoughts exactly.” Gold nodded as he stepped into the room, “And since the Olympian Crystal disappeared from my possession last night, our hypothesis is only proving to be more and more accurate. It would seem my grandson has used his authorial power to take it from me right under my nose.”

“Would Henry really do that? Destroy magic?” Snow asked.

“We’d better hope he doesn’t.” Gold replied.

“Why?” Regina asked, “What happens if Henry succeeds?”

“Considering this town was built with magic, what do you think will happen?” he rudely asked.

“He would never destroy magic if he knew it could hurt us.” Emma defended.

“I’ll be sure to tell him that right before I take the crystal back.”

“Don’t you dare go near my son.” Regina threatened.

“Sorry, dearie, but he’s threatening me now.” Gold sneered before poofing away with Regina going after him and Emma and Nicholas following her.

“Regina,” Emma hollered once they were outside, “Where are you going?”

“I just lost Robin. I’m not about to lose Henry, too.” she snapped as she marched to her car.

“I know, but we have to be smart about this.” Emma advised, “Gold doesn’t know where Henry is any more than we do.”

“We?” Regina asked almost amused.

“Oh, damn.” Nicholas thought.

“I don’t remember inviting either of you to come along. You benched me, Emma. Now I bench you.”

“Even if I know how to find Henry?” Emma asked as Regina stormed off. Hearing this caused her to stop and turn back.

“Alright, Sheriff Swan, where is he?” she asked.

“You think after all those times he ran away, I wouldn’t put a GPS app on his phone?” Emma asked, “We have to catch up to him. He’s headed to Boston. Nicholas, you’re driving.”

“Whoo-hoo!” he cheered running over to his convertible and starting the engine.

“You’re letting _him_ drive?” Regina asked fearfully, “Do you not remember what happened on our last road trip?”

“Hey, he might drive like a maniac, but if we wanna get to Henry before Gold does, we’re gonna need some reckless driving. Besides, I’m low on gas.” Emma replied not looking forward to it either.

“…I’m gonna die in that car one of these days.” Regina said bluntly.

Over at the town square, Snow, David, Hook, Ariel and Zelena waited in front of the library while Granny watched the babies off to the side. Leading her people, Queen Guinevere, no longer afflicted by Arthur’s magic, approached the heroes with panic written all over her face.

“Is it true? Magic might disappear?” she asked.

“Only if Henry destroys the crystal.” Snow replied.

“Which he won’t, not with Emma, Regina and Nicholas searching for him.” David added.

“Yes, but what if they don’t find him in time?” she asked, “How are we going to get back without magic?”

“It won’t be a problem if we send you home now.” Snow assured.

“We?” Zelena scoffed pulling out the Apprentice’s want, “I think you mean me, dear.”

“Maybe this time, summon the portal without the twister?” she asked under her breath.

“You heroes ruin all the fun. Very well.” Zelena agreed as she used the want to create a doorway leading back to Camelot. Elsewhere, at a bus station in Boston, Regina was having a heated discussion with the bus driver regarding Henry.

“He wasn’t on the bus?” she asked hotly showing the driver a picture of the boy.

“Lady, I don’t know what to tell you. Everyone got off.” the driver said fed up with her attitude.

“Then why does the GPS tracker still say he’s on it?”

“Because Henry hid his phone under one of the seats.” Emma sighed as she got off with Nicholas and the phone, “He wanted us to think he came to Boston.”

“Folks, if you don’t mind, it’s my lunch.” the driver said walking away.

“Got any more bright ideas?” Regina asked throwing the phone in the trash which caught on fire, “Well, that’s new.”

“How’s that even possible?” Emma asked as they stared at the flames, “We’re in the land without magic.”

“And so is Henry, with the crystal.” Nicholas realized, “And all of Storybrooke’s magic.”

“Guys,” Emma said in panic as she used her magic to get rid of the fire, “If our magic works out here, Gold’s magic works out here. We’ve got to find Henry before he does.”

“Well, if he’s not in Boston, then where is he?” Regina asked with a sigh.

Coming off the bus in a completely different city, in an entirely different state, Henry watched as Violet looked around in awe before taking her hand. “Welcome to New York City.” he said acting cool to impress her.

Back in Storybrooke, the Merry Men were the last to leave after the people of Camelot already went through the portal. “Are you sure Regina won’t mind us leaving without saying goodbye?” Little John asked Zelena.

“She’ll understand.” she assured sadly nodding to Roland, “Robin would want him to grow up in Sherwood forest. We’ll come and visit you soon, okay? And we’ll even bring your baby sister.”

Nodding sadly, Roland gave his sister a kiss goodbye before pulling out a feather from his coat sleeve. “For Regina.” he said giving it to Zelena, “From one of my papa’s arrows.”

“How sweet.” Zelena said smiling as they hugged, “She’ll cherish it.”

“Goodbye, Your Majesties.” Little John said taking Roland’s hand before going through the portal, “And good luck.”

“You’re gonna need it.” Will nodded as he left.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Snow asked her husband as Zelena tried to close the portal. But as she did, the magic barrier started to act like a liquid and began to pour out lunging towards them.

“What’s happening?!” Ariel shouted over to raging wind.

“Stand back!” Zelena warned as she tried again.

“Zelena?!” David asked.

“It must have something to do magic being tied to that bloody crystal!” she shouted before they were all enveloped by the portal and taken to a strange new land.

“Everyone okay?” David asked as they got to their feet.

“For now. Look.” Hook said pointing to a large field with a large, old mansion on the other side of a small gorge.

“Well, we’re certainly not in Storybrooke anymore.” Zelena remarked. Back in Boston, the two women and alchemist rummaged through the car in search of something that could help them find Henry.

“Don’t you have a map in this pigsty of yours?” Regina asked her brother.

“In the glove box.” he nodded, “And it wouldn’t be this messy if you hadn’t suggested going to Hardee’s.”

“Found it.” Regina said taking out the map and a needle, “Emma, here, give me your hand.”

“Why? What is that?” she asked looking warry at the needle.

“What?” Regina asked, “Worried I might make you take an eternal nap on a bus bench?”

“As much as I don’t mind Nicholas having an excuse to kiss me, yeah.” Emma nodded.

“Who says I need an excuse?” he teased.

“Will you two lovebirds knock it off? If you want to help Henry, you’re just gonna have to trust me.” Regina said hotly before pricking Emma’s finger and dropping the blood on the map, “Now that there’s magic in this world, this just might work. And if it does, you’re going to lead us right to him.”

Using her magic, Regina used the blood as a tracking spell on the map which trailed straight down to New York City. “Of course. New York.” Emma nodded, “I hope Gold doesn’t know that yet.”

**OUaT**

Back in the mysterious new land, the others looked around in confusion not being able to recognize anything around them. “If this isn’t Storybrooke or the Enchanted Forest, then where are we?” Snow asked as they wondered about.

“Well, where we are, I’d rather not stick around long enough to find out.” David remarked, “Zelena, can you use the wand and get us back to Storybrooke?”

“Not quite.” she huffed holding up the broken piece of wood.

“So we’re trapped in this mysterious realm, wherever it is.” Hook stated holding onto his nervous wife.

“You can fix it right?” David asked.

“Of course.” Zelena nodded, “Do you happen to have any duct tape? We’re not affixing the bumper to that god-awful truck of yours. This requires the proper potions, none of which I have with me.”

“Well, then we’re just gonna have to go find them.” Snow snapped.

“Then we’ll have to move quickly.” she advised, “If we don’t find Nicholas and the others before Henry destroys magic, fixing this wand won’t matter. We’ll be cut off from Storybrooke for good.”

“Hold on, I hear something.” David alerted hearing the sound of clippers. Heading around the corner, they found a frail looking man with glasses in a brown coat clipping some flowers off a gazebo by the mansion. “Excuse me. Can you tell us what land we’re in?”

Not bothering to answer, the man dropped his scissors and tried to run away only to be stopped by Hook. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! No need to run.”

“Please don’t hurt me.” the man begged.

“We just want to know what land we’re in.” David said gently.

“I’m not supposed to talk to strangers.” the man said in fear.

“It’s okay.” Snow assured, “You don’t need to be afraid of us.”

“No, you don’t understand. You shouldn’t be here. You have to go.”

“Well, that’s what we want to do. We’re trying to get home to our families, to a town called Storybrooke.”

“That’s a s-strange name.” he said.

“We need magic to get back there. Can you help us?” she asked.

“Magic?” he asked growing more panicked, “N-no, no, no. Magic is dangerous. If I help you, I’ll be punished. They’re watching me.”

“Punished?” David asked in concern, “By who? Who’s watching you?”

“By me.” a dark skinned man wearing old fashioned white scrubs said before blasting them with electricity knocking them out. The next thing they knew, they were waking up in pain in a strange cell inside the mansion.

“I guess now we know what that groundsman was so afraid of.” David pointed out as they got to their feet.

“This isn’t like any dungeon I’ve ever seen.” Snow remarked.

“I feel like I’m in a lobster trap.” Ariel muttered as Zelena tried to open the cell but to no avail.

“These bars are enchanted.” she informed, “Magic won’t get us out of here.”

“What about the wand?” Hook asked, “Do you still have it?”

“Should I be offended that he didn’t frisk me?” she asked teasingly finding the wand still in her coat, “Not that this is any use to us in here.”

“Hide it. Someone’s coming.” Snow warned when they heard the door open.”

“There you are.” a man with an English accent greeted opening the glass doors. He was tall and well-groomed wearing an expensive looking tailcoat and shined shoes complimenting his combed, red hair. “The prisoners who attacked my groundsman.”

“No, no, no. We didn’t attack anyone.” David defended, “This is just a big misunderstanding. We just want to know where we are.”

“All you need to know is that you don’t want to be here, and that you’re the ones who are going to be answering _my_ questions. Like why are you really here?”

“We just want to go home.” Snow replied.

“You must think me so naïve, Snow White.” he said shaking his head as he approached their cell.

“How do you know my name?” she asked.

“Oh, I know all your names.” he replied with a terrifying smirk, “And I know you’re lying. I know who really sent you. So tell me…what does Nicholas Flamel want?”

“You know my brother?” Zelena asked.

“Brother?” he asked before quickly grabbing her by the face in his tight grip, “Yes, I suppose there is a bit of a resemblance, isn’t there? Odd. He never told any of us he had _two_ sisters.”

“You scumbag, let her go!” Hook snarled charging up to him only to have his neck grabbed tightly.

“Killy!” Ariel cried as she and David tried to break the man’s grip.

“You think it’s wise to give _me_ orders?” he whispered to the pirate.

“He’s too strong.” David grunted.

“Look, we get it. You’re powerful. But killing him isn’t gonna change the truth, which is that we weren’t sent here by Nicholas. He’s trying to get back the magic from our town that was stolen by the Dark One. His wife’s,” Snow said only to stutter when the man released his grip on Hook, “Pregnant.”

“You expect me to believe that Nicholas, Nicholas Flamel, is running around taking care of such trifling things when the Promised Day is almost upon us?” he asked confusing them all.

“Yes,” David nodded in anger, “So whatever grudge you have against him, whatever this Promised Day is, we have nothing to do with it. Let us go, and you won’t have to worry about us ever again.”

“That remains to be seen.” he said folding his hands behind his back, “And besides, whoever said I have a grudge against him? He’s very dear to me; we’re like family to each other. And in my experience, if you really don’t want to worry about something, you lock it into a cage; a strong cage, like this one. It’s when you unlock the cage…that’s when the trouble starts.”

**OUaT**

Back in New York, Regina was able to pinpoint Henry’s location to his father’s old apartment. “Looks like Henry was here, but I don’t think he was alone.” Nicholas observed.

“Yeah,” Emma smiled looking at the record, “That’s, uh, his and Violet’s song.”

“They have a song?” the siblings asked.

“He really likes her. She’s a nice girl.” Emma nodded still smiling.

“You’re just saying that because you feel bad about ripping her heart out in Camelot.” Regina remarked, “I’ll like her a lot better when I know where she’s taken my son.”

“So sure that she’s the one dragging him around?” Nicholas asked crossing his arms, “Wait a minute. Emma, you did what now?”

“Well, I think I might be able to figure that out.” Emma replied getting into Neal’s old computer.

“Hey, don’t ignore me!” he whined.

“Yes. He has definitely been here.” Emma said searching the laptop’s history, “He tried to wipe the search history clean. Luckily, I can get it back.”

“I won’t hold my breath.” Regina said snootily going into the bedroom, “Maybe there’s something else in here that can tell us where they’ve gone.”

“You find anything?” Nicholas asked as cleaned out his pipe.

“One of Robin’s books.” she replied coming back in, “He must have brought it with him from Storybrooke when he came here. I know because I gave it to him. It’s a collection of this world’s legends about Robin Hood. He used to laugh at everything they got wrong.”

“Sis,” he asked as she pulled out a letter addressed to her from the book, “What is it? You okay?”

“It’s a letter from Robin to me.” she said showing them the letter.

“He must have written it when he was trying to make things work with Marian. Or your guys’ sister.”

“So what do I do?” she asked.

“Read it, of course.” Nicholas replied as he continued to clean his pipe. Following his advice, she sat down and tried to read it but couldn’t bring herself to do it. “Sis? You want me to read it?”

Since the pain was still too fresh, she nodded and handed it to her brother. Clearing his throat, and changing his voice to match Robin’s, he began to read the letter to make it feel as though he were still by his sister’s side.

“My dear Regina, I know I shouldn’t be writing this, but I had to let you know how proud I am of you. You opened your heart to love and let it change you. And no matter what separates us, I know you’ll always be the heroine woman I fell in love with. Robin.”

“Regina?” Emma asked as Regina tried to hold back her tears, “You okay?”

“Please, Emma, if you’re trying to make me feel better, don’t.” she pleaded.

“No, I know that I can’t, and I won’t.” the blonde nodded, “I’m sorry about earlier. I was wrapped up worrying about you falling back into your old habits, I…I wasn’t there for you about Robin.”

“You want to know why I got so angry?” Regina asked, “Because you’re right. The Evil Queen, _is_ inside me always trying to get out. I can’t expect you to get it.”

“No, I do.” Emma replied, “I’m afraid that Nimue left some part of her inside of me when she took control. I was consumed by the darkness, too, you know.”

“Yes, but not by choice.” Regina argued, “I _did_ choose to be consumed by darkness. And I have to live with it every day. It’s exhausting. I’m constantly at war with my instincts. Like when you two were teasing each other back in the car? My first impulse was to rip someone’s throat out because it’s not fair that Nicholas is the only one out of the three of us that still has their true love while the rest don’t. But I didn’t. Because I had to remind myself that the both of you lost each other, as well; even if it was only temporary. Much as I want to give in to evil, I don’t. So I do good and hate every moment of it.”

“You hate doing good?” Nicholas asked.

“Yes.” Regina sighed, “It’s complicated. I know it’s right, but it always leads to loss for me. Yet I keep doing it now, and I keep suffering. But I know the Evil Queen can’t return, so that’s how it has to be. I’ll never be at peace with myself.”

“That’s not true.” Emma gently disagreed, “You fell in love with Robin, and you were happy.”

“Yeah, and look what happened.” Regina retorted, “I am what I am. I did what I did. Many years ago, I had a choice. Snow White told a secret. And I could have chosen to listen to my brother and forgive her. Instead, I did terrible things. Unspeakable things. That will always hang over me. I’ve tried to be the hero.”

“And you have been.” Emma reminded as Regina whipped her tears.

“What if it doesn’t matter?” she asked, “There’s no redemption for me. There’s only suffering. Because now I have a curse. The curse of knowing the difference between good and evil. And I’m caught between them. If I revert, I lose everyone I love. Henry, my brother, my friends, everyone. And if I go forward trying to be good, I have to live with my past darkness and all its well-deserved consequences.”

“I don’t believe that.” Emma denied, “I believe in you.”

“We both believe in you.” Nicholas nodded.

“That’s because you two are good.”

“No,” Nicholas thought, “No, I’m not.”

“But for me, it’s a simple choice, really.” Regina continued, “I’d rather suffer than see that pain on the people I care about. This is my fate. I’m trapped.”

“He’s at the midtown library.” Emma said after the computer alerted them while Gold was listening outside the door.

“What are they doing there?” Nicholas asked. As he asked this particular question, Henry and Violet were beginning the search for a way to destroy magic by pouring through any book they thought was related. Just as his late father did before him.

“Here,” he said dumping a few books in front of his girlfriend, “Start with these. Read every page and then reread it. Because whatever my dad was looking for, he never found it.”

“And you think we will?” she asked.

“We have to.” Henry said before stumbling upon something he did not expect to see, “That’s impossible.”

“Henry?” Violet asked, “What’d you find?”

“These books, they all look exactly like my storybook.” he said completely baffled flipping through the pages, “They’re magic. What are they doing in New York? I’ve never seen these characters in my book. Look at this. There are so many stories. Captain Nemo, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dracula, Don Quixote, Bluebeard.”

“Wait, Henry, you told me all the characters in your storybook are real.” Violet recalled.

“Yeah?”

“So maybe, these are all real, too.” she hypothesized.

**OUaT**

Back in their cage, David struggled to figure out how to break the lock while Hook rubbed his neck groaning. “You alright?” he asked the pirate.

“Aye. Bloody fantastic.” he replied sarcastically, “Other than that, even in this hellish land, the bloody alchemist’s secrets manage to raise confusion. What the devil do you think that warden meant when he said they were like family? Does her wickedness have another estranged brother we don’t know about?”

“Doubt it.” Snow replied while Zelena rolled her eyes, “But with Nicholas, it could be anything.”

“Yeah, no kidding.” David agreed as he broke one of the stools to give himself a makeshift weapon as someone came to open the door, “Let’s do this.”

As their visitor came out from the shadows, they saw that it was the scrawny groundsman they met earlier. “There you are.” he said in relief.

“What are you doing here?” Snow asked.

“What does it look like?” he asked approaching the cell, “I’m here to help you.”

“Help us?” David asked, “Last time, you wouldn’t even talk to us.”

“That’s because the warden was watching me. I had no choice.” he defended.

“If you really want to help us, prove it.” Hook spat, “Open those bloody bars.”

“Yeah, I’m sick of being treated like canned tuna.” Ariel nodded in annoyance.

“I can’t.” he replied, “His orderly, Poole, keeps the key with him at all times. I might be able to get the magic you need, if you’ll make a promise to me first.”

“Tell us. Anything.” Snow replied desperately.

“When you leave this place, promise you’ll take me with you back to your home.” he pleaded.

“To Storybrooke? Why?” David asked.

“Because I’m not just the gardener here. I’m a prisoner the warden loves to humiliate on a daily basis. I’m sure you’ve met him already, and you can agree with me when I say that he isn’t the pleasantest sort of man.”

“Look,” Zelena said, “We need magic so I can fix this wand.”

“I-I know exactly where to go.” he stuttered, “The-the hospital lab, but I can’t take anything without the warden knowing that it’s missing. You’ll have to give the pieces to me so I can fix it there. Then I’ll bring them back.”

As he tried to take them from Zelena, David grabbed his arm and pressed the stake against his throat. “Please understand,” Snow said gently, “That wand is our only way home. Okay, so why should we trust you?”

“You’ve met the warden.” he replied, “Trust me, I want to get away from him and the League as much as you do.”

“The-the League?” Snow asked.

“What League?” Hook asked, “What the bloody hell are you talking about?”

Before he could clarify, noise could be heard from the hall making the man all the more panicked. “There isn’t much time.”

“This is a bad plan.” David said glaring at him.

“It’s the only one we’ve got.” Snow replied as Zelena handed over the pieces.

**OUaT**

“Now I see why my dad gave up!” Henry said nearly shouting in frustration, “There’s nothing in here about destroying magic. We came all this way for nothing.”

“Not for nothing. You’ll figure it out.” Violet reassured putting her hand on his in comfort before something in a nearby cabinet caught her eye, “Henry! Henry, I know why your dad never finished his quest. It’s because he never visited Camelot. Back in Camelot, my tutor used to show me paintings of the Holy Grail. He said it was the source of all magic. And it looked just like that.”

“But the Grail turned into Excalibur. That can’t be it.” Henry reminded looking at the black grail.

“No, the Grail was always silver, but this looks kind of like it-it-its twin. And if the Grail really was the beginning of all magic…”

“This might be the end of it.” he finished, “Stand back.”

“Why?” she asked as he grabbed a book, “What are you gonna-”

Him shattering the glass to take the black grail proved to be a satisfying answer for her, to say the least. Wanting to make sure their hypothesis was correct, Henry put the grail on the table and placed the crystal next to it. When it began to glow and drew the cup closer to it, they knew they had found their answer.

“You were right.” he said happily splitting them apart, “This will destroy magic.”

“So what do we do now?” she asked, “What happens next?”

“Whatever it is, it’s not safe to do here.” Henry replied as they began to leave only to be stopped by his grandfather.

“Hello, Henry.” he greeted darkly.

“Violet, get behind me.” Henry said not leaving it for discussion, “You’re not getting this crystal. Not without a fight.”

“Too bad you’re gonna lose.” Rumple smirked before putting them to sleep and taking the crystal with ease.

**OUaT**

After night had fallen in the other realm, the groundsman snuck into the laboratory and successfully managed to repair the wand. Unfortunately for him, Poole had found him as soon as he was finished.

“What are you doing in here?” he asked storming in.

“The w-w-warden wanted me to fix this.” he weakly lied, “It’s a surgical instrument.”

“Well, if that’s true, you won’t mind me asking the warden himself.” Poole said intimidating him.

“No, y-you can’t do that.” he stammered, “You know he doesn’t like to be disturbed.”

“Indeed, I don’t.” the warden agreed stepping out from the shadows menacingly, “And yet, here I am; being disturbed by you, yet again.”

“D-d-d-d-”

“D-d-d-d,” the warden mocked before approaching his prisoner with a hard glare, “Speak a little more confidently and people may actually begin to respect you more, Harold. How many times must I tell you this?”

“Henry,” Harold stammered, “I-I-I-I was just-”

“You were just repairing a very powerful wand that you planned on giving to the prisoners in exchange for you being liberated from this place.” the warden answered grabbing the frail man’s face, “And that was a mistake.”

With impressive strength, the taller man threw Harold across the room causing him to be knocked out upon impact with the floor. “Mr. Poole?”

“Y-yes, Doctor?” his associate asked.

“Join me in the sunroom, if you please?” he asked even though he didn’t have much of a choice.

“Y-yes, sir. Of course, Dr. Jekyll.” Poole nodded following his employer, “Doctor? What shall we do about the prisoners? Kill them?”

“No,” Jekyll replied examining the wand, “I know now for a fact that one of them happens to be a Human Sacrifice; and Flamel’s sister.”

“A sacrifice?” Poole asked astonished, “Here? But-but why?”

“That is something I would like to know, myself.” Jekyll replied, “It is clear to me that Nicholas has yet to inform these people about the League, let alone the Promised Day.”

“But the Promised Day is five days away, isn’t it?”

“Four, actually.” he corrected, “And that’s what troubles me. I’m not sure what he’s been doing as of late, but it must have been important enough to keep him from explaining the severity of what is to come. And why he or the others have yet to contact me regarding my assistance in that endeavor.”

“Then what are we to do? Contact the director?” Poole asked.

“That will present us with more problems than solutions.” Jekyll responded as they entered a sunroom filled with various and strange plants, “My position here as the warden is proof enough to show that I am on thin ice with the director. I will simply have to take matters into my own hands, now.”

“And the wand?”

“This piece of wood will be of great service to us.” Jekyll replied walking over to a pedestal in the center of the room, “If the Dark One truly does have a pregnant wife, and he is one of the sacrifices, then we will need a great source of leverage to use against him.”

**OUaT**

With the help of Nicholas’ reckless driving, the trio was able to reach the library where they found the young couple asleep on the floor. “Henry!” Emma cried helping him wake up, “Are you okay?”

“Mom,” he asked groggily, “Where’s Violet?”

“I’m right here.” she said as Nicholas helped her up, “I’m alright.”

“What happened to you?” Emma asked a bit more gently, “To both of you?”

“Grandpa.” Henry replied, “He has the crystal now.”

“You little dipstick!” Nicholas said smacking his nephew upside the head.

“Ow.” Henry muttered.

“What were you thinking?! Did you learn nothing the last time you tried this stupid stunt?!” he shouted.

“Why would you try to destroy magic?” Regina asked not as hot tempered as her brother.

“Do you really have to ask me that?” Henry sneered, “You finally had a chance to be happy, and then magic took it away from you, just like with Daniel.”

“Henry, the Evil Queen is never coming back. You don’t have to worry about me.”

“I don’t,” he nodded, “Because my other mom is doing that for me. You thought she was gonna go all Evil Queen again.”

“I’m sorry.” Emma apologized, “I should have trusted Regina.”

“But you didn’t!” Henry snapped, “Because you know how it goes for us.”

“Boy, you better watch your tone.” Nicholas warned not liking the kid’s attitude.

“No, I won’t!” Henry shot back, “Every time it looks like we could be happy, magic just comes in and wrecks it.”

“Oh, you better watch it, you little hypocrite, or else, I’m gonna bend you over my knee right in front of your girlfriend!” he thought hotly.

“Is that what you really think?” Regina asked astonished by her son’s words.

“Yeah.” he nodded, “In case you both forgot, magic took away my dad and my uncle. And it took away Violet’s mom. And I don’t know what I would do if it took away one of you.”

“Henry.” Emma said trying to comfort him.

“Don’t!” he barked, “Just don’t.”

“Oh,” Nicholas growled in his head, “I’m about ready to go all Homer Simpson on that boy’s neck if he keeps up that attitude of his.”

“Henry, what were you doing down here?” Regina asked.

“Following my dad’s trail to destroy magic.” he replied no less angry, “But we didn’t find anything. It was just a waste of time.”

“Yes, they did.” Nicholas thought narrowing his eyes, “He’s lying.”

“So, what do we do now?” Violet asked, “Cause Henry’s grandpa has the crystal.”

“Well, we have to find him.” Regina sighed pulling out a map of the city ready to use the same spell as before with Henry, “Give me your hand.”

“Is this really gonna help find him?” Henry asked.

“This will us if he’s still in New York.” Regina replied pricking his finger. But when his blood touched the map, it just sat there unmoving.

“Why isn’t working?” Emma asked.

“Our magic, it’s gone.” she realized.

“Gold must have done something to the crystal.” Nicholas suspected, “What the hell is he doing?”

“He’s not gonna give that magic back to anyone.” Emma pointed out, “He’s gonna keep it all for himself. Well, we’re gonna have to do it the old-fashioned way.”

As they discussed all this, Gold checked into a fancy hotel not far from the library and entered his suite on the top floor to begin preparations for the spell meant to wake his sleeping wife, who had been kept inside Pandora’s Box since the Underworld.

**OUaT**

“You’re summoning a portal?” Poole asked Jekyll as he waved the wand towards the ceiling.

“Hush.” he said as he created a swirling, blue vortex above them.

“Is this how we get to this…Storybrooke?” Poole asked.

“No, we have plenty of magic beans to take care of that for us.” Jekyll replied, “No, for what we’re after, you need to think bigger. You need to think about the Promised Day.”

“Then what are we doing?” he asked.

“Taking something that will give us the power we need.”

**OUaT**

Placing the crystal on the dresser and the box holding his wife on the bed, Rumplestiltskin spoke to Belle despite her not being able to hear him. 

“Now, when I wake you, I think you’ll finally understand that everything I’ve done, I’ve done for you and our child. And then, I’m gonna give you what you always wanted, Belle. I’m gonna show you the world.” But as he made his promise, the room began to shake from the portal Jekyll had made in the Land of Untold Stories. “A portal.”

At first, he thought it was meant to take the Olympian Crystal, which he grabbed first. But he was proven wrong when he saw Pandora’s Box fall through a small portal in the bed.

“Belle!” he cried making a dive for her and tearing through the covers even though she was already gone, “Belle! Belle? Belle?! Oh, no. Oh, no.”

**OUaT**

In an instant, the box dropped from the portal right into Jekyll’s hand. “I don’t understand.” Poole said confused, “How is this box going to give us leverage over the Dark One?”

“It’s not the box that’s important.” Jekyll clarified, “It’s what’s inside it. Or rather, who. If the Dark One ever wishes to see his wife again, he’ll have to do exactly as I say. And they say you can only control the Dark One with his dagger.”


	68. An Extraordinary Untold Story

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Back in Storybrooke, Quartermain approached the Dark One’s cabin with his ever stern expression plastered on his face. Given what was coming to threaten the town, he thought making this sudden approach was best to be done now than later. Once he knocked on the door, Emma’s childhood friend Lily opened the door with an unwelcoming look.

“What do you want?” she rudely asked.

“Lilith Page?” he gruffly asked.

“Who wants to know?” she replied.

“Someone who has matters to discuss with your mother.” he replied.

“What for?”

“Well, that really doesn’t concern you, does it?” he asked matching her glare with his own, “Now, I can either keep this civilized, or I can simply brush past you and speak to her myself. Which would you prefer?”

“Oh, you wanna try it?” she asked as her eyes flared yellow.

“Spare me your idle threats.” Quartermain said unamused, “I’ve faced many a strange creature in my day, and a thirty year old woman who can turn herself into a dragon for a few minutes would not be the most difficult of them all. So, will you let me in, or shall I have to ask you again? I’m rather pressed for time, at the moment.”

Narrowing her eyes at him, Lily relented and opened the door for him. “Mom,” she called not taking her eyes off him, “You have visitor.”

“Thank you.” Quartermain nodded stepping inside the cabin. As he walked in, he found Maleficent sitting in a rocking chair by the fireplace with a blanket over her legs. If one were to look at her, they would say that she had certainly seen better days.

“Maleficent.” he nodded with respect.

“Who the hell are you?” she weakly asked.

“Someone who has important news regarding your future.” he replied sitting across from her.

“My future?” she asked, “What are you, some kind of fortune teller?”

“Not quite.” he replied showing her his coin. Recognizing the piece of bronze, Maleficent’s eyes widen with shock.

“Lilith, dear?” she asked staring at the man before her, “Could you run into town for me? I’m growing hungry.”

“Are you sure?” her daughter asked in concern, “What about this guy?”

“Sweetheart,” Maleficent interrupted, “Please, just do as I ask.”

“…Okay.” Lily nodded hesitantly before leaving.

“So,” Maleficent sighed sitting up straight, “What does the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen want with me?”

“You know of us, then.” Quartermain stated.

“I know that Ursula is married to one of your kind.” she replied, “It didn’t take too many of her stories about her husband and his exploits to understand how dangerous you are.”

“Yes, we have a rather intimidating reputation, I will agree.” he nodded, “But this isn’t just about the League. This little visit involves you. You don’t look too well, Maleficent. Something put you under the weather?”

“It’s that brat of Emma Swan’s, “Maleficent glared, “Ever since he took Storybrooke’s magic past the borders, I’ve been growing weaker by the hour.”

“Yes, that is to be expected seeing as this place’s magic is the only thing keeping you alive.” Quartermain nodded, “I can’t imagine how that must feel.”

“Why are you here?” she asked cutting to the chase.

“Growing impatient on your deathbed?” he teased, “Very well, I’ll tell you why I’m here. The fact of the matter is, Maleficent, you’re about to be part of something very crucial that will affect the fate of all realms very soon.”

“Do tell?” she asked darkly.

**OUaT**

When morning came in the Land of Untold Stories, Hook was trying to get through the cell’s lock with his namesake, however, he seemed to be struggling in that endeavor. “Did you get into your own rum?” Zelena taunted, “You think that’s going to work when my magic can’t?”

“Well, I suppose I could just do nothing, but then again, that’s your job!” he retorted hotly.

“If you really want to get out of here, I can arrange a trip right back to the Underworld!” she fired.

“Stop it!” David intervened, “Now, we need to be patient. The groundsman promised to fix the wand and bring it back to us.”

“Unfortunately, I was only able to keep half my promise.” Harold replied as he joined them.

“What do you mean?” Zelena asked, “Where’s the wand?”

“I repaired it, but then the warden took it from me. I didn’t come empty-handed, though.” he reassured showing them the key, “Seems the orderly, he enjoyed a little bit too much whiskey today.”

“We need to get that wand back from that warden.” Snow stressed, “Do you know where he is?”

“Eh, no, uh, but first things first, before we find him, we must have a way to defeat him. He’s quite powerful.” he warned as he unlocked the cage, “Now, I might have a way, but it is dangerous.”

“Hasn’t stopped us before.” Snow replied walking out of the cell. After exiting the mansion, they ventured into town to find a steampunk styled community with all sorts of unique people and wares.

“Friends, oh, friends! The time draws near! The Promised Day is soon upon us!” a man wearing a tattered suit and top hat with pocket watches all over him shouted to the crowds at the shopping district, “Take heed to your loved ones and send your prayers to our comrades brave enough to stand against this endeavor!”

“What’s this Promised Day they’re talking about?” Ariel asked.

“It’s a terrible event that will decide the fate of all the major realms very soon. This one, and a select few others are the only ones that won’t be affected by it. The League has been preparing its counter measures against it for over half a century now.”

“You mentioned this League before,” Hook recalled, “What is it?”

“Uh, probably best not to discuss it here.” Harold advised nervously, “Many of its members reside here and they are always watching.”

“Well, can you at least tell us what this place is?” Snow asked, “It’s like all the realms at once.”

“You’re closer than you think.” he replied, “This land is a refuge created by the League filled with outcasts from all over. Each forced to flee their problems. Each finding safe haven here.”

“Forced to flee from what?” she asked.

“Well, the reasons are as varied as the populace, and everyone here has their own tale. That’s why this place has come to be known as the Land of Untold Stories.”

“It’s a tad ironic of a name, no, given that this land is seemingly filled with stories.” Hook remarked.

“Perhaps,” Harold nodded, “But there’s only one story we need to worry about right now. That’s our own.”

“Right, and that story better end with us getting back to our world.” the pirate agreed as they continued their way through the market.

**OUaT**

Storming through the busy streets of New York, Henry continued to get further and further away from the library with his pink wearing girlfriend at his heels. After having to find the imp the old fashioned way, the adults told the two teenagers to stay behind and wait for them until they got back. Obviously, he was still very angry at Emma and the fact that his grandfather had once again outsmarted him by taking the crystal as easily as he took it from him.

“Henry,” Violet said catching up, “Henry, will you stop? Your moms and uncle told us to wait back in the library.”

“They could be in trouble. And since when do you care what they say?” he snapped coldly, “You already ran away with me. You lied about the dark grail.”

“Henry,” she said taking his hand and stopping him, “I know you’re scared. And if you really think this is the best thing to do, I’ll help you.”

“Thank you.” he said beginning to cool down.

“But I hope you have a good plan, because we don’t have magic and we have no idea where your grandfather is.”

“Actually, I think I do.” he said looking up to see a dark cloud of magic over a nearby hotel.

“Subtle as always, it would seem.” Nicholas remarked as he and the two women looked up at the hotel not knowing Henry and Violet were nearby.

“If I know Henry, he’s already disobeyed us.” Emma speculated pulling out her phone, “We should call and tell him to stay put.”

“Which would work if I hadn’t torched his phone.” Regina cringed.

“Yeah, like that would work.” Nicholas muttered rolling his eyes.

“Something you wish to share, little brother?” Regina asked.

“Yeah, as a matter of fact, I do; to both of you.” he retorted, “This is what happens when you constantly coddle the boy and fail to discipline him. He thinks he can disobey us and not face any consequences after he gets caught. He becomes a spoiled brat that disobeys his elders and does whatever the hell he wants.”

“Excuse me?” Emma asked raising her eyebrows.

“Oh, come off it, Emma.” Nicholas scolded, “When the last time either of you actually disciplined him since the curse broke after he disobeyed you? He does this sort of stupid stuff all the time! He runs away, puts himself in danger and doesn’t think of the consequences for his actions. He did that when he ran into the mines, he did that with the apple turnover, he did that when he broke into the vault and almost got bit by that two headed snake, he did that when he tried to blow up the well, and he’s done that today by leading us on a wild goose chase all over the freaking east coast! He’s only thinking about himself right now and not how getting rid of magic will affect the rest of Storybrooke. He is a spoiled brat because the rest of you fail to punish him, either because you get too wrapped up in your sympathy for him, or because somebody’s trying to kill us all!”

“Oh, so you’re ‘Mr. Perfect Parent’, then?” Regina asked sarcastically.

“I didn’t say that. But will say that the last time I caught Henry doing something stupid like that, I actually did ground him, sister dear.” Nicholas retorted, “And I would’ve done it all those other times, too, if we hadn’t dealt with all that shit interrupting our everyday lives. And by the time everything had gone and settled down, it was well over a year since he did those things and it would have been pointless to discipline him. When we get home, I’m gonna remind that little snot that he’s not too old for me to bend over my knee. He is not getting away scot-free this time, and I don’t care what you two say.”

“Nicholas, I-” Emma began to argue only to be cut off by her phone.

“Now what?” Regina huffed.

“It’s Granny. Something’s happened in Storybrooke.” Emma said, “My parents, Hook, Ariel and your sister were pulled through some kind of portal.”

“Again?” they asked, “To where?”

“Granny is an expert on lasagna, not magic.” Emma replied, “All she says is that they vanished with the Sorcerer’s wand and never came back. They might all be in danger. We have to bring them home.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Nicholas spotted a familiar Chinese man nod his head towards him in confirmation before vanishing as soon as a car drove past him. That alone was a big enough clue to tell him where the others ended up.

“Well, the only way to do that is to get out magic back from Gold.” Regina replied as they headed towards the hotel.

“What are you doing?” Emma asked stopping her, “We need a plan.”

“I have one.” Regina replied in anger, “I still have a fist. Gold still has a nose. If either of you don’t like it, I’ll do this alone.”

“I get it.” Emma said, “I want to help my family, too, but we have to be smart about this.”

“And I know just how we can go about doing that.” Nicholas added forming up a plan of his own. A few minutes later, the two siblings were greeted by the Dark One after knocking on his door.

“Didn’t you see the sign?” he asked rudely pointing to the do not disturb sign.

“We need to talk.” Regina informed, “Alone. The Savior doesn’t even know we’re here.”

“Trouble in paradise, Flamel?” Rumple mocked.

“You really wanna go there?” Nicholas asked with a dry look as they let themselves in.

“So, what makes you think I have any interest in talking to either of you?” he asked sighing.

“Because the storm clouds outside tell me you haven’t been able to wake Belle yet.” Regina replied as she took notice of the ritual her old teacher was trying to perform, “And apparently, it’s not from a lack of trying. Seems to me like you can use the help of your best student.”

“Yes, but we both know that’s not you, dearie.” Rumple chuckled, “My best student was a queen; with an annoying little alchemist for a brother.”

“Oh, you wound me so.” Nicholas pouted sarcastically clutching his heart.

“You have her buried under layers of tasteful cotton and good intentions. Such a pity.” he finished.

“What if I told you I was ready to let her back out?” she asked, “What if I told you I am sick of losing everyone I care about?”

“Well, I’d say, I don’t believe you and that I’m more interested in what your brother has to say.” he replied looking out the window.

“What are you talking abou-”

“Save it, Regina.” Nicholas interrupted with a sly smirk towards the Dark One, “He knows you’re lying. And I’m glad you realized that I have something to talk about, Rumple. Because it involves you tremendously.”

“Do tell?” he asked taking an interest, even if just a small one.

“Indeed.” Nicholas nodded pointing to the lounge area, “Shall we discuss this over a drink? I’m getting one.”

“What the hell is he doing?!” Regina screamed in her mind, “This was not part of the plan!”

**OUaT**

“Here we are.” Harold said reaching an apartment building, “This is where the warden lived before he began to stay at the prison.”

“How is this place going to help us?” Zelena asked as they reached the front door.

“Because, he has something here that I can use to defeat him.” he replied as he opened to the door only to see Jekyll waiting for him.

“Are you so sure of that?” he asked with a dark smirk.

“I-I-I-I don’t understand.” Harold stuttered backing away in fear, “You-you never leave the prison, ever!”

“Yes, well, things change.” Jekyll chuckled stepping forward down the steps, “And I can’t very well let you try and steal from me yet again, can I, Harold?”

“No, don’t!” he pleaded. But Jekyll ignored his pleas and sucker punched him before kneeing him in the gut and back-handing him to the ground, rendering him unconscious. The others were slowly backing away at this point after seeing the doctor’s display of strength and skill.

“You’re all probably wondering what I’m going to do to you now, aren’t you?” he asked straightening his collar and tie, “See, this is the part where you run away and I chase after you.”

Seeing that they were outmatched, they followed his advice and made a break for the market once again. All Jekyll did was laugh as he walked after them. But what he didn’t notice was Harold picking himself up with a look of absolute hatred as he hobbled inside the building.

**OUaT**

“You know?” Nicholas asked as he savored his drink, “I’m not usually a fan of vanilla whiskey, but this stuff isn’t that bad.”

“Did you break your sister’s cover just so we could chat about the provided beverages?” Rumple asked impatiently as Emma covertly broke into the room in order to steal the crystal.

“Not quite.” he replied finishing his drink, “Do you remember when the first curse was still around, back when you kidnapped Belle’s father and had nearly beaten him to death with your cane? You made two deals the following morning behind your cell at the sheriff’s station in exchange for that old tea cup of yours. You made one with Regina who simply wanted to know if you had your memories back, and you made one with me.”

“What’s your point?” Rumple asked growing bored.

“Well, seeing as it was a long time ago, and given that we’ve both died since then, in addition to dealing with almost a dozen villains, let me remind you of my conditions. One: you will give me your complete cooperation when asked. 100%. Two: you will not try to find any way or thing at all that could benefit yourself when things are all said and done. Three: you will follow all my instructions and orders until I say that our arrangement has been honored. And four: you will not harm me or my loved ones after I release you. Sound familiar?” he asked.

“And you wish to cash in that old favor now?” Gold chuckled.

“No, not just yet. But soon. Very soon.” Nicholas corrected with a playful smile, “You see, Rumplestiltskin, you’re a part of something very important that’s tied to the fate of the nine major realms, whether you know it or not. You’ve nearly escaped this twice; when you died, and when Emma took your place as the Dark One. There is a threat coming to Storybrooke that involves the two of us, Zelena, Emma, and Maleficent. And if you ever want to see Belle alive again, you will give us your full cooperation.”

“Don’t play games with me, alchemist.” Gold lectured, “You don’t have anything on me.”

“Not even the location where Belle was taken through that portal that sucked her up earlier?” he asked gaining everyone’s attention.

“How did you-”

“Oh, Rumple.” Nicholas smirked, “When are you going to get it through that thick head of yours that I am always three steps ahead of you in every way? I know exactly where Belle is, as well as where the others are so you can stop looking around for the crystal, Emma.”

“Nicholas, what are you-” Regina asked hotly.

“He already knows she’s here so there’s no point in keeping this up.” Nicholas replied keeping his eyes on the Dark One as Emma joined them, “Besides, he’s far more interested in what I have to say.”

“What do you mean I’m involved in this, Nicholas?” Emma asked.

“You see, we three have something in common that most people do not. And that’s what makes us tied together in the same sinking ship we’re in.” he continued.

“There’s a reason why we allowed you to be resurrected in the first place, Maleficent.” Quartermain explained to the sickly dragon-lady, “You qualified for something dark and terrible the moment you were brought back from that pile of dust.”

“We’ve suffered through much in our lives,” Nicholas continued, “But we three and the other two are but the few who have done the impossible. We’ve managed to survive having our bodies deconstructed and then reconstructed again with our powers intact, or we managed to gain more in the process.”

“That alone is the reason why I am here today.” Quartermain clarified while Maleficent grew worried, “Your fate has been tampered with and is no longer your own.”

“But we still have the chance to change all that, so long as you cooperate with me.” Nicholas assured.

“You’re not simply a Queen of Darkness or the so-called Mistress of all Evil anymore.” Quartermain informed.

“We’re something entirely different thanks to someone’s meddling.” Nicholas said sending chills down their spines, “Someone connected to my past from Xerxes.”

“And just what are we, then?” Gold and Maleficent asked.

“Human Sacrifices.” the two agents answered simultaneously across the states.

“So,” Nicholas calmly continued as the others stared at him in shock, “Here’s how we can go about doing business together. Either you cooperate with or without my deal weighing over your head, or you can make things difficult and in the process, never see your wife or unborn child alive, again.”

“Are you threatening my family, boy?” Rumple asked gritting his teeth.

“Well, that’s entirely up to you.” he chuckled darkly, “Because I’ve waited too damn long for things to be mucked up at this point. And as it happens, one of my associates is in possession of Belle as we speak so if you don’t want to cooperate, I can easily retrieve her so I can make you watch after I inject you with a dozen needles filled with squid ink as I tear out your child from Belle’s uterus with my bare hands and crush its fetus before dropping her blood soaked body in front of you and crush her skull under my boot!”

“Not likely!” Rumple seethed jumping to his feet with a ball of fire in his hand aimed at the alchemist. But at that very moment, Henry barged in with Violet and the dark grail in his hand.

“Stop!” he demanded.

“Henry, get out of here.” Regina ordered, “There’s nothing you can do.”

“Yes, there is.” he denied using the grail to absorb his grandfather’s attack before directing it on the crystal.

“No!” Gold and Nicholas shouted before they were knocked back by the grail’s shock wave.

“Henry?” Emma asked in shock, “What have you done?”

“I destroyed magic.” he said coldly.

“Have you any idea what you’ve just done?” Gold asked enraged.

“Stop you from hurting my moms and uncle, and anybody else.” Henry snarled.

“You stopped me from rescuing Belle, not to mention the rest of your family, who are now trapped in the same realm with her!” he shouted.

“What’s he talking about?” Henry asked losing his heroic confidence as Nicholas’ phone rang.

“This is Flamel.” he said walking out of the room.

“David, Snow, Ariel, Hook and Zelena are in another realm right now.” Regina gently replied.

“And thanks to you, we have no way of helping them get back.” Rumple added.

“I did what I had to. This isn’t on me. It’s on _you_!” Henry sneered as he began to storm out only to be stopped when his uncle pierced the doors with his spears.

“Boss, I’ll have to call you back.” he said as his voice trembled with anger before crushing his phone and destroying it with his alchemy. His whole body began to shake and rack with anger and his directed his dilated pupils towards his nephew.

“You.” he said softly through his gritting teeth, “You…”

“Nicholas?” Emma asked growing concerned while Henry became very afraid.

“Brother, what are you doing?” Regina asked no less concerned.

“You…you little idiot!” he roared before backhanding his nephew’s face hard enough to draw blood on his lip. Everyone, including the boy’s angry grandfather, was shocked as the sound of the slap rang through their ears while watching Henry fall to the ground. And it certainly didn’t stop when Nicholas grabbed the collar of the boy’s jacket and began to shake him violently.

“You idiot! You damn, selfish, foolish idiot!” he roared practically foaming at the mouth, “You’ve ruined everything! You mucked everything up! Fifty years’ worth of planning gone in an instant because of you, you stupid boy!”

“Stop it!” Emma shouted pulling her boyfriend off her son. But his tantrum didn’t stop there. Nicholas then began to smash everything in sight. Nightstands, cabinets, glass, the wall, all of it was being reduced to splinters and fragments and he pounded his fists into them. Never before had any of them seen the alchemist react like that. Usually, he was the level headed one in their group and did his best to keep tabs on his anger. But whatever Henry had done, it was enough to make him snap. At least until he started chuckling madly and talking to himself, that is.

“Oh, this is just perfect.” he sighed giving an angry smile with his back turned to the others, “All these years of planning, and lying…now, it’s ruined because of the brat. It’s good…it’s good…ah…and you know what? This is just the cherry on top of the crap sundae that is my life, as of late.”

Not even twitching, he used his alchemy to create a large hole in the wall next to the others while he continued madly laugh and mutter to himself before walking over to stand on its ledge looking down at the city below.

“Not a finger!” he shouted at them before jumping out the hole on the top floor. As he fell like a rock, the people beneath him started crying out in fear thinking that he was committing suicide. But the moment his boots barely touched the ground, he transmuted himself all the way to Storybrooke and back to the mansion.

“Henry?” Emma asked in concern as she saw her son pick himself up and run out the room.

“I’ll make sure he doesn’t go far.” Violet said going after him.

“Storybrooke.” Regina said getting over what her brother just did, “Henry rid it of its magic. What happened to it?”

“Storybrooke survived for twenty-eight years without magic. I’m sure it can manage a few more.” Gold replied.

“Then what the hell was Nicholas so riled up about?!” Emma snapped gesturing to the wall, “You said it would be destroyed.”

“Yes, when I had to motivate you to find your wayward son.” he hissed, “And as for Flamel, I couldn’t care less about what’s going on in that empty head of his.”

“What should we do?” Emma asked Regina, “Call the police? See how he does without his powers in a real prison?”

“That’s an excellent idea.” Regina agreed.

“Not if you want my help finding the one person who may still have magic.” Rumple retorted.

“What are you talking about?” Emma asked at her wits end, “You said this was a land without magic!”

“It is. And it isn’t.” he replied.

“Enough with the riddles. Who has magic?” she demanded.

“Well, for that answer, it looks like we’re just gonna have to learn to work together now. Especially since you’re an alchemist down now.”

“Alright.” Regina sighed, “I’ll go with Gold and make sure he keeps his hands off this crystal. You find Henry. We’ll worry about Nicholas when we get home.”

Outside the hotel at a nearby fountain, Emma found her son sulking while his girlfriend tried to console him. “Hey.” she greeted before asking Violet, “Can we have a second?”

“Of course.” she nodded giving them some space.

“Does that hurt?” Emma asked looking at Henry’s red cheek and bloody lip.

“How did you know where to find me?” he asked,

“Because when we lived in New York, this is where we came when you were upset.” she gently reminded, “And I’d give you a penny and tell you to wish your problems away. Remember? What do you say? Want to give it a try?”

“I’m sorry, Mom, but that’s not gonna make me feel better now.” Henry shrugged off.

“Hey,” she said putting her hand on his shoulder, “Don’t let what your uncle said get you down.”

“But he was right.” Henry debated miserably, “I did only think about myself because I just wanted things to be normal again. When we lived here, there wasn’t any magic. We didn’t even know it existed. And, Mom, we were happy.”

“We were.” she nodded, “And I wouldn’t trade that time for anything. But you’re forgetting something. It was just the two of us. Then Nicholas came and found us, and now-”

“Yeah.” he interrupted, “And that’s why I thought if I destroyed magic in Storybrooke that we could all be happy like you and I were. But because of what I did, we’ll never even see half our family again.”

“That may not be true.” Emma disagreed, “Your mom is with Gold trying to find a way. Should we see if they had any luck?”

Making their way through China Town, Regina and Gold had a conversation of their own. “Why didn’t you believe me when I told you I wanted to help you?” Regina asked.

“Wondering if you’ve lost your edge?” Gold scoffed, “Or hoping you finally managed to bury the Evil Queen deep enough inside that I wouldn’t buy it?”

“Don’t try to psychoanalyze me.” Regina sneered.

“Look. Let me give you a friendly piece of advice.” Rumple offered, “Partitioning the darkness inside will not help you become the woman you want to be.”

“It worked so far.” she challenged.

“Has it?” he asked, “You know, I once thought I could contain the darkness to one tiny corner of my soul. First for Baelfire, then for Belle. And I always failed. Do you want to know why? Because I like the darkness. It’s as much who I am as the light. Why can’t you seem to grasp it’s not either/or?”

“Because I’m not like you.” Regina shot back, “I don’t like the darkness.”

“You can tell yourself what you like. But deep down, the Evil Queen is who you are. And the more you keep her locked inside, the more you’re gonna suffer.” Rumple warned as they reached a little oriental market.

“What the hell is this place?” she asked as the owner approached them with a friendly smile.

“Greetings. What brings you to my humble shop?” he asked.

“Well, we’re in the market for something a little more powerful than what you have on display.” Gold replied.

“If you mean narcotics, I’m just a simple herbalist.”

“I don’t think so. Regina, meet The Dragon.” Rumple introduced, “Good to see you’re breathing again. I hear one of my father’s minions paid you a visit.”

“Peter Pan was powerful, but I am resilient.” Dragon replied with a sly smirk, “I assume you’re here because you want something, Rumplestiltskin. But I’m afraid I’m not in the business of helping hearts filled with such darkness; Human Sacrifice or not.”

“How do you know about that?” Regina asked.

“But you, you will help.” he informed, “I see a noble battle deep inside your soul, Regina, between light and dark. Much like the one your brother waged within himself many years ago when he was still a boy. And for that, I will do my best to aid you. It is imperative you win for all of us.”

**OUaT**

“Did we lose him?” David asked as they stopped to catch their breaths.

“Not for long.” Hook panted, “What I wouldn’t give to have a sword right about now.”

“I hate to break it to you, Captain.” Jekyll said coming around the corner menacingly, “But a sword is only as useful as the skills of the one whom wields it. And none of you have the skills necessary to defeat me.”

“But I do!” a voice shouted behind him. They all saw Harold staring Jekyll down with a vial of blue liquid held tightly in his hand.

“Finally picking up the courage to drink it, are we?” Jekyll asked in amusement.

“I am done living in your shadow!” he shouted as he shook with anger before showing them a vial with red liquid, “And this one! This one will truly be the cure for ridding one of their darkness!”

“Oh, Harold.” Jekyll sighed shaking his head, “You may be a doctor with the name of Jekyll, but everyone knows you’re not _the_ Dr. Jekyll.”

“David?” Snow asked growing nervous.

“Yeah.” he nodded, “I heard him.”

“No!” Harold shouted stomping his foot, “I will prove to everyone that my formula is superior to yours!”

Knocking back the blue serum, Harold threw the vial on the ground and made everyone watch as he transformed into a taller, stronger, handsomer version of himself with a long scar down the right side of his face.

“Now then,” Harold said with a deeper, smoother voice, “Shall we begin?”

“Let’s.” Jekyll nodded raising his fists. Taking the first swing, Harold tried to sucker punch the doctor only to have it waved off before being punched in the throat, kneed to the stomach, elbow struck in the jaw, lifted over Jekyll’s shoulder, thrown to the ground and punched in the heart.

“Is that the best you can do, cousin?” he asked unimpressed as the transformed man struggled to breath at his feet. “Now then, shall we all return to the prison?”

“Not a chance.” David declared as they all stood their ground.

“Such a shame.” Jekyll said clicking his tongue before shooting up his fists, ready for more. But as soon as he did, a sharp whistle from the rooftop above alerted him. Looking up, he saw Nicholas of all people jump down in front of him.

“Nicholas?” Zelena asked in shock.

“What the hell?” Snow asked.

“How did he get here?” Ariel asked as they hugged and patted each other on the back happily.

“The time has come, Dr. Jekyll.” he said looking his old friend in the eyes with his hands on his shoulders, “The Promised Day is upon us.”

“Then what are we standing around here for?” Jekyll laughed before crushing a transport rock and vanishing in a cloud of smoke.

“Okay,” Hook said shaking his head, “I am bloody beyond lost, right now.”

**OUaT**

After calling the others over to the shop, Regina, Gold, Emma and the two teenagers gathered around a chalice in the back of the Dragon’s shop while he placed a lotus flower on the water showing everyone their missing family members.

“There.” Regina said pointing at them, “Look. Where the hell is that?”

“Wherever it is, they’re in trouble.” Emma realized.

“We need to get through so we can help them.” Regina said to the old man. But when he tried to open a portal, his strength failed and the magic ended.

“I’m afraid opening a portal to that realm is beyond my current power.” he panted.

“You can’t give up.” Henry stressed, “My family, they’re in trouble.”

“I’ve done all I can.” Dragon replied, “But you, you haven’t.”

“Me?” he asked.

“All of you.” Dragon said to them, “Just because the boy destroyed Storybrooke’s magic doesn’t mean there isn’t any in this world.”

“Oh, really?” Regina asked skeptically, “Because I think there’s a reason they call this place The Land Without Magic.”

“Yes, because that’s how it appears.” he nodded, “There’s magic everywhere if you’re willing to see it.”

“That sounds an awful lot like something a friend told me a long time ago.” Emma said as the memory tugged at her brain.

“August?” he asked knowing the answer, “Yes. I know who you are, Savior. And what you shall be used as in the days to come. If you want to find magic, remember what he taught you.”

“You have to believe.” she said.

“So, how do you suggest we do that?” Rumple asked, “After all, saying you believe doesn’t make it so.”

“I know how.” Henry said before taking them to the fountain he was at earlier.

“How is that going to help us?” Regina asked as they stared at the fountain.

“Because there’s magic in it.” he explained, “Every time someone makes a wish.”

“I don’t think throwing a coin in a fountain is what the Dragon was talking about.” Rumple said skeptically at his grandson’s idea.

“All due respect, Grandpa,” Henry said hotly, “But I think that was exactly what he was talking about. Mom, when we were living in New York, do you remember the last time you took me here?”

“Yeah. I don’t know.” she replied, “You were upset about something. Maybe something at school?”

“It was because of you.” he replied, “I could tell you were lonely, so I wished our family would be complete, and do you know what happened a few days later?”

“Nicholas came to New York, hacked that dating site you set me up on and we had our first date and it eventually led us to being reunited with our family.” Emma realized.

“There was magic. It was right here. We just didn’t know it. Don’t you see? We just need to wish they were back.” he stressed before tossing a coin in making a wish, “I wish we were reunited with our family.”

The moment the coin splashed in the water, the Olympian Crystal in Regina’s hand began to glow at the source of magic. “Come on.” he said to them, “It can’t just be me. Everybody make a wish. I promise, it will work.”

“Okay, kid.” Emma smiled as they all made their wishes while the crystal grew brighter.

“Sometimes, that boy surprises me.” Rumple said fondly as he made his wish. Seeing that it wasn’t enough, Henry decided to convince all the people around them to make wishes of their own and toss their coins into the fountain.

With more than enough magic fueling their wishes, the rest of their missing family was brought before them in a torrent of water. But as they all hugged happy to see one another, the crowd started cheering as they believed it to be nothing more than an act. Not long after, they decided to rest up at Neal’s apartment before heading back home. Regina, however, decided to take some time alone on the roof; that is until Snow and Emma joined her.

“So, how exactly is this going to help Regina get rid of the Evil Queen?” Emma asked.

“When we were in the Land of Untold Stories, this guy, this other Jekyll, he said that his formula was the cure for ridding someone of their darkness.” Snow explained as she pulled out the red vial, “And just in case it worked and we needed it, I took some after Nicholas ran off with the warden.”

“Still a bandit after all these years.” Regina smirked.

“I don’t understand, though.” Emma said, “How do they know each other? And what the hell is this League and Promised Day they were talking about?”

“I don’t know, but I have feeling that he’s gonna tell us when we get home; one way or another.” Regina replied looking at the serum, “You think it’ll work?”

“I think, this could be the end of the Evil Queen once and for all, as long as you’re sure that’s what you want.” Emma replied.

“I want her gone.” Regina nodded.

“Then let’s get rid of her.” Snow declared, “Let’s be the family we were always meant to be. All of us.”

“Go downstairs.” Regina advised.

“I’m staying.” Emma denied.

“I’m staying, too.” Snow nodded, “I was there when the Evil Queen was born. I kind of helped bring her into the world. I want to see you end her.”

Seeing that there was no point in arguing, Regina nodded as she uncorked the vial. “Get ready to stand back, because I have a feeling we’re about to meet a very angry queen, and she didn’t like you on a good day. Emma?”

“I’m ready.” she nodded.

“Cheers.” Regina said before downing the serum, “Guh!”

“What is it, what’s wrong?” Snow asked in concern.

“That tastes like cat pee mixed with Kool-Aid.” she replied bluntly before the effects kicked in. Literally tearing herself away from her so-called better half, the Evil Queen dressed in one of her intimidating gowns glared at her counterpart in hatred; if she even had another expression, that is.

“Look at what you’ve become.” she said in disgust before trying to grab her throat only to be bound in magical chains by Emma.

“Regina, now’s your chance.” Emma advised, “Destroy her.”

“You destroy me?” the queen chuckled, “You don’t have what it takes. You’re weak. No matter what you do, you can’t destroy our darkness. Deep down inside, you know the truth. You need me.”

“No. I don’t.” Regina said having slowly approached her alter ego. She then plunged her hand into her chest and tore out the queen’s heart ready to crush it. “I’m sorry.”

When the heart was reduced to dust, so was the Evil Queen. Now, Regina stood there shaking as her friends gave her looks of sympathy before they comforted her. The sun had begun to set by the time they reached Storybrooke, and the moment they exited their cars, Emma spoke to them all.

“Okay, guys, I know we’ve had a long day, but if we’re ever gonna get any answers, we need to find Nicholas if he’s here in town.” she instructed.

“Okay, Snow and I will check out the woods.” David nodded.

“Aye, and Ariel and I will check by the pier.” Hook nodded.

“That won’t be necessary.” Nicholas said to them standing before them. Instead of his usual, semi-casual wardrobe of jeans, a vest and tie and a dress shirt, he was now wearing clothes similar to what he wore back in the alternate dimension of the Enchanted Forest Isaac created. Black leather pants with a matching jacket under a leather, hooded trench coat as red as blood with a simple, black version of his tattoo on the back along with his flame alchemy gloves, combat boots and a black chest guard over his jacket. All in all, he looked very intimidating, especially with the harden expression on his face.

“Nicholas?” Regina asked before scoffing, “What the hell are you wearing?”

“Oh, we can’t all pull off the pantsuit-look, Regina.” he said dryly.

“Where is my wife?” Gold snarled angrily.

“She’s safe.” he replied showing little emotion, “And still inside that box of yours. But if you want her back, and if the rest of you want answers, you’ll have to come with me.”

As he said this, a long, white limo pulled up behind him with the doors opening in anticipation. “Where would you be taking us?” Emma asked.

“Some place you think you know, but in reality know nearly nothing about. Much like with me.” he said gently stroking her face with his gloved hand.

“And why should we?” David asked not trusting his old friend after what he saw in the Land of Untold Stories.

“Because if you don’t do it voluntarily, I shall have to force all of you.” he replied flatly before narrowing his eyes and sending chills down their spines, “Is that what you want?”

Seeing how serious the alchemist was, everyone reluctantly entered the car with Nicholas sitting across Emma, Regina, Snow and David. “Take it away, Ishmael.” he said to the driver.

“Aye, sir.” the first mate nodded as he began to drive.

“So, where exactly are you taking us?” Snow asked.

“You’ll see. Soon all your questions will be answered and then, well, then our work begins.” Nicholas replied mysteriously, “First things first. My boss wants to speak with everyone in person when I explain everything.”

“Your boss?” Regina asked, “Since when do you have a boss?”

“All in due time, Regina. Just be patient.” he replied. Not long after, the limo pulled up to the front steps of the mansion and parked for the passengers to get out.

“The Sorcerer’s Mansion?” Emma asked, “What are we doing here?”

“It’s not the Sorcerer’s Mansion, Emma.” Nicholas corrected as he headed towards the doors and opened them.

“Well, then who the bloody hell’s is it?” Hook asked.

“It’s our base here in Storybrooke.” he answered as they walked in. After everyone entered, Nicholas pressed button hidden underneath a table by the door. Once he did, the floor before the fireplace opened and revealed a dusty flight of stairs riddled with cobwebs.

“Sorry about the dust.” he apologized, “We usually just take the secret elevator in the fireplace. But seeing as all of you are tagging along this time, we have to take the guest entrance.”

“Nicholas, what the hell is going on?” Emma asked, “You’re not making any sense.”

“I know.” he replied nonchalantly as he turned on an old gas lamp in the upper corner of the tunnel which activated about a dozen more lighting the way. “There have been times when the realms have required the use of…singular individuals. People who possess tremendous power unmatched by anyone else. Banded together in groups of seven, they’ve taken on and eliminated threats that proved to be too powerful for the stories’ heroes to defeat themselves. Be they hero or villain, monarch or peasant, when asked, they would answer the call. It has been that way for over a thousand years; depending on the realm. Hidden in plain sight to fight for the stability and freedom of all realms, we have acted as the protectors of the oppressed when they cannot protect themselves.”

“ _We_?” Emma asked as they reached a set of iron doors which her boyfriend opened for them.

“Qui.” he said jokingly as they entered the meeting room, “You’ve all been dying to know my secrets for quite some time, no? Well, here’s the biggest one of them all.”

With anticipation, they looked at him as he turned to face them with his arms stretched open, gesturing to everything around them. Dropping his arms, the Immortal Alchemist finally confessed to his friends and family; and Gold.

“I am a member of a secret society dedicated to protecting and defending those who cannot help themselves. We are the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.”


	69. Revelations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

“The what?” Emma bluntly asked as they all stared at Nicholas, completely baffled.

“The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.” he repeated, “Think of it as like a…covert ops agency filled with people considered as fictional characters.”

“Like a spy agency?” David asked.

“We do some reconnaissance in our missions every now and then, but for the most part, we’re just professional killers.” Nicholas replied, “Which reminds me, boss wants him and the others to be here when I start answering all your guys’ questions. Wait here, I’ll go get them. And don’t touch anything!”

“You’re just gonna leave us here?!” Emma asked as he wandered off into another room.

“This was definitely not what I was expecting.” Regina said bluntly as they all started looking around.

“Who would expect to hear that their younger brother was actually apart of some secret organization?” Zelena asked just as surprised.

“Killy, have ever heard about this League or whatever?” Ariel asked.

“Never.” he said shaking his head.

“Neither have I.” Gold added surprising most of them, “And that’s what’s making me angry aside from that alchemist holding my wife hostage.”

“I wonder who this ‘boss’ of his is?” David asked right before his wife yelped covering her ass.

“David!” she scolded before muttering, “Not now.”

“What are you talking about?” he asked.

“You-you pinched me.” she said trying to be discreet.

“Ew, Dad!” Emma cringed.

“Gramps!” Henry complained.

“No, I didn’t!” he defended blushing.

“Gah!” Ariel shrieked, “K-Killian!”

“Love, I’m over here.” Hook said on the other side of the room.

“Okay, if anyone pinches me, I’m gonna start tearing some hearts out.” Regina warned.

“Ah, no need to be a spoil sport, Gina.” Skinner said not wearing anything.

“Who said that?” she asked only to have her hair ruffled.

“Me.” he said backing away from her swing.

“Ah, come on, Skinner.” Sawyer chastised from the floor above before jumping over and landing in one of the seats by the fireplace, “Stop being a pervert. Show some restraint.”

“You should be proud of me,” Skinner defended, “I’ve been resisting the urge to grab that royal, ivory ass of hers for almost thirty-one years. The little mermaid, however, was an added bonus.”

“Can someone please tell me who or what just grabbed my ass?!” Snow exclaimed.

“Rodney Skinner,” Skinner introduced as he put on his coat, “Gentlemen Thief, and the Invisible Man.”

“Invisible, nudist pervert would be more accurate.” Sawyer mocked.

“Hey!” Skinner shouted grabbing his hat.

“Wait a minute,” Emma said pointing at Sawyer, “You. You’re that guy from the boathouse.”

“Wow,” he nodded, “I’m actually surprised you’d remember me after all this time. Don’t worry, you’ll find that I’m much more of a gentleman than face cream over there.”

“I don’t know how you can say that considering you were the one who snuck in and held a gun to Belle’s head while she slept a few weeks ago.” Skinner shot back as he applied his lotion to make his face visible.

“Why? Why would you say that in front of the freaking Dark One?” Sawyer laughed wanting to strangle his friend.

“Well,” Gold smirked darkly as he tried to magically choke Sawyer, “Now I know who to kill.”

Grasping his neck and gasping for life, Sawyer’s eyes rolled to the back of his head before relaxing in his chair with an amused look. “Just kidding. That’s not gonna work.” he smirked.

“What?” Rumple asked looking at his hand in confusion before Sawyer kneed him in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

“Maybe next time, try not to kill a professional killer in his own home.” he said in his ear patting his back.

“So just who are you?” Regina asked.

“LXG Special Agent Tom Sawyer.” he introduced with a cocky smile.

“LXG?” she asked.

“It stands for League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.” Mina replied as she joined them with Nemo.

“Killian Jones.” Nemo nodded with a small smile, “What a nice surprise.”

“Nemo?” Hook asked in shock.

“You know him?” Ariel asked.

“Aye,” her husband nodded, “We met some time ago. You’re a part of this, too?”

“Indeed,” he nodded, “I’m second in command of this branch of the League.”

“Look, all I’m saying is that it’s nice place. You should stick around.” Nicholas said as he came back in with Jekyll.

“If I can, I will.” Jekyll replied chuckling, “But I don’t know if the director will let me.”

“What the hell is he doing here?!” Zelena asked pointing at Jekyll.

“Zelena, it’s fine!” her brother chuckled, “He’s a friend and a member of our branch. Hey, have you guys seen Quartermain?”

“He’s in his room.” Mina replied, “Should I fetch him?”

“Nah, I’ll get him.” Nicholas said heading upstairs.

Sitting alone in the darkness of his room, Quartermain was surrounded by all sorts of strange objects; all of which seemed to revolve around voodoo. Several masks, some masquerade others African to resemble animals, hung from the ceiling while various shrunken heads and poorly made voodoo dolls were on the shelves; on some of them even had snakes and alligator heads stuffed into large jars filled with brine. However, he wasn’t paying any of these peculiar things any attention, he was more wrapped in his own thoughts as he stared at an old portrait of a beautiful blonde woman and young boy kept in a gold locket around his neck.

“Boss?” Nicholas asked knocking on the door.

“What?” he gruffly asked.

“Uh, Emma and the others are here. We’re ready to start explaining everything to them.”

“Very good.” Quartermain sighed tucking the locket under his shirt before exiting the room, “How much have you told them, already?”

“Not much.” Nicholas replied, “All I’ve done was give them a brief synopsis of what the League does and that I was a part of it. Aside from that, they’ve met the others. I’ll introduce you all when we join them.”

“And the boy?” he asked.

“Leave Henry to me.” Nicholas replied trying to control his anger.

“That brat nephew of yours managed to ruin a large portion of our plans today.”

“Hey.” the alchemist warned coming to a stop, “He may have screwed us over, but that boy is still my nephew. Don’t call him a brat; only I can say that.”

“You’re right.” Quartermain admitted patting Nicholas’ shoulder, “I over stepped.”

Ruining the moment, he smacked his subordinate upside the head hard than usual. “What’d you do that for?!”

“That was for thinking you could tell me off. And for not knocking some more sense into that boy of yours, which would have saved us the trouble from pulling our asses out of yet another mess!” Quartermain snapped as he stormed off downstairs.

“Why is it that everything I do earns me a head-slap from you?” Nicholas loudly asked chasing after the grumpy, old hunter as they joined everyone else, “Seriously, boss!”

“You just stay away from my wife!” David warned pointing at Skinner.

“Aye, same goes for mine!” Hook nodded.

“You see?” Mina asked, “This is what happens when you act like yourself.”

“And here I was hoping he would mature after all these years.” Jekyll sighed shaking his head.

“Really?” Sawyer asked, “I mean…it’s, well, it’s Skinner.”

“I know, but a man can have hopes, can’t he?” he asked.

“But for Skinner?” Sawyer asked.

“Well…”

“Jekyll, my old friend,” Nemo said gently, “He’s a lost cause. Let it go.”

“What the hell?!” Skinner cried, “Why is everyone such a bloody prick to me?!”

“You just groped two married women!” they shouted.

“Eh, que sera, sera, sera.” Skinner shrugged as he took a seat.

“That guy’s like family to you?!” Emma asked her boyfriend.

“Yeah,” Nicholas trailed unsure of his answer, “He’s an ass, I know.”

“So,” Regina said hoping to change the subject, “You’re the ‘boss’, huh?”

“Uh, that’s just what Sawyer and I call him, sis. Okay, now that we’re all here, guys, these are my fellow LXG agents and teammates.” Nicholas began as he gestured to each of his friends, “Our espionage expert and master spy, seventh seat: Agent Tom Sawyer. Our ever annoying and sleazy combat specialist, sixth seat: Agent Rodney Skinner a.k.a. the Invisible Man. Our chief bio-expert, fifth seat: Agent Dr. Henry Jekyll/Mr. Edward Hyde.”

“And our go-to for undercover assignments/chief strategist, fourth seat: Nicholas Flamel a.k.a. the Immortal Alchemist.” Sawyer chimed in.

“Thanks,” Nicholas said dryly after being interrupted, “As I was saying, our chemist and head of research/third-in-command, third seat: Vampiric Empress, Agent/Dr. Mina Harker. Our troops commander and all around genius in practically every field, and our second-in-command, second seat: Agent Captain Nemo of the Nautilus; who also happens to be Ursula’s husband.”

“Wait, what?” Emma asked.

“Finally,” Nicholas continued ignoring her question, “The leader of this branch and senior field agent, first seat: Allan Quartermain. Together, we make the number one branch in the entire League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. So, who’s got a question?”

“How long have you been hiding this?” Regina asked almost frantically before anyone else could speak.

“Hmm,” Nicholas pondered, “Well, I officially joined the League about two years after I returned home from Xerxes. But I met one of its agents just before I left Arendelle.”

“So, all this time?” Snow asked.

“Yep.” he nodded.

“The disappearances?” David asked.

“Yep.”

“The secrets?” Hook asked.

“Yep.”

“That time you got shot in the head over and over again?” Emma asked.

“You can thank these two for that.” he replied with a sour look jerking his thumbs at Sawyer and Quartermain.

“That’s what you get for throwing a temper tantrum.” Quartermain remarked.

“Temper tan-my mother was murdered!” Nicholas defended.

“Can we get back on topic, please?” Zelena asked, “Why are we here?”

“Now that, sister dear, is the most important question of them all.” Nicholas replied, “As I said last night at the wake, Storybrooke will be facing a new threat very soon. One that puts all the others to shame, and it comes back to me.”

“You?” Regina asked.

“Yes. You see, Regina, I didn’t tell you and our parents everything about my time as a slave. All I did was sum up the first six or seven years. It’s what happened the last four or so that changed everything. That experiment I told you about, the one you were shown, Emma, it was once considered to be one of the most difficult alchemic procedures known to man. I was nothing more than a resource used to complete it.”

“What was it for?” Emma asked.

“It was used to create a Homunculus.” he replied sending chills down their spines, “Not like the Homunculus we ran into in the Underworld. That one was a different breed of Homunculi. The one my master created was born of my blood and was no more than just a very knowledgeable spec in a flask. Out of gratitude for me being the source of its life, it wanted to repay me.”

“R-repay you?” Emma asked.

“Hmm,” he nodded, “He was the one who gave me the name ‘Nicholas Flamel’ on account of his disliking of addressing me by my slave number.”

“That’s it?” David asked, “He-he just gave you a name?”

“Oh, no.” Nicholas corrected shaking his head, “He did far more than that. Everything I know, everything I know about alchemy, reading, writing, mathematics, economics, anatomy, astronomy, physiology, psychology cultural understandings, social interactions, everything that makes me _Nicholas Flamel_ , he taught me. His second gift to me, in gratitude for giving him my blood, was knowledge. Pure, unbiased, unaltered knowledge. And, he gave me my Philosopher’s Stone, and my immortality.”

“How?” Emma asked.

“Perhaps,” he said taking a dreamcatcher out from a nearby chest, “It would be best to show all of you rather than just explain it. If you would? I will warn all of you, it is…gut wrenchingly horrific.”

Hesitating after hearing his words, Emma nodded and used her magic to release the memory into their minds. It didn’t take two seconds for each of them to start cringing at the horrors of Nicholas’ past. It wasn’t everything he went through in that desert, mind you. Just from the day he was experimented on to when he met the Dwarf in the Flask to when their Stones were created and the following morning.

“It’s terrible, isn’t?” he asked when they finished seeing his past, “Try having to relive that and a whole bunch of other traumatic memories over and over and over again for nearly fifty years. It’ll drive you insane.”

“Nicholas,” Hook gasped, “Mate…just who-who are you?”

“Who am I?” he asked lowly, “That answer has been obvious to all of you for a very long time. I am a Philosopher’s Stone in the form of a man. That’s _what_ I am. And I didn’t show all that, or confess to you my biggest secret for just the sake of getting it off my chest. We’re facing the big one this time. That look-alike of me, the Dwarf in the Flask, he’s our next big threat.”

“…The Promised Day?” Emma asked.

“Yes.” Nicholas nodded, “How do you know about that? Did the souls tell you that, too?”

“Sang it, actually.” she replied.

“Sang it?” he asked himself, “Why the hell would they sing it?”

“Yeah, we heard about it, too.” David jumped in, “Some weirdo in the Land of Untold stories was warning everyone about it. What is it?”

“Eh,” Nicholas trailed looking at the other agents nervously, “I don’t think I can tell you.”

“You just said that you would tell us everything!” Regina snapped.

“I know.” Nicholas gently defended, “Listen. It’s not exactly easy to explain. It’s a very complicated matter that only really sinks in if you understand it, and you’d have to be an alchemist like me to understand it after the first explanation; took me almost five years to explain the severity of it all to these guys. All you need to know is who we’re up against, and who is involved.”

“And just who might that be?” Gold asked.

“Well, like I told you at the hotel, it’s you, me, Emma and Zelena.” he replied.

“No,” Regina remembered, “You said Maleficent, too.”

“Well, that was the case until _Henry_ ,” her brother hissed glaring at his nephew as he got up to the boy’s face almost breathing fire he was so angry, “Decided to take matters into his own hands and attempt to get rid of magic.”

“What are you saying?” Ariel asked.

“I’m saying that thanks to Henry, and his stupid idea, Maleficent is dead; again.” Nicholas replied shocking them all.

“What?” Henry asked softly, “H-h-h-how?”

“When you so naively decided to destroy Storybrooke’s magic, you neglected to think of how it might affect others if you did.” Mina replied as she and the others, including Nicholas, glared at him, “Magic was the only thing keeping Maleficent alive; it was more necessary to her than oxygen is for us. And when you destroyed it, she crumbled into a pile of dust.”

“And now,” Quartermain growled, “Thanks to you, boy, we are down a Human Sacrifice.”

“You should consider yourself very lucky, brat.” Skinner added, “Were you anyone else’s nephew, we probably would have killed you the moment you crossed the town line.”

“Hey!” Emma defended, “You threaten my son, and you’re the next one who dies.”

“Bring it on, Savior.” he challenged popping his neck, “I dare you.”

“Enough!” Nicholas snapped, “Skinner does have a point, Emma. Me being Henry’s uncle is the only reason he gets to live.”

“How can you say that?” she asked baffled.

“Because,” he snarled grabbing her shoulders tightly, “His idiotic actions have thrown nearly everything we have planned off balance! Hey, Henry, I’ve got a question for you. Did you know that the fairies have been using their magic to help people over at the hospital? They use it to heal patients in critical condition who don’t have a chance at survival even with the best treatment the hospital provides. Children, infants, the elderly, anyone they believe to be in need of their help. Do you know what could have happened if they were in the middle of doing such things? More people would be dead! And maybe they are!”

At this point, Henry was trying to shrink away from his uncle’s fury. He hated to even think it, but he was right. He hadn’t thought of how getting rid of magic might affect everyone else in town, all he cared about was trying to make his life easier so he wouldn’t have to suffer alongside his family anymore. Not that he would admit that anytime soon. He was still a teenager and far too stubborn like his mothers to verbally acknowledge his mistake; especially to his uncle who slapped him just hours before, who was also still ranting.

“I cannot believe that you did such a foolish thing! You misused that pen to benefit yourself instead of allowing things to play out as they should have. You’re no better than Isaac now!” Nicholas accused.

“I did what I had to to protect this family!” Henry shot back with a poor excuse.

“Oh, bull!” his uncle swatted off, “You only did that because you wanted to have your ‘perfect little family’ without any of the drama. This is exactly the same idiotic thinking you had when you tried to get rid of alchemy and magic. You ran off, worried us all half to death, and then you nearly got yourself _killed_ with all that dynamite! If Regina and I hadn’t found you when we did, you’d have been put six feet under at the age of eleven!”

“Stop calling me an idiot!” Henry choked on the verge of frustrated tears.

“Stop acting like one and I will!” he bellowed, “You know what? I’m done. I don’t need to explain this any further to you, ‘cause you are grounded! And another thing.”

Grabbing the boy’s collar, Nicholas dug his hand around his nephew’s coat pockets in search of his pen before pulling it out and storming over to a nearby end table. “What are you doing?” Henry asked as his uncle opened a pencil case, put the pen in and slammed it closed. When Henry opened it, he found that his enchanted quill was no longer inside. “What did you do?!”

“Until you can prove to me that you’re responsible enough to wield that kind of power, you are never seeing that pen again.” Nicholas replied as he dug out a transport rock and crushed it in his fist, “I have never been more disappointed in you.”

Before anyone could protest, Nicholas threw the dust at his nephew’s feet and watched as he disappeared in a cloud of black smoke. His mothers and grandparents, obviously, were shocked and rather unhappy at the alchemist’s actions and therefor let him know what they thought.

“What did you do?!” David shouted.

“Cool your crook, sheep boy.” Nicholas said rolling his eyes, “I just sent him to his room, which also happens to be locked by my alchemy. You can let him out when you get home, but until then, you’ll stay here and listen.”

“And what makes you think I won’t just let the boy out myself from here?” Gold asked.

“Because we still have this.” Jekyll reminded holding up the box containing Belle.

“So you did take her.” Rumple softly growled in anger.

“Only because you let her slip through your fingers and into mine.” the doctor countered as he jiggled the box before releasing Belle onto the nearest couch, “Now, we can do this in one of two ways, we keep your wife in here for her own protection, or we wake her up and you risk losing her and your child on the Promised Day.”

“You can’t wake her up.” Rumple denied, “Only true love’s kiss can-”

As he debated Jekyll’s claim, Quartermain lazily snapped his fingers which caused Belle to jolt awake with a loud gasp. “Wha-wha-Rumple?” she asked in a daze.

“Belle?” he asked not knowing whether to be happy or confused as he kneeled at her side.

“What-what’s going on?” she asked as she saw the strangers around her, “Who-who are these people?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Rumple said with a happy smile, “All that matters is that you’re awake and that both the contract and Hades are gone. Now we can be a proper family.”

But his happy thoughts and promises were interrupted by Quartermain shoving him away before clapping once in Belle’s face causing her to fall back asleep.

“Belle?” he asked taking her limp hand as she slept, “No, no, no, no.”

“As you can you see,” Quartermain said in a bored tone, “Waking her up and putting your wife back to sleep is of little effort to us. And considering that you are unable to wake her yourself, and that you owe my subordinate a favor, it’s in her best interests for you to cooperate.”

“Indeed.” Nicholas nodded, “Which brings me to our next point of discussion. Myself and the three I mentioned are marked as Human Sacrifices for this upcoming threat. What the Homunculi plan to do with us, I’m not sure I can fully explain.”

“Why us?” Zelena asked, “Why not anyone else?”

“That I can explain.” her brother replied, “The four of us, and Maleficent, have/had one thing in common which makes us sacrifices. We’ve all had our bodies deconstructed and then reconstructed again with our powers intact or we managed to gain more in the process. It happened to me when I was given my Philosopher’s Stone. Gold, it happened to you twice, when you first became the Dark One and when your late son brought you back to life. However, when Emma became the Dark One, she took your place. At the time, the Apprentice was one of the other sacrifices on account of being absorbed into the Hat, but after he died, we were one short until you regained your powers. At that point, Emma took my place until she returned my stone to me and when she did, all five were accounted for once again. As for you, Zelena, you became one when Gold destroyed your body and you made yourself a new one in the past in addition to your magic no longer being restrained to your pendant. Maleficent qualified when Cruella and Ursula resurrected her, but like I said, she’s dead again so we’re one short.”

“But isn’t that a good thing?” Hook asked.

“No. And the reason why is if there is another person out there who does qualify for human sacrifice, we have no way in knowing who they are and whether or not they’d be willing to help us or the Homunculi.” Nicholas replied.

“Homunculi?” Ariel asked.

“That’s the proper way to address more than one Homunculus.” he clarified.

“Just how many are there?” Snow asked.

“Well, if Lust’s name was any indication, counting the Dwarf in the Flask, seven.” Nicholas estimated, “I don’t know how he did it, but he managed to split himself from his seven desires, and each one of them most likely has one of my abilities. Lust had my Ultimate Spear, so chances are her siblings have my shield, shadows, transformation ability, super-speed, super-human strength and reflexes and another power that I’d rather not demonstrate because it’s disgusting and painful. And their father will have the same alchemy advantages as I do, if I were to guess.”

“Father?” David asked, “Siblings?”

“When I first ran into Lust back in New York, she let it slip that she referred to the Dwarf in the Flask as her father; same for the other Homunculi as her siblings.” he replied.

“So basically,” Hook said dryly, “We’re taking on seven split versions of you?”

“You’re only half right. Yes, they are basically seven split versions of me. No, you’re not taking them on, _we_ are.” Nicholas corrected indicating to himself and his team, “Look, the only reason we decided to come out in the open like this and tell you guys is because unlike our other missions, we won’t be able to keep any of this on the down low; and so you all know what we’re dealing with in hopes that you won’t meddle in our affairs. Because knowing you, Snow, you’re already thinking that we should at least try to talk to them in hopes of establishing peace.”

“Well, why not?” she asked ever the optimistic, “Why shouldn’t we try to reason with them? I mean, you and this dwarf were friends, right?”

“There is no reasoning with them.” he snapped, “These things despise humans. They see us the same way we look at ants. The only thing we’re good for to them is our life energy fueling their Philosopher’s Stones. You saw that look on his face after he wiped out Xerxes. Do you honestly think he’s lost as much sleep over it as I have? They’re all abominations that must be exterminated; and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”

“Can’t we just leave town before they get here?” Emma asked, “I mean, why just stick around and wait for them to show up when we can get out of here and just wait awhile?”

“Oh, Emma,” Nicholas sighed shaking his head, “You don’t get it, do you? We’re not waiting on them to show up, they’re already here!”

“What?” almost all of them asked.

“Deep underground, even further than where Regina had Maleficent kept as a dragon, they’ve got a secret lair that’s sealed off from the rest of the town. They’ve been here since the first curse and they returned when Snow and David cast the second one.” he explained, “When the original curse first hit, I discovered it when I was looking around town for these guys.”

“Why would you do that?” Regina asked.

“Let me ask you this. Don’t you find it odd that you had no idea about any of this despite that you, as the caster of the first curse and creator of Storybrooke thus knowing everything about it and the people living here, had no knowledge about any of the Homunculi, their lair or this mansion and the people in it for that matter?” her brother asked, “That’s because after you enacted the dark curse, some adjustments were made before it sent us here. The first being when the Homunculi managed to find a way to tweak it by making sure you didn’t know about them or where they were hiding. The second was when Quartermain tweaked it to do the same, but for us and our base.”

“…I don’t believe it.” Regina waved off thinking she was beginning to lose her mind.

“Believe it, because that’s exactly what happened, Your Majesty.” Mina quipped, “Fact is, we’ve been preparing for the Promised Day ever since Nicholas first told us about it. The only thing out of our control was who the remaining sacrifices would be and whether or not they’d be willing to assist us. As we speak, Nemo’s crew is outside in the town preparing the defenses for the civilians for when the rest show up.”

“I thought you just said they were already here?” David asked.

“You forgot to tell them the other part, Flamel.” Quartermain reminded.

“The other part?” Nicholas asked in confusion before the memory returned, “Oh, yeah! Uh, there is one detail I forgot to mention. See, one of the Homunculi was created to help found a military structured country in another realm about forty years ago. Unfortunately, a small chunk of that country’s forces will be coming here to provide their leader back up without knowing they’re actually helping the Homunculi. Oh, and their weapons are equivalent to the same type of military warfare used in this realm during World War I.”

“And so are the weapons my men use.” Nemo added in hopes of reassuring them.

“And you’re gonna take them on yourselves?” Emma asked not believing it, “Just the seven of you and a bunch of sailors?”

“Well, originally, it was going to be the seven of us and Agent Locksley along with our back up, but, well, you know…” Skinner trailed.

“Wait.” Regina interrupted, “Agent Locksley?”

“Yeah, that’s something else I wanted to talk to you about, sis.” Nicholas said sheepishly rubbing his neck, “See the thing is, Robin was an agent of the League, as well. He was what we call a ‘solo-field agent’. That means while he was an agent, he didn’t belong to a branch like ours. He just worked with us when the second curse brought us all here. There’s something else. Hook, Ariel, it’s about how you two met. It didn’t exactly happen the way you think.”

“What are you talking about?” Ariel asked.

“I’m sorry, Ariel. But you see, Teach lied to you when he said he killed Eric before we made it to the Revenge.” he confessed, “He was actually gagged and tied up to the crow’s nest the whole time. He was actually a target.”

“Hold on.” Hook interrupted, “Are you saying that Blackbeard is a member of this bloody League, as well, mate?”

“I am.” Nicholas nodded, “But Eric wasn’t his target. He was actually Robin’s. Teach was just looking out for the Jolly Roger as a favor to me when I contacted him a couple weeks before. I felt that I owed you one after all you did for us in Neverland, so I asked him to keep an eye on it. One thing led to another and I found out that Robin was hunting down Prince Eric.”

“Why?” Ariel asked on the verge of tears, “Why would you do that?!”

“Ariel,” the alchemist sighed, “Eric wasn’t the man you thought he was. He was actually a sex-slave trader known to steal funds from his kingdom’s treasury to flaunt on bartering women. When he found out you were a mermaid, you, uh, kind of became his biggest prize. He was gonna sell you off to the highest paying sleaze-bag, Ariel; and probably have his way with you, too.”

“No.” she denied shaking her head while crying into her husband’s shoulders.

“I know it’s hard to process or believe.” he said gently, “But it’s the truth. I led you guys to Blackbeard hoping you would grow close together along the way and maybe develop feelings for each other. Plus, I knew Hook had partial feelings for Emma back before the curse broke, so I hoped the two of you would help each other heal your broken hearts.”

“And Eric?” Hook asked glaring at his friend while soothing his wife.

“We killed him about an hour after you left.” he admitted, “Robin nearly begged Teach to let him use the Revenge’s flamethrowers on that scumbag.”

“I don’t believe this.” Regina denied, “There’s no way Robin could be capable of such things.”

“Tom,” Nicholas addressed, “Show ‘em.”

Nodding his head, Sawyer went over and unveiled an intimidating portrait of Robin on the other side of the room. He was dressed in his Enchanted Forest clothes with all his weapons were on his person and his hood was up covering most of his threatening expression.

“It’s kind of an unspoken tradition to paint portraits of deceased League members after they’ve died while on an assignment.” Sawyer explained as Regina stared at the image of her late soul mate, “It’s a real shame what happened to him, God rest his soul. I really feel bad for his son, too. Losing both your parents at such a young age? Poor thing.”

“Wait,” Emma interjected, “You said back up?”

“This mission is more severe than any other we’ve faced.” Quartermain said, “We had to make a choice, either risk it all by taking it on ourselves, or swallow our pride and request the help of other agents.”

“How many?” Hook asked.

“Three.” Skinner replied.

“Dozen?!” Ariel asked nearly shrieking.

“No, just three.” Mina clarified, “One agent alone is capable of toppling entire empires and their populations. We just need the extra muscle due to our most dangerous adversaries being partially immortal. Ten agents in all is more than enough.”

“Captain!” Ishmael alerted from the level above, “We’ve just spotted three portal signatures outside the mansion.”

“And that would be them, now.” Nicholas smirked hoping off the table he was perched on, “You guys can come meet them, too, if you want. They’re gonna be sticking around for the next few days until the big showdown so you might as well get acquainted.”

Outside the mansion, three new strangers looked at their surroundings with various feelings. One impressed, one awed, and one not caring which way or the other because taking in the sights of a place that had a high chance of being destroyed in the next few days made absolutely no sense to them.

“So this is Storybrooke, eh? Not a bad place, I’ll give it that.”

“Si, amigo. And our camaradas’ palacio es muy bien.”

“Eh.” one of them shrugged.

“And here I thought you’d be the most excited to see the place, you bearded bastard.” Nicholas teased as he and his friends approached the newcomers.

“I was, but then I remembered that I would have to see your ugly face again, Flamel.”

“Oh, that hurts.” Nicholas chuckled clutching his heart, “That hurts me right here.”

“Emma!” one of them greeted happily waving to the blonde.

“What the?!” Emma nearly yelled, “Gilles?! You’re part of this crazy organization, too?!”

“Haha! Looks, like your friend isn’t as excited to see you as you are her, eh, chico?”

“And just who the hell are they?” Zelena rudely asked.

“Everyone, I’d like to introduce my friends and fellow LXG agents.” Nicholas began, “This is Gilles de Rais a.k.a. Bluebeard; master exorcist and professional witch hunter.”

“A pleasure to see you all again, upcoming disasters aside.” Gilles greeted with a polite bow. He wore the same clothes he had on back in Camelot, but he seemed to be carrying more weapons than before, some of which resembled items normally seen in a church during Sunday mass.

“This one here is an agent I helped join the League during my first days on the job, Don Quixote de la Mancha; although, some people also refer to him as El Caballero Loco.” Nicholas continued.

“Buenas Tardes.” Quixote kindly greeted. He was an older man, looking roughly around the same age Rumple physically looked. He had long dark hair and a sharp mustache reaching to his chin, on top of his head was a strange bronze helmet that looked like a hubcap missing a chunk; at least to Emma it did. In addition to that, he wore bulky bronze armor and had a sword at his side and a long spear in his right hand. Behind him, they could all see an old gray horse eating a patch of grass with a heavy saddle on its back. He seemed nice, but if the other people they had met today were any indication, he was very dangerous and skilled killer just like the rest.

“Finally,” Nicholas continued, “We have the sullen silent one here, Shan Yu of the great Koga plains. You’d probably remember him as the main antagonist from that old Mulan movie.”

That much was certain. This Shan Yu looked exactly like how the Disney movie portrayed him; minus the gray skin and yellow eyes. He had many thick animal furs that made up his clothing and had long dark hair and a matching beard. Unlike the other two agents, however, this one was much like Quartermain as he gave off a ‘I’d rather kill someone than talk’ kind of disposition.

“Where is Quartermain?” he asked in a low, intimidating tone.

“He and the others are back inside.” Nicholas replied still smirking playfully at his old colleague, “Come on. We’ve got much to talk about and less time than ever to do it.”

**OUaT**

Down in the depths of the Underworld, Lust wandered through the town with her spears extended anxiously as she searched for more souls to feed on. It wasn’t exactly how she planned on spending the rest of eternity, but since she had no way out of the hellish version of Storybrooke, she was stuck. As the embodiment of her father’s sin of lust, she wasn’t much of a hopeful being, but wandering around aimlessly for the past two days made her feel hopeless. That is until the familiar sound of one of her brothers’ voice filled the air.

“Lust!” Gluttony cried out happily as her ran over and hugged his sister.

“Gluttony?” she asked, “What are you doing down here? Did Flamel kill you, too?”

“Nuh-uh.” he replied innocently, “Father sent me to bring you back! Isn’t that wonderful?”

“He did, did he?” she asked giving a small wicked smirk, “Well, then, we mustn’t keep him waiting.”

“Right.” Gluttony nodded before grotesquely opening his body to create a portal to take them back to the realm of the living. In said world, their father was sitting on his stone throne while reading an old textbook while the rest of his children were present.

“So, Pops,” Greed said casually, “Just found out that your pal Nicholas brought over some of his League buddies today. Think we should do something about ‘em?”

“In time, we will.” Father replied turning the page, “Flamel wants to make such a big fuss on the Promised Day. Why not give him what he wants?”

“What should we do until then?” Envy asked munching on a piece of charred meat, “We’re a sacrifice short now thanks to that pesky brat of his.”

“Not quite.” he replied shutting the book, “There happens to be another candidate for our needs out there. All we need to do is bring them here. Wrath, you will go and fetch them for me.”

“Of course, Father.” the Homunculus known as Wrath nodded. Unlike the other Homunculi, Wrath had the appearance of an older gentlemen with a mustache and an eye patch over his left eye in addition to wearing a black robe-like military uniform with a cavalry sword at his side like Nicholas’.

“What would you ask of me, Father?” a young boy wearing a black suit and tie with a white dress shirt underneath.

“We are still in need of one more crest of blood before the Promised Day arrives. Go stir up some trouble, Pride.” Father ordered resting his head on his pale fist.

“It shall be done.” Pride smirked as shadows identical to Nicholas’ erupted behind him in the darkness.

“Very soon, Flamel.” Father said to himself as he glanced over to the four chess pieces resting on the pentagram marked parchment, “Very soon from now, our story will finally reach its conclusion.”


	70. Plans for War

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

After the newcomers were welcomed into the mansion, Emma stood by her parents while they watched Nicholas converse with his comrades about their plans of attack. However, despite the fact that her boyfriend had finally confessed to her all his secrets, she couldn’t help but feel mad at him for several reasons. Because of those reasons, she had been glaring at him ever since he nonchalantly guided his friends back inside while Hook and Ariel went back to the Jolly Roger; now knowing that the basis of their marriage was founded on their friend’s meddling and lies, they couldn’t exactly bring themselves to be in the same room as him for the time being. Rumple decided to stick around so he could keep an eye on the agents in hopes of learning their weaknesses. That, and Nicholas had decided to cash in his favor, so the Dark One was obligated to follow his orders and stay put. Snow and David realized that they were just being ignored considering they weren’t apart of anything important, so they decided to check on their son and see if they could get their grandson out of his room. Regina, on the other hand, was the only non-sacrifice that stuck around at this point out of sheer curiosity.

“So then,” she said walking up to Emma’s side, “How long until you plan on breaking things off with my brother?”

“What?” Emma asked in annoyance.

“I’m just saying,” Regina defended, “You haven’t exactly been seeing the best of him today and those glares you’ve been sending him don’t seem all lovey-dovey.”

“Okay, as happy as me and Nicholas breaking up would make you, it ain’t gonna happen any time soon.” Emma retorted, “I honestly thought I would stop being pissed at him when he would tell me everything, now I’m more pissed than ever. What else isn’t he telling me? What is his name not really Nicholas?”

“No,” Regina replied, “It-it’s not, Emma. Weren’t you paying attention? Have you not heard his real name yet?”

“No.” she replied, “It’s really not Nicholas?”

“Didn’t you hear me address him back in Isaac’s book?”

“Well, excuse me, it was kinda hard to hear you speak clearly when you were on your deathbed and I was busy clocking that dork in the nose.” Emma retorted, “If that’s not his real name, why have you been calling him Nicholas all this time?”

“Well, he actually forgot his real name and just asked us to call him Nicholas until he felt ready to know what his real name was. It’s kind of a sensitive topic for him. He’d probably flip out if anybody but me ever called him Abba.” she shrugged.

“…Abba?” Emma asked growing a mischievous smirk, “Like the Swedish pop band, Abba?”

“Yeah…I think that might be another reason why he would still prefer Nicholas.” Regina nodded, “But-but hey! You cannot tell anyone his real name. Besides Zelena, I’m the only one still alive who knows his real name. If word gets out that he’s been using a different name, he’s gonna know I blabbed about it and kill me!”

“Oh, come on, Regina.” Emma disregarded.

“Emma, think this through carefully.” Regina pleaded nervously as she grabbed the blonde by the shoulders, “You know how much he hates it when people tease him on account of his name. He flips out anytime a person abbreviates it to use as a nickname; the only exception he’s made is when you do it as a pet name for him occasionally. I have done everything in my power to make sure that the works of ‘Abba’ never reach his ears. If he finds out that his real name is the same as a Swedish pop group, and people learn that’s his name, too, heads will roll and bodies will bleed. So please, for the love of God Almighty, do not tease him about his name being Abba.”

“Jesus. Is he really that sensitive about it?” she asked.

“You have no idea.” Regina warned darkly.

“We’ll set up the Nautilus along the coast and drop anchor at the reef.” Nemo explained as the agents looked at their battles plans on a large map of Storybrooke, “From there, my men will be on stand-by until further orders to engage the enemy upon their arrival. We will have five to six squads stationed in town at all times, and three more stationed in the woods. It’s rather unlikely that they will strike from there, but incase one of the Homunculi decides to spring up, we’ll be ready.”

“At that point,” Nicholas continued as he shuffled the pieces representing their forces, “We’ll have to keep the civilians from leaving their homes. One squadron alone should be enough to take care of that. I doubt the Dwarf in the Flask will allow them to kill anyone who isn’t associated with us. It’s not much of a defense for them, but it’s the best we can do. I’ll try and reinforce as many buildings as I can with my alchemy to subdue minor damage. But if something gets hit with heavy fire, well, it won’t do ‘em much good.”

“Does Storybrooke have any warriors at their disposal we could enlist?” Giles asked.

“No,” Sawyer replied clicking his tongue, “Unfortunately, those people we just booted out tend to do most of the fighting for these people; and by most, I mean all the fighting.”

“Which is ironic considering how many kingdoms’ knights are part of the population.” Mina commented, “You’d think that there would be at least one of them willing to defend this place when the Charmings can’t.”

“Yeah, but they don’t.” Nicholas sighed in disappointment.

“So there is no one who we can rely on to help the civilians aside from those royals?” Shan Yu asked, “There are no groups willing to help?”

“The only group of people to have ever reside in this town who helped us out were the Merry Men.” Sawyer replied, “Besides them, all we’ve got are the self-proclaimed ‘heroes’, the fairies who probably have no interest in helping us, and what’s left of the Lost Boys.”

“Peter Pan’s followers?” Jekyll asked.

“After we escaped Neverland, Emma brought along the Lost Boys and offered them the chance to live here.” Nicholas explained, “However, they haven’t exactly been on their best behavior. They’ve kind of become Storybrooke’s own gang of delinquent teens and preteens. Small stuff, really. Robbing the pharmacy, keying people’s cars, spray painting stuff, and occasionally breaking into people’s homes. Old habits die hard for them, apparently.”

“Oh, dear.” Giles muttered.

“What of this fifth sacrifice?” Quixote asked, “What are we to do about them?”

“The fifth sacrifice is going to show up no matter what we do. He’s not going to let everything he’s been working on fall apart because of that.” Nicholas replied, “As much as I don’t want to, and that’s just me being paranoid, I say we disregard that subject and maintain our current point of focus on taking out the rest of the Homunculi.”

“I take it we still don’t have all the necessary information we need regarding those creatures?” Quixote asked.

“All you need to know is that anything I can do, they can do, too. Each one has one of my abilities, as well as the ability to regenerate any wounds they receive.” he warned, “The only difference is that unlike me, they’ll eventually die and stay dead after burning out the energy powering their stones.”

“In other words, hit ‘em hard and don’t let them get the upper hand.” Quartermain summed up.

“What about the other three sacrifices?” Shan Yu asked gruffly, “What are we gonna do about them?”

“It’s obvious that they’ll be kept alive until they’re needed, so their safety isn’t too much of a concern at this point.” Nemo clarified, “That being said, I wouldn’t put it past the Savior and her family to take the fight to them despite out warnings.”

“We could still use that to our advantage.” Skinner offered, “Swan, Gold and Nicholas’ sister all have magic and therefore control the Homunculi’s greatest weakness. I don’t think we should take them off the table just yet.”

“You think they’ll cooperate?” Jekyll asked.

“The Dark One will on account of us holding his wife and unborn child hostage.” Mina reminded holding up Pandora’s Box, “But it’s like Nemo said, Swan and the others will undoubtedly interfere regardless of what we tell them.”

“Valid points.” Quixote nodded, “I say we just do our work like we would normally do and just ignore them. That Savior chica, she doesn’t strike me as the type of senorita willing to get her hands dirty. At least not like we would.”

“I agree with Quixote.” Nemo informed, “We cannot let these people disrupt our work. It could be disastrous otherwise.”

“Any suggestions, old man?” Shan Yu asked Quartermain.

“Don’t ask me.” he replied looking almost bored, “Flamel’s got point on this one. You wanna bring up any ideas, take them up with him; this is all his bloody plan, anyway.”

“…I’m with Quixote and Nemo.” Nicholas replied with a sigh, “We’ll begin searching for the remaining Homunculi starting today. The less we have to deal with, the less complicated things will be almost three days from now.”

“Right then.” Quartermain nodded grabbing his riffle and coat, “Let’s get to work.”

On the outskirts of town, Pride the Arrogant, wearing his dark suit and a smirk to match his name, strode down into the mines of Storybrooke. Like the obedient son he was, he obeyed his father’s wishes and took the best course of action he could think of in order to cause trouble for the League. As he walked through the abandoned tunnels, ones not even the dwarves used when mining for diamonds, the small Homunculus saw all sorts of spray painted graffiti, tattered flags and makeshift weapons.

As you could already guess, this was the hideout/refuge for the Lost Boys residing in Storybrooke. As Nicholas had said, old habits die hard for them. Ever since they were sent back in the second curse, they began to act as though they were still in Neverland. Some of the people who were sympathetic towards them merely wrote off their actions as mischief or phases of rebellious teenagers seeking attention. Some were, others did this because after spending decades to centuries in Neverland with Pan, they knew of no other way to act. Causing trouble, inflicting pain, stealing for the sake of stealing alone, these were all forms of the dark sense of amusement they developed during their time on the godforsaken island; and they were all traits Pride had every intention of using to his advantage. As he walked through the cavern, he was stopped by two spears aimed at his neck on both sides.

“What do you want, outsider?” one Lost Boy demanded with a menacing glare.

“Oh, nothing really.” Pride calmly replied raising his hands, “I just came here to speak with your leader.”

“Who sent you?” the other scout asked pressing the spear against his flesh, “Was it the Savior? Talk!”

“First things first.” Pride said before grabbing the spears and easily crushing them into splinters in his small hands, “I came here to speak with the one in charge, not some pair of grunts too stupid to know when an opportunity is being presented to them.”

Seeing that they had no choice, and no other weapons on them, the guards reluctantly nodded and guided Pride to their leader. At the end of the cave, the remaining Lost Boys stopped what they were doing and stared down Pride as he was led to the Lost Boy sitting on a throne that clearly used to be an old lazy boy chair from the dump. He appeared to be no older than sixteen, had shaggy brown hair and was decorated with the spoils of his triumphs since becoming the new leader of the Lost Boys while playing an old Gameboy. At his side was the scrawny, freckle-faced Lost Boy Nicholas had tortured back on the island who seemed to have taken up Felix’s old position as second-in-command.

“Why are you here?” the leader asked still playing his game.

“Tell him!” one of the guards barked.

“Not him, you two.” he clarified putting the toy aside, “Why did you decide to abandon your posts without permission, hmm?”

“Well, uh, he-he said he wanted to speak to you and-and-and he cru-crushed our spears.” the boy stuttered.

“I have come to offer you the chance to reclaim the former glory of the Lost Boys.” Pride lied.

“How so?” Freckles asked.

“By proving to Storybrooke that you all are more than just delinquents hiding in the mines when not causing trouble.” he replied, “Face the facts, no one takes you seriously and they never will so long as you continue these actions. But if you were to make a sudden change from your usual antics, perhaps they might come to see you in a different light.”

“Like what?” the leader asked in a bored tone.

“Well, for starters,” Pride chuckled, “How does avenging the death of one of your own sound?”

“What?” he asked as they all focused on the smug Homunculus.

“Think about it. If you were to do that, you could spark a great rift in Storybrooke between those who believe your actions were justified and those who disagree. You’d change the town as people know it and could continue to further your plans and do as you please with more supporters and maybe even new recruits.” Pride offered, “Introduce a little anarchy to Storybrooke, and everything will change.”

“…Who would we have to avenge?” Freckles asked.

“The last person any of you would think of.” he replied knowing they had fallen into his web of lies, “And lucky for you, his murderer isn’t too far from here.”

Back in town, Snow, David, Hook and Ariel looked around with mixed feelings as they watched Nemo’s crew prepare defenses for the upcoming battle. They were simple defenses, sandbags stacked along certain areas to provide cover from enemy fire, barbed wire wrapped around barricade spikes in front of several buildings, there were even speakers being set up to the telephone wire poles. Traffic had to be directed on account of one or two roads being taken up by the sailors and their cargo vehicles.

“I can’t believe this is really happening.” Snow finally said, “When Nicholas told us he was finally going to come clean, I never imagined we would be facing something like this. It looks like Storybrooke’s being prepared for war.”

“I never would have imagined that he was a part of some secret organization.” Ariel quipped.

“Neither would I, love.” Hook nodded as they walked down the sidewalk.

“Do you think he was a bit too hard on Henry?” Snow asked.

“Honestly?” Hook asked, “No. Maybe calling the lad an idiot so many times was a bit uncalled for, but Flamel did have a point. He didn’t think of how destroying magic would affect others.”

“He’s still just a kid, Hook.” David defended.

“Not really.” Ariel countered gently, “I know things are a little different in this realm, and this just may be me, but if he had been raised back home, he’d basically be considered an adult. I may not have been here as long as the rest of you, and yeah, Henry may still be just a teenager, but he does seem to disregard what you guys tell him a lot. Plus, it doesn’t seem like he listens to you guys when you tell him to do something he doesn’t want to do.”

“And there was that time when you let him drive your truck when he was thirteen and took out those mailboxes and came close to hitting the people nearby, David.” Hook added, “The boy doesn’t receive much discipline for his actions, according to my perspective.”

“Maybe we do spoil him too much.” Snow reluctantly admitted as several townspeople began to argue with the sailors.

“What do you think is going to happen?” David asked.

“I don’t know, mate.” Hook sighed, “But if it’s enough to cause Nicholas to worry and use such drastic measures, it can’t be good.”

“What the hell is going on?” Ariel asked as the arguing grew louder.

“Just let us through, already!” Leroy demanded with several of his brothers and a few other townsfolk behind him.

“Sir, I have told you once already, this area is off limits.” one of the sailors replied losing his patience, “No one is allowed past this point until further notice.”

“Oh, yeah?” he asked hotly, “Says who?”

“Leroy!” Snow called as they joined up, “What’s going on?”

“Finally, you’re back.” the dwarf commented, “These guys just showed up out of the blue and started telling us we couldn’t go certain places. They’re all over town and making the place look like it’s about to become a war zone. Who are these guys?”

“It’s a long and complicated story. We’ll fill you in later.” David replied, “Let’s just say they work with Nicholas and leave it at that for right now.”

“Why are you blocking the road? What is all this?” Ariel asked.

“Orders from the captain.” the sailor replied, “No one is allowed at the docks until further notice. In addition to that, these are merely precautions for when the battle begins. These people are free to go about their daily business; just not past the designated points.”

“Are you gonna do something about this?” Leroy asked expectantly crossing his arms.

“They can’t. We’ve also been given permission to detain and/or shoot anyone who causes too much of a fuss.” the sailor warned, “If you want to take it up with anyone, take it up with Agent Flamel, this was all his idea.”

“Alright.” David sighed, “Leroy, listen, you’re just gonna have to do what these guys ask.”

“What?” he asked as the crowd looked at each other in surprise.

“Everyone, please, listen.” Snow addressed, “For your own safety, just please do as these people ask. They’re here to help us.”

“Why?” Happy asked, “And did he say ‘battle’? What are we dealing with now?”

“Are we under attack?” one woman asked.

“We’re under attack?!” another person shouted as the uproar began.

“Well, that escalated quickly.” Hook bluntly remarked as the Charmings became bombarded with questions and outcries.

“If I may?” the sailor politely asked before receiving a nod from the pirate. With the approval granted, he pulled out his handgun and fired into the air causing everyone to duck before running away as he pointed it towards them.

“Are you insane?!” Snow shouted angrily.

“Pressed for time, actually.” he nonchalantly replied glancing at the clock, “Now, if you will all please leave? We have work to do. Just let your people know that we shall not harm them so long as they do not cause us any trouble. If they do, next time, I will not aim so high.”

“These people are nuts!” Snow exclaimed as the sailor went back to work, “We’re seriously going to let them do this?”

“What choice do we have?” David asked as they headed towards the loft, “You saw Nicholas’ memories. My guess is that the same thing will happen to us if we get in their way.”

“As hard as it is for me to admit this, but the prince may be right.” Hook admitted.

“Do what?” he asked.

“Don’t push it. I feel queasy enough as it is after saying it the first time.” Hook bluntly retorted, “Whatever it is we’re up against, it’s obvious that we don’t hold a candle to these Homunculi. I say we heed Nicholas’ advice and just stay out of the way while he and his associates handle it all. And, uh, there was one other thing.”

“What’s that?” Snow asked.

“Well, see the thing is,” Ariel trailed sheepishly, “Those guys are blocking the roads that lead to the harbor, right? And we live on the Jolly Roger which is a ship…see where I’m going with this?”

“You wanna know if you could stay with us.” Snow concluded.

“If it’s not too much trouble?” Hook asked, “I could take the couch.”

“Yeah, sure. Of course you can stay.” David nodded before muttering to the pirate, “But, uh, why not stay at Granny’s?”

“Because after our memories returned when we were fighting Zelena, Ariel and I _celebrated_ more than Granny would have liked to hear in the room Ariel was residing in at the inn.” Hook muttered back, “Since then, we’ve been banned.”

“Ah. Gotcha.” he nodded patting his friend on the back, “By the way, has anyone seen Zelena?”

“I think she went back to the farmhouse with the baby.” Ariel replied. As a matter of fact, the mermaid was correct. Zelena had returned to her farmhouse with Robin in hopes of collecting her thoughts. No one could really blame her between losing the man she loved, being sucked into a portal taking her to another realm and learning that she was going to be used as a human sacrifice, the Wicked Witch needed a break; and a glass of whiskey as the sun finally set.

“Oh, what a day.” she sighed as she placed her baby in her crib, “Mummy’s in need of a little rnr, don’t you agree, sweet pea? Yes, she does.”

“Is that it?” Freckles asked Pride as he, his leader and the rest of the Lost Boys strode up the hill to the farmhouse.

“Indeed.” Pride smirked, “Now all you need to do is take out the witch, and soon all of Storybrooke will look at you with new eyes.”

“Then let’s do it.” the head Lost Boy smirked as he fired an arrow through the front window. As soon as the glass shattered, the rest of his followers started whooping and hollering just as they had done in Neverland armed with their makeshift weapons and torches. As they ran past the Homunculus, Pride smirked confidently and darkly as his plan began to unfold.


	71. Soaked Red

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

Over at the mansion, Nicholas continued to devise plans to better the town’s defenses with the others. That is until Ismael came barging back in telling them all that his eldest sister’s home was under attack by the Lost Boys. While they all scrambled about to gather their weapons, Emma and Regina conversed quietly.

“What do you think they’ll do when they get there?” Emma asked.

“I have my suspicions, none of them are good.” Regina muttered back.

“You don’t think they’d…” the blonde trailed earning a questioning raised eyebrow from her friend, “Regina, they’re just kids!”

“I know that,” she agreed, “But something tells me that these people won’t be as forgiving as we’d be. Besides, you remember what Nicholas did to that one Lost Boy on the island. What’s to stop him from doing that again?”

“But you don’t think they’ll kill them, do you?” Emma questioned.

“Emma, please.” Regina scoffed, “My brother is many things, but I highly doubt he would go as far as to kill children much less allow the death of a group of them.”

“I hope you’re right.” Emma sighed as they both poofed away. 

**OUaT**

Many years ago, in the Enchanted Forest, Flamel sat at the desk his parents had given to him in his new study at their estate. Piles of scraps of paper were littered across the desk and the floor while he continued to scribble down his notes. As he did, his elder sister came barging in with a happy smile on her face.

“Good morning, Nicholas.” she warmly greeted as she tightly hugged him.

“Yeah, morning.” he replied not really listening.

“Still working, huh?” she asked playfully as she perched herself on the desk.

“Hmm-hmm.” he nodded fixing his glasses.

“What-cha working on?”

“Stuff.”

“What kind of stuff?”

“Alchemic stuff.” he replied slightly annoyed before sighing and taking off his glasses, “Regina, what are you doing?”

“What?” she teased ruffling his hair, “I’m just spending time with my favorite brother.”

“I’m your only brother.” Flamel chuckled.

“All the more reason for you to be my favorite.” she grinned, “But doesn’t it get boring, just sitting in here all day scribbling?”

“Scribbling?” he asked, “These aren’t scribbles. They are very important, complex alchemic research notes that take time and precision to complete.”

“Okay, okay.” Regina chuckled, “But seriously, don’t you get bored? Maybe even a little…you know, lonely?”

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“Don’t you want to go outside and, I don’t know, play with some kids your age?” she suggested.

“Oh, I tried.” Flamel shrugged as he walked over to an old microscope, “But they were so boring; and kind of stupid. Besides, I’m not really accustomed to playing, so I don’t really know how to properly interact with my fellow adolescents when attempting to participate in acts of amusement and frivolity.”

“What?” Regina asked.

“I’m socially awkward.” her brother deadpanned.

“Oh.” she nodded, “Well, you need to at least do something other than stay cooped up in here all day. I know! Why don’t I teach you horseback riding? It’ll be fun!”

“Pass.” Flamel replied as he pulled out old, dusty charts from a nearby crate, “As much fun as that does sound, and I would love to spend time with you, Regina, for some reason, ever since I acquired my stone, animals do not seem to react well to my presence.”

“Oh, okay.” Regina said slightly disappointed before perking up, “How about this, then? There’s this tavern not too far from the estate in the woods. They have some really good mead that’s made with juniper berries. What do you say?”

“You really want me out of here, don’t you?” Flamel chuckled, “Okay, okay, I’ll go. But you’re paying for my drinks.”

“Deal.” she laughed as she playfully shook his hand. About two hours later, dressed in lower class clothes, the two siblings entered the tavern and found the place to be filled with people, music, laughter, and delicious ales and meads. Unfortunately, Flamel was still beyond bored, and it didn’t help that Regina ditched him the moment she spotted Daniel at the counter, either. He was about ready to call it quits and head back after finishing his mead before he overheard bits of a nearby conversation.

“And with that, the arrangement is complete and the formula should instantly take effect. From that point, the landscape should become a liquid state.” a middle aged man wearing a white lab coat explained. Peering through the tables and people, Flamel noticed that the man wasn’t the only one wearing a lab coat. Including him, there were five people sitting at a round table, each one different in so many ways.

The first man had long black hair and pale skin with dark blue eyes. Underneath his coat was a light gray leather vest and dark pants with a silver pocket watch on his belt and two unique circles could be seen on his palms. Sitting next to him was a slim, athletic looking man with combed back brown hair and reading glasses wearing a tunic and brown vest over his lean muscles and leather pants with his own lab coat. There was also a shorter man wearing fancy clothes similar to Flamel’s father under his lab coat with a black, silk top hat on his head. Unlike the man next to him, he was bald, had a gray mustache, multiple transmutation circles carved into the palms of his hands and fingers, and a metal peg leg connected to his right knee could be seen under the table. Along with those two, a man with short brown hair wearing tattered clothes and glasses sat next to the man who was clearly the leader. He was an elder man with a full, bushy beard and wiry hair. His face was hardened and seemed as though he had a permanent scowl but instead of a white lab coat, he wore a black, leather overcoat over expensive, black clothes. For some reason, Flamel was intrigued by them and deiced to join in on the conversation.

“The arrangement is actually wrong.” he informed as he glanced at the drawn transmutation circle.

“What?” the older man asked gruffly in what people in our realm would consider to be a German accent.

“You should have the symbol for water here and the symbol for earth there.” he explained as he pointed to the correct positions, “Also, I would advise factoring in the compositions of wood and metal just to be safe. But that’s just me.”

“He’s right.” the brown haired man gasped as he fumbled with his pen to fix his mistake, “That could’ve caused a terrible rebound if we tried it like this! Thank you, young man.”

“Don’t mention it.” Flamel shrugged.

“How did you know to rectify such a complex alchemic formula?” their leader asked with a glare.

“No offense to you, gentlemen, but I didn’t find it all that complicated.” Flamel replied, “However, that being said, it seems as though you took the complicated route in order to formulate this arrangement. If you were to simply approach it with the thought of accelerating the molecules of whatever you are transmuting, then it would be simpler to successfully perform the transmutation.”

“Seems like we aren’t the only alchemists in here like we thought.” the black haired man said with a smooth, serpent-like voice, “Would you care to join us?”

“Gladly.” he nodded, “I’m known as Nicholas Flamel, who are you people?”

“Just a group of alchemists seeking knowledge in their never ending search. You can call me Kimblee, the Crimson Alchemist.” Kimblee introduced with an outstretched hand which Flamel shook.

“I am Tucker, the Sewing Life Alchemist.”

“Remember my name because I’ll only say it once, boy. I am Giroro, the Silver Alchemist.” the shortest rudely snapped.

“On a much politer note, I am known as Maiza Avaro, the Nomad Alchemist.” Maiza politely introduced.

“And I am Szilard Quates, the Devouring Alchemist.” Szilard added looking down his nose at the boy.

“Why do they call you that?” Flamel asked.

“I have an insatiable hunger for knowledge.” Szilard replied flatly. Clearly, that was the only explanation Flamel was going to get regarding his name, “We address ourselves through code names in case our works are to ever come in danger of avaricious simpletons. My question for you is how do you know the art alchemy?”

“I’ve been heavily studying and practicing alchemy for nearly six years now. You’ll find that my skills are nothing to scoff at, either.”

“Prove it.” Szilard glared. In response, Flamel calmly sat with his hands folded and his legs crossed as he transmuted a wood carving of a beautiful woman cradling a water pitcher over her head in the center of the table. Seeing the display of transmutation without so much as a twitch was more than enough to impress and baffle the other alchemists; Tucker nearly fell out of his seat when it happened.

“Care for another demonstration, Devouring Alchemist?” he asked.

“Careful what you say, old man.” Kimblee chuckled, “It would appear even you’ve met your match with this boy.”

“Extraordinary.” Maiza gasped, “Absolutely-”

“Preposterous!” Giroro snapped slamming his fist on the table, “He completely disregarded the laws of Equivalent Exchange! Furthermore, he transmuted without so much as any movement let alone a transmutation circle of any kind. He dares to call himself an alchemist with such arrogance?!”

“Enough!” Szilard barked causing the Silver Alchemist to sit back down, “Young man, Nicholas, yes? How would you like to join us in our pursuit of knowledge? I believe we may all yet learn much from one another.”

“That’s highly unlikely regarding myself.” Flamel remarked before making up his mind, “But I shall accept your offer. From here on, I shall help in the expansion of alchemy’s prowess.”

“Excellent.” Szilard smirked, “That’s exactly what I wanted to hear.”

**OUaT**

When the two women reached the farmhouse, they saw the burning torches and arrows light up the night sky while the Lost Boys shouted and hollered. Thankfully, Zelena was quick enough to put up a protection spell around the house, however, the flames were beginning to consume the surrounding dead grass and nearby shed.

“Stop!” Regina shouted at the teenagers, “What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”

“Avenging Baelfire!” a young Lost Boy cried as he tossed his torch at the house.

“Burn it!” they cheered.

“Kill the witch!”

“Make her suffer!”

“Enough!” Emma bellowed using her magic to extinguish their torches, “This isn’t what Baelfire would have wanted. There’s a baby in there, for God’s sake!”

“So what?” their leader scoffed, “Like we care about what happens to some brat. Who knows? We might even get lucky and kill the damn thing in the process; one less witch in town to worry about.”

Hearing the teen’s words hit Emma like a sucker punch to the face. When she brought these boys home with her and the rest of her family, she believed that they would change for the better once free from Pan’s tyranny. However, it was clear to her not that was nothing more than wishful thinking. The boys before her clearly had every intention of killing Zelena and had no qualms about killing the baby either; if anything, they were hoping they’d be able to if given the chance.

“You wanna play with the big kids?” Regina asked making a fireball in her hand, “Then let’s play.”

“Please, don’t start without us.” Sawyer said as he, Skinner, Quixote and Giles showed up.

“We can handle this ourselves, Sawyer.” Emma snapped, “We don’t need your help.”

“Oh, I believe you, Emma.” he nodded with a dark smirk while pacing about, “But you see, the thing is we can’t allow any harm to come to Zelena for the next few days; or you, for that matter. Plus, Nicholas would be furious if anything were to happen to his sweet, little niece. So don’t take it the wrong way when I say…we’ll be doing things our way from now on.”

Before anyone could even mutter a word, Quixote quickly readied his spear and engaged the surrounding teenagers. As he did, Giles opened his bible and said a prayer under his breath while Skinner charged at them with only his fists.

“Alright, boys!” he said with a smirk as he popped his knuckles, “Let’s get to work.”

“You ready to die, old man?” one Lost Boy taunted towards Quixote with two more of his friends to back him up.

“Chico,” he said dryly, “You and your amigos are a hundred years too young to give me any sort of challenge. But I’d be happy to put you in your place like the brats you are.”

“Shut up!” he cried as they charged at the Gentlemen. Obviously bored, Quixote easily dodged their attacks as they swung their clubs and swords at him. Effortlessly on the defensive, he twirled his spear at them to strike either their weapons, waists or heads. As he did, Skinner was easily fending the teenagers attempting, emphasis on attempting, to fight him; which proved to be futile on account of his expertise in hand to hand combat. Sawyer, on the other hand, kept things simple by taking on a kick-boxing type fighting style against the boys. Giles, however, stood completely still as he finished his prayer.

“You just gonna stand there, or are you going to fight us, you bearded geezer?”

“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.” Giles finished closing his bible and opening his focused, cold eyes at the armed children before him. In response to the taunt, Bluebeard prepared his weapon. Unlike his shot riffle, or his hunting knife, this weapon strangely reflected the dedication he had towards his faith. It was a dark bronze thurible incense swinger with an overly long chain. With one hand wrapped with the chains, and the other swinging the thurible in the other allowing the smoke and scent of burning incense to fill the air. Without any warning, he flung the burner at them with great speed and watched as it struck one Lost Boy in the head. As he brought it back, he alternated to the weighted end of the chain and wrapped around another, baffled, Lost Boy’s club. While the four Gentlemen kept them busy, Emma and Regina took the chance to check on the Wicked Witch and her baby.

“Zelena?!” Regina called banging on the back door, “Zelena, it’s us. Open up!”

“Zelena?” Emma asked before they were both enveloped in a cloud of green smoke. When it cleared, they noticed that they were in Zelena’s dining room.

“What the bloody hell are you doing here?” she asked as she came in with the baby.

“We could ask you the same question.” Regina remarked, “What happened?”

“Nothing.” Zelena shrugged, “I came home, fed Robin and just as I was about to put her down, those pyromaniacs started shouting and tried to burn the house down! I have no idea why.”

“We do.” Emma replied, “They want to avenge Neal’s death by killing you.”

“Oh, here we go.” she scoffed rolling her eyes.

“You’re lucky you’re one of those sacrifices Nicholas told us about.” Regina reminded, “If it wasn’t for that, the League wouldn’t be out there holding them off for you.”

“And what are you going to do?” she asked, “Talk them down as soon as you get out there?”

“Normally, we would try that. But these kids are serious about killing you, Zelena.” Emma warned, “I mean, they don’t even care about killing the baby in the process. We’re just gonna have to lock them up.”

“That won’t be enough to keep them from doing this sort of thing again.” Regina debated.

“Maybe, but it’ll at least keep them out of our hair until this Promised Day thing blows over.”

“And what happens after that?” Zelena asked, “What happens after you release them and they try to kill me and my daughter, again, Emma?”

Before the Savior could answer, the sound of gunfire rang from outside. Not a moment later, they rushed outside and saw Sawyer standing over the freckled Lost Boy clutching his bleeding knee on the ground with his gun letting of smoke in his hand.

“What are you doing?!” Emma shouted.

“Why did you do that?” he asked the teenager dryly, “I told you not to resist, and there you go trying to make a break for it.”

“That should be all of them.” Quixote informed as he finished tying up the last of the boys.

“What happened?!” Emma demanded.

“What this?” Sawyer asked, “Oh, the brat tried to make a break for it when I started asking him questions. So, I stopped him; plain and simple.”

“Where the hell is the one in charge, here?!” Nicholas shouted angrily as he, Mina, Quartermain and Shan Yu showed up.

“Their leader ran off amidst the fighting, but we’ve got their number two, right here.” Sawyer indicated nonchalantly to the bleeding teen at his feet.

“Putting brats in timeout better not be as interesting as it gets for this assignment, Quartermain.” Shan Yu glared, “I’m only here because Flamel promised me some excitement. So far, I’m not impressed.”

“Keep complaining and you may not stick around long enough to witness the excitement.” Quartermain warned.

“Who sent you here?” Nicholas snarled, grabbing the teen’s collar and shaking him, “Tell me; talk!”

“Nicholas, calm down.” Regina lectured.

“Stay out of this!” he barked before jerking his head at the others, “Keep them back, I don’t want them interfering.”

“You heard him, ladies.” Mina sighed as she tried to back the three women up.

“Back off.” Emma snapped as she tried to push the vampire away only to push herself back while Mina’s eyes turned red and her canines pushed through her lips.

“Feel like trying that again?” she calmly, yet dangerously asked.

“Who sent you?” Nicholas asked darkly.

“Nobody.” the kid hissed pain before crying out as Nicholas jammed his thumb into the wound.

“Don’t lie to me.” he warned staring into his eyes, “You brats are too stupid to do something like this on your own; let alone come up with it. So I will ask you again, one more time before I start inflicting some real pain, who the hell sent you?”

“I don’t know!” Freckles cried out, “He didn’t give us his name. He was just some kid in a suit talking about how we needed to prove to everyone that we meant business!”

“This kid, did have strange tattoo on him?” Nicholas asked before shaking the boy, “Did he?!”

“I don’t know! All I know is that what he said stuck with our leader, Richard!” Freckles wailed, “He’s hell bent on proving to everyone that the Lost Boys are still dangerous, even without Pan. He’ll try this again, no matter how many times it takes; he doesn’t care how many of us he loses in the process.”

“Alright, that’s enough!” Emma snapped as she shoved her boyfriend off and helped the teen to his feet, “Don’t worry, he’s not going to hurt you. You don’t need to worry about Richard.”

“No, just us.” Mina informed before lunging at the boy and sinking her fangs into his neck. The attack was so sudden, Freckles wasn’t able to cry out in pain, and Emma wasn’t able to get over her shock in time to save him. While Mina was enjoying with her meal, Quartermain gave his agents a quick order.

“Kill them all.”

Not more than a second later, Sawyer fired his pistol’s next round into the head of an unsuspecting Lost Boy. As he did, Bluebeard used his knife to slit another’s throat, Quixote impaled two of them with his spear, Skinner snapped another’s neck, and Quartermain fired his own pistol at several of them.

Needless to say, Emma, Regina and Zelena were lost for words as they witnessed the merciless display of bloodshed before them; even more so when they saw the looks of amusement and enjoyment on some of their faces. As soon as the last bound body dropped dead, Nicholas caught a glimpse one Lost Boy who managed to escape run towards the wood. But before he could make it past the trees, Nicholas stopped him with a large wall made from the ground.

“Pl-please, don’t!” the child pleaded as the wall pushed him back to face the angry alchemist, “H-h-have mercy, please! Please!”

“Mercy?” he asked with his voice shaking in anger, “You come here, attempt to kill my sister, try to burn down her house without so much as a care for what might happen to my infant niece, and you dare to beg _me_ for mercy?! No. No, you don’t get that luxury.”

“Nicholas, don’t!” Emma pleaded as she and his sisters tried to stop him, but he prevented them by transmuting the ground to keep their feet in place. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a nearby club on the ground and picked it up.

“Have you ever seen the movie _Gangs of New York_? I have. I always thought it was one of DiCaprio’s best; it’s about the early gangs of this country in the 1800s. There’s this one character, an Irish man, who wields a club, like this one, and every time he kills a man, he marks his club with a notch. At one point, he decides to run for sheriff of his district, but another gang leader, who hates the Irish with a fiery passion, doesn’t like that; not one bit. So, the day they announce who won the vote, he approaches the man he hates with a cleaver in his hand and throws it into his back. While the soon-to-be sheriff lies on the ground, he picks up the club and makes a new notch. He raises the club and says to him, ‘This is you, right here,’ before crushing the Irishman’s head with his own weapon. Guess what, kid?” he asked as he made his own mark on the club and raised it over his head, “This one’s you.”

With no mercy in his heart, Nicholas swung the club down on the boy, and smashed his skull in. Blood stained the ground, the club, and splattered on Nicholas’ cheek and the gut wrenching sound of the club smashing the boy’s skull into his brains rang through the air. He seemed completely unfazed by the life he just took, or from the looks of utter shock and horror on the three most important women in his life’s faces.

**OUaT**

Weeks had passed since Flamel joined up with the group of alchemists. Since then, he had earned himself his own white lab coat, and the respect of the men he worked with. Thankfully, Regina no longer pestered him in finding friends and getting out of his room every day. Though he hated to admit it, he was glad that he listened to her and found friends in his fellow alchemists. However, there was one little hick up he was facing in his newfound friendship.

In order to stay a part of the group, you had to contribute to the science of alchemy with new, progressive research and/or experiments. Unfortunately, one of the men was falling behind in that endeavor; Tucker. It didn’t take long for Flamel to realize that the man was not very confident or proud. The mistake he made with the transmutation circle was just one of the several mistakes he made in the time he spent as an alchemist. If it hadn’t been for Maiza, Szilard would have dumped Tucker to the nearest curb with a glob of spit in his face.

But out of the kindness of his heart, Flamel offered to assist his new colleague in maintaining his status as a member of their little research group. As mentioned before, Tucker was not much of a confident man, nor was he too social beyond that of his fellow alchemists who only allowed him to join for one reason. Too further explain, Szilard was extremely selective over whom could join his group. Only alchemists who had proven themselves worthy to him by great alchemic feats could join. Maiza qualified by displaying his skills of medical alchemy, Giroro his use of weaponized alchemy, Kimblee his overpowered and cunning use of alchemy, and of course, Flamel’s display of his own alchemy along with further, creative demonstrations.

As for Tucker, according to Maiza, he was able to impress the grumpy old man with the greatest display of bio alchemy he had ever seen. With methods he had yet to divulge, Tucker was able to create an alchemically created chimera capable of understanding human speech as well as being able to speak itself. However, the creature only ever spoke once before starving itself and dying.

“I want to die.”

It had been roughly two years since then and ever since, Tucker had been struggling to impress the others well enough to let him stay; or be respected and taken seriously, for that matter. In his house deep within the woods, Flamel decided to stop by one morning with his sister in order to help out the reclusive alchemist.

“You really think it’s okay for me to come?” Regina asked.

“Oh, sure, it’s fine.” her brother waved off, “Tucker’s gonna be so wrapped up in his work he probably won’t even realize you’re here.”

“Um, okay?” she replied not sure how to take that response. As they approached the house, they spotted a cute little girl with braids in a dress giggle and play with a large, white dog in the yard while Tucker watched her with a fond smile. She couldn’t have been more than five-years-old by Flamel’s estimation.

“Ah, Nicholas, you’re here.” Tucker greeted as they shook hands, “And whom might this be?”

“This is my elder sister, Regina. She was bored so she decided to tag along with me.” Flamel replied as the little girl and dog came over to them.

“Is that so?” he chuckled with a kind smile, “In that case, I welcome you and your sister to my home. My name is Tucker. This is my daughter, Nina. Say hello, Nina.”

“Hi. This is Alexander.” she cutely waved to them while petting the dog, “Have you come to play?”

“No, sweetheart. Nicholas is here to help Daddy further his research. But I’m sure Regina would like to play.” Tucker chuckled.

“Of course.” she smiled while crouching down to the girl’s level, “I bet you know all kinds of games we can play, don’t you?”

“Uh-huh!” Nina chirped, “Alexander and I love to play. Come on! I’ll show you.”

“Quite the ball of energy you have there.” Flamel chuckled as the little girl dragged his sister away, “You sure she’s yours?”

“She got that from her mother. Always looking for something exciting.” Tucker said with a sad smile.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Flamel apologized after catching on, “Was it recent?”

“Two years ago, actually. Just before I joined Szilard’s group. Being with people on similar levels of intellect helped take my mind away from the grief.” Tucker sighed, “Makes wish I had Maiza’s skill in medical alchemy. Damn plague took both my wife and our last dog. Nina was heartbroken.”

“I can imagine.” he nodded, “It’s not easy to grow up without your mother. Trust me.”

“Yes. But enough dwelling on sad times. Let’s head inside where my experiments are kept.” Tucker offered hoping to change the sensitive subject.

“Lead the way.” Flamel nodded as they headed inside, “So, what exactly have you been working on lately?”

“Well, as you know, my specialty lies with bio alchemy. Ever since I created the speaking chimera, I’ve been focusing on further advancing the experiment. Unfortunately, I haven’t had much success.”

“Really? Can I see your research notes? Maybe there’s something you missed.”

“Unfortunately, I can’t do that.” he replied as they entered a secret back room filled with caged and jarred animals, “When my wife passed away, we lived in another house. I didn’t want anything to spread so I burned down our home and left all my research notes inside; I didn’t want to bring anything that could have been contaminated with Nina around.”

“Oh, I see.” Flamel nodded as he looked at the snarling mutated creatures, “Well, it’s obvious that you know how to create chimeras without much trouble. You just can’t get any of them to match the previous one’s intellect, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.” Tucker nodded.

“What kind of animals did you use last time?” he asked.

“Various mammals blended with other chimeras I created. None of which I have currently at my disposal.”

“I’m still fairly new to this group. Do you have to present Quates and others with another talking chimera? Because it doesn’t seem like that can happen anytime soon, Tucker.” Flamel wondered.

“No, it doesn’t.” he replied, “But bio alchemy is my specialty. If I don’t show that I’m capable of further improving my work, I can kiss this lab coat and everything else they have to offer goodbye. There’s not much else I can do with this particular field. Any suggestions?”

“…Make a talking chimera.” Flamel sheepishly answered, “Sorry, but that really does look like your best option.”

“Very well,” he sighed, “In that case, I’ll need to work on this myself.”

“You sure? I can help out.” he offered before Regina came bursting through the door sweating and panting, “Regina?”

“Your turn.” she wheezed.

“What?” he asked.

“It’s your turn! I can’t keep up with that kid anymore. You play with her!” she all but demanded.

“Okay, okay. Geez!” Flamel sighed as he headed outside with her, “You know, you should be embarrassed. You can’t even keep up with a five-year-old little girl.”

“Shut up!” Regina snapped, “She’s rides that dog around like it’s a damn horse.”

“Yap, yap, yap.” he mocked. After they left, Tucker made sure he was alone and pulled out an old notebook from his coat and flipped to a particular page; one that specified abnormal anatomy. 

Outside, Flamel was beginning to understand how such a small girl like Nina was able to wear out his sister. Like Regina had said, Nina would occasionally hop on Alexander as Flamel chased her in order to get away; sometimes, Alexander would play along and tackle him and lick his face to distract him from his owner. The sounds of happy laughter and barking filled the air that day, no one wanted it to end; especially Nina.

“Okay, sis, I think I understand why you were so exhausted earlier.” Flamel panted with a smile.

“I’ll take that as an apology.” she said playfully shoving him.

“Come on, guys! We’re not done, yet!” Nina exclaimed trying not to pout, “Come on, big brother!”

“Easy, Nina. It’s hard to keep up with you.” he laughed, “Why don’t we take a break and see how your father’s doing? Maybe he wants to play?”

“No,” she said looking sad, “Daddy never wants to play. He’s too busy working to play, that’s why he got me Alexander.”

“Oh, sweetie,” Regina soothed with a kind smile, “I’m sure that’s not true. Your father loves you. I’ll wager that as soon as he’s finished, he’ll play with you all you want.”

“Really?” she asked in hope.

“Really.” Regina nodded.

“Aren’t there any kids your age that you’d like to play with?” Flamel asked.

“No. Daddy didn’t want to live near any distractions so he built our house far away from any village.” Nina clarified.

“It must be pretty lonely for her out here.” Flamel said to his sister.

“It’s okay, big brother Nicky! I have Alexander, right boy?” she asked earning a bark from the dog.

“Yeah.” she nodded sadly before perking up with an idea, “Nina? What would you say to coming over to our house tomorrow while your father is working? Does that sound like fun?”

“Can Alexander come?” the girl sweetly asked as she hugged her pet.

“Of course he can.” she chuckled as the dog barked in approval.

“Nina,” Tucker called from the front door, “It’s time to come in, dear. Say goodbye to Nicholas and Regina.”

“Aw, Daddy!” Nina whined, “Can’t we play a little longer?”

“No. Come inside.” he flatly replied as the sun’s glare covered his glasses.

“Probably best if you do as your father says, Nina.” Flamel softly advised, “We don’t want him to object to our plans tomorrow, right?”

“Okay. Bye-bye, Gina. Bye-bye, Nicky.” she relented puffing her cheeks before hugging the siblings goodbye. After they had left, Tucker escorted his daughter and dog back inside to his office.

“Nina,” he said softly, “You know that Daddy has an important meeting with his colleagues tomorrow, right? And that he needs to impress them with an experiment?”

“Yep!” she nodded innocently, “Don’t worry, Daddy. I know you’ll be great!”

“Thank you, sweetheart.” he smiled as he patted her head, “In fact, what would you say to helping Daddy put the final touches on his work?”

“Can I really?” she asked happy that her father was wanting to spend time with her.

“Of course.” Tucker nodded with a smile she had never seen before, “In fact, Alexander can help us, as well. Why don’t we head into Daddy’s lab and get started? Then maybe later, we can all play together.”

“Yay!” Nina cheered.

**OUaT**

“What have you done?!” Emma shrieked.

“I just took care of a threat towards my family, what does it look like I’ve done?” Nicholas asked in a dark, nonchalant tone.

“You didn’t have to kill them!” she shouted in anger.

“Oh, we didn’t, did we?” Shan Yu asked, “And you can honestly say that had we not, those brats would have left the sacrifice and her child alone? I’ve heard of blind faith, but that seems a bit ridiculous.”

“You heard what he said, Emma. Their leader wouldn’t care how many times it took or how many they would lose; they would do whatever it takes to prove to everyone they mean business.” Giles reminded unfazed by what he and his associates had done.

“How can you stand there and say that? You’re a priest, for God’s sake!” Emma shouted.

“True, but I am an LXG agent above all else.” he calmly defended, “And while I would like to say that I wish I could have taken a different course of action, I have to admit, this was the most efficient in ensuring the end of the threat they imposed. Besides, anyone, no matter what their age may be, who do not seem to care about the safety of an innocent infant deserves to die, especially by my hand; be glad that Storybrooke does not have any abortion clinics or else you would see the extent of my wrath.”

“What did you expect from us, Swan?” Mina coldly asked not bothering to wipe her bloody mouth, “Did you think that we were some group of herald heroes that would solve all your problems in the cleanest and noblest of ways?”

“We’re professional killers, plain and simple.” Sawyer clarified bluntly.

“They were just kids!” Regina debated.

“Technically, most of them were several decades to centuries old.” Skinner corrected without a care in the world.

“Besides, it’s not like anyone will miss the little bastardos.” Quixote chuckled as he pulled his spear from the corpses he impaled, “Clearly, the Homunculi orchestrated this whole mess. Question is, why?”

“To carve a crest of blood.” Nicholas replied, “My guess is that this was the last one. We played right into their hands.”

“What the bloody hell is a crest of blood?” Zelena asked.

“It’s complicated.” he sighed earning another earful from his girlfriend.

“Nicholas, if you say that one more time and just brush us off, I swear to God-”

“Alright, alright!” he relented as he created a pedestal from the ground and sculpted a map of town on its surface.

“Graham.” he said pointing to the spot where his old friend died while creating a spot on the map.

“George.” he continued pointing to where he killed the corrupt king before pointing to three other spots, “Neal, Cruella, and the Lost Boys. All dead, all killed in significant spots. You may think they each died at these spots purely by chance, but you’d be wrong. It’s by the will of the Homunculi. Crests of blood at the designating points made through bloodshed fueled by hatred.”

As he said this, he used his alchemy to connect the points to show an upside-down pentagon in another pentagon inside a circle surrounding the town. “Just like in Xerxes, the Dwarf in the Flask is creating massive transmutation circles designed to create a Philosopher’s Stone.”

“Wait a minute,” Regina interrupted, “ _Circles_? How many is he making for just one town?”

“Whoever said it was just for Storybrooke?” he asked, “In three days from now, a solar eclipse will occur and mark the beginning of the Promised Day. When that happens, the procedure will begin, and it won’t just be Storybrooke that will be victim to his twisted mind.”

“What are you talking about?” Emma asked.

“A solar eclipse doesn’t just signify the alignment of the earth’s moon and the sun. It also reflects the alignment of the other realms. Over the years, the Homunculi have been able to carve out other crests of blood in the realms that will be a part of this alignment. When they are perfectly aligned, he will use us as sacrifices to break past the barriers of the realms and acquire an unbelievable amount of power by turning everyone caught in the radius of these circles into a Philosopher’s Stone. To do this, he needs a strong source of alchemic energy to support his transmutation; that’s me. And to balance out the magical energies flowing throughout the other realms that are filled with magic like the Enchanted Forest, he needs powerful sources of magic; you two, Gold, and one other. The only reason he had the Lost Boys attack you, Zelena, was because he needed one final crest of blood carved into Storybrooke. One way or another, those boys were going to die. If not by our hands, then by the hands of the other Homunculi. So if the three of you could please find it in your hearts to excuse me from keeping my family safe and away from the clutches of those vile abominations, I would feel a whole lot better.” Nicholas said hotly in sarcasm.

“This is war, ladies.” Quartermain said gruffly, “Blood will be shed. And this? This is just a brief glance at the amount of blood and dead bodies that will liter across Storybrooke in the days to come.”

“Can you honestly say that you’re all that surprised?” Nicholas dryly asked, “You remember how David and Ruby told you how cold I was when I killed George, Emma. The way I nearly destroyed that boy’s face without hesitation back in Neverland. When I dashed Eric’s desperate hopes of surviving before watching in amusement as his flesh and bones burnt away in the night. How I enjoyed torturing and tormenting Arthur while I burned his castle and his people with Robin in Camelot.”

“You weren’t always-” Emma tried to reason before being interrupted.

“Yes, I was.” he denied, “I’ve just been good at keeping it under control when I’m around you guys. I don’t have a misguided sense of mercy like your parents do, Emma. If I even had one to begin with, my sense of mercy was tossed away over fifty years ago. I don’t cling to a false hope that my enemies can be redeemed after a certain amount of time. When it comes down to it, I have but two choices; kill, or don’t kill. It’s plain, simple, and I will choose whatever option so long as it means I can protect the people I care about. So you can resent me, or think less of me all you want. But if I was able to do it all over again, I would still kill those boys if any of you were in danger from them. This ‘merciful’ act of mine is over. Be prepared, because you’ll see the real Nicholas Flamel before this is over. I am done tip-toeing my way through this sort of shit. My hands are already stained red with blood; I have no qualms with dipping them in any further.”

“…I don’t even know who you are anymore.” she said with a shocked expression, “How on earth did you become like this?”

“You really want to know?” he asked almost coldly, “It’s simple, really. I learned the truth within the truth. And that’s something that can only be learned when you live the kind of life I’ve lived.”

With that said, Nicholas turned away from her, not even caring that he was stepping over or on the lifeless bodies of the children he and his comrades had slain just minutes before.

“Nicholas, wait!” Emma called only to be stopped by Regina.

“Let him go, Emma.” she said softly, “This is who he is. Just accept it.”

“How can you say that?” the blonde asked baffled, “You sound like you’ve seen this side of him before!”

“Because I have.” Regina replied thinking to a dark moment in her past, “But I never once thought that this was who he truly was.”

“Enough with the family secrets already!” Emma exclaimed, “If you know what drove him to be like this, just tell me, Regina!”

“Fine. But try not to think less of him, please.” she pleaded.

**OUaT**

The following morning, Flamel and Regina returned to Tucker’s home ready to spend another day with Nina. Much to their displeasure, it had begun to rain heavily by the time they reached the house. When they arrived, they let themselves in to get out of the rain, however, they noticed that it was both eerily quiet and eerily dark in the house.

“Anyone home?” Flamel called, “Tucker?”

“Nina?” Regina called as they headed towards the back room. When they reached the room, they saw Tucker sitting in a chair next to a strange creature. At first glance, it looked like a cross between a wolf and a white fox with a long, red mane down its back.

“I’m right here, my friends.” he said with an odd smile in the dark, “I’ve done it, Nicholas. I’ve succeeded in my experiment!”

“You have?” Flamel asked in surprise. Just the day before, the man didn’t have any of the required resources and was grasping at straws, now he had successfully recreated his success? Something was wrong.

“Indeed.” Tucker nodded still smiling before addressing the chimera, “Listen to me, that boy over there, his name is Nicholas.”

“That person is Nicholas.” the chimera repeated in a low voice.

“Yes, that’s it!” Tucker praised, “Very good.”

“Incredible.” Regina said in awe, “It can really talk.”

“Now I don’t need to worry about the old man revoking my membership. I made it just in time. He and the others are expecting me at the tavern later.” he explained while Flamel came over and further examined the chimera.

“That person is Nicholas. That person is Nicholas. That person is…Nicholas.” the chimera repeated before giving what one could assume was a smile, “Big brother Nicky.”

Those three little words caused Flamel’s heart to stop. Regina didn’t seem to notice as she was still impressed by the display of alchemy before her. However, Flamel was no longer impressed; only furious.

“Tucker, when did you say your wife died, again?” he asked.

“Let’s see,” the alchemist trailed, “It was two years ago.”

“And when did you join up with Szilard and receive your membership?” he asked again.

“That was two years ago, as well.” Tucker replied.

“Then I just have one last question for you. Nina and Alexander, where are they?” Flamel asked earning a death glare from his colleague.

“…Damn brat, figuring it out so quickly.” he cursed under his breath before trying to charge the boy only to be slammed against the wall.

“Oh, yeah, I figured it out. You did it again!” Flamel shouted, “First it was your wife and now you pull this stunt?!”

“Brother, what are you doing?!” Regina exclaimed.

“He turned Nina and Alexander into a chimera!” Flamel snarled as she looked down at the creature in horror, “You can only do so much with animals, right? How could you even think to do something like this?!”

“It’s all necessary to our cause.” Tucker said with a mad grin, “Human experimentation is the key step to our expansion of knowledge. I would think that as a fellow alchemist, you would understand.”

“Like hell!” Flamel cried as his arms and a portion of his face became covered in his shield for the first time. In addition to that, his rage allowed his abnormal shadows to appear on the floor and further frighten his sister. 

“There are lines we don’t cross, you sick bastard! To meddle with another human’s life like this, to your own daughter?!”

“You’re one to talk.” Tucker cackled insanely, “Did you honestly think we didn’t know what you were when you joined us? The only reason Quates let you join is because of what’s inside you! Look at your arms, your face, your own shadows! Those are the results of someone meddling with someone else’s life. Alchemists are forbidden from diving into the secret of immortality, and yet you willingly helped Xerxes plunge head first into the consequences while you reaped the benefits. You’re just like me!”

“Shut up!” he cried as he began to punch the deranged man with his hardened fist, knocking off his glasses in the process.

“We’re the same! We’re the same!” Tucker taunted while Nina and Regina watched.

“I’m not!” Flamel shouted in protest while trying to convince himself past the horrific memories flashing before his eyes as he continued to punch. As he did, blood began to cover his fist and splattered against his white lab coat. “I’m not! I’m not like you. I’m not!”

“Nicholas! Stop it! If you keep this up, he’ll die.” Regina warned as she grabbed his arm. As she did, he could feel Nina’s cold nose brush against his leg.

“Nicholas, no.” she pleaded. Her voice was so wrong and foreign to him, Flamel stiffened with guilt and sadness as she brushed her face against Tucker’s bloody face, “Don’t hurt Daddy anymore. Daddy hurt? Do you hurt, Daddy?”

“Oh, Nina.” Regina said softly as she cried and hugged the chimera.

“Can we play now?” she asked, “Can we play now?”

“I made it just in time.” Tucker said crawling towards his hung lab coat, “I get to stay a member; I passed.”

In his anger, Flamel went over to the coat, not caring that his boot crushed Tucker’s hand, and tore it to shreds before his deranged eyes.

“I’ll send word to the guards at the estate.” Regina said while glaring at the pitiful man on the floor, “They’ll make sure he gets put in a cell that will never see the light of day.”

“No.” her brother spat, “He doesn’t deserve to get away with what he’s done like that. There’s only one thing that’s good enough punishment for him.”

“What are you-hey!” Regina said as her brother grabbed her by the arm and dragged her outside; he didn’t even seem to care, or notice that she had fallen into the mud before heading back inside and sealing the doors and windows shut.

“Nicholas!” she shouted while pounding on the door, “Nicholas, open the door! Don’t do it! Abba!”

But her words fell on deaf ears. Flamel was too consumed by his rage and bloodlust to hear her pleas. It looked like a scene out of a horror film as the flash of lightning shined on his face in the dark room.

“Like hell you’re staying a member. First chance I get, I’m telling the others what you’ve done.” he spat with his eyes glowing red and his hand surging with alchemic sparks. He didn’t know what he was doing, it just came naturally to him; probably thanks to his mother’s bloodlust being passed on to him. “Not that it’s going to matter much. When I’m done with you, there won’t be anything left for them shame.”

With his heart hardened, and his eyes cold, Flamel grabbed Tucker’s face in his tight grip and gave him the last words he’d ever hear. “Burn in hell.”

In a brief flash of red lightning that shined through all the windows, Tucker’s body erupted into blood before Flamel dropped his corpse onto the floor. At this point, more of Flamel’s coat was stained with fresh blood leaving only a few scares places of white left. As soon as her father’s body hit the ground, Nina crawled over to him and began to shed tears.

“Daddy’s hurting.” she said as her voice shook, “No, Daddy. Big brother?”

“You poor girl.” Flamel whispered as he crouched to her level and gently stroked her jaw, “Once you’ve been given this form, there is nothing that can return you to the body you once had.”

“Can we play now?” Nina asked as her grief confused her, “Can we play now?”

“Your suffering will soon end.” he assured as he looked her in the eyes.

“Can we play-”

To spare her from any more pain, Flamel did to her what he did to her father only moments before. More blood began to stain his coat, much like how Nina’s white fur was being stained with her father’s blood mixed with hers.

After the deed had been done, Flamel exited the house and walked past his soaking wet sister. “What did you do?” she asked over the downpour and thunder, “Nicholas, what did you do?!”

But all he did was turn to her and said, “Go home, Regina.”

After that, he wandered through the drenched woods to the tavern where the other alchemists were awaiting Tucker and his results. His coat was still red with blood, but the rain had managed to wash away what was splattered on his hands and face. However, he still had the look of a killer on his face, clear as day. When he entered the tavern, he saw only a few strangers along with the remaining alchemists at their usual table.

“Ah, Nicholas, welcome back.” Maiza kindly greeted, “Come, join us. Tucker will be along soon to show us his newest experiment.”

“Wait a minute, is that blood?!” Giroro exclaimed when he saw the boy’s coat.

“What in the world happened to you?” Kimblee asked.

“That talking chimera Tucker created? It was his wife. He did the same thing to his daughter Nina last night.” he explained with a blank face and tone.

“Yes, we know.” Kimblee replied nonchalantly pulling Flamel back down to earth.

“What?” he asked as his anger returned.

“I told you it was a matter of time before he did the same to the girl. Pay up, Maiza.” Giroro chuckled as Maiza smirked and handed him a pouch of money.

“Wait, you-you all knew?” Flamel asked.

“Of course, we knew.” Szilard nodded, “We witnessed the procedure, ourselves. In fact, I suggested it to him to use his daughter the next time he would perform it. Considering there wouldn’t be much of a difference in the chemical make-up, the chances of a rebound would be less than likely if done on another human. Where is he, anyway? You should have come across him on your way here.”

“Probably took the time to play fetch with his daughter. If she’s anything like how her mother turned out, he made her with a dog!” Giroro laughed before Flamel grabbed his face from behind and killed him like he had done Tucker.

“You bastards.” he muttered as his shadows flooded the floor, “You sick, twisted bastards!”

Without any warning, the youngest alchemist sent his shadows into the chests of Maiza and Kimblee while only Szilard’s legs were severed below his knees. As he tried to crawl away through his agonizing pain, he watched as the shadows tore the bodies they impaled apart. Not a split second later, the old man could feel several needles pierce through his lower back before seeing that it was Flamel using his spears. Out of fear, Szilard threw a nearby fork at his head only to watch it miss and knock over a lantern setting the tavern on fire. When he tried again with a knife, he smirked in victory as it landed in Flamel’s head.

“Is that all you’ve got?” the boy asked as he yanked out the knife and healed his wounds, “You disappoint me, Szilard Quates.”

“Please!” Szilard begged, “Please, Nicholas, don’t kill me!”

“Why shouldn’t I?” he asked pulling back his spears and watched as the old, fat man tumbled on his back, “You didn’t seem to care when you suggested that Tucker should rob his daughter of her life. Just like I don’t care that I’m about to rob you of yours. I suggest you repent to whatever god that comes to mind, Devouring Alchemist, because you’re about to die at the hands of the _Immortal_ Alchemist.”

“No!” he cried in protest before Flamel ended his life. Unlike with the others, Szilard’s death was far more gruesome and horrific to explain. So for the sake of those who cannot stomach such atrocities, details of how Flamel killed him will not be provided.

As the young alchemist left the burning tavern, the rain had finally stopped, and the sun had come out to shine on his blood soaked coat. No traces of white were left on the fabric. He didn’t care that he reeked of death, and he especially did not mourn over those whom he had killed aside from Nina. He was completely unfazed. Why should he be affected by it? What immortal should concern themselves over something like death?

**OUaT**

Once Regina had finished explaining what her brother had done in the past, her other sister and her friend were stricken with horror. To be honest, horror may not be the appropriate word to describe what they were feeling; if there was even a word that could accurately describe their emotions.

“If you ladies are done reminiscing about the past,” Skinner rudely spoke up, “Perhaps you should head back to the mansion. This place is no longer safe.”

“You heard him.” Nicholas said coldly looking over his shoulder, “Get going.”

Not being able to bring themselves to speak, they each poofed themselves, and the baby, back to the mansion and out of harm’s way; for now.

“Are you sure that was how you wanted them to see this side of you?” Mina asked her friend and fellow immortal.

“Did you have any alternatives in mind? Because if you did, it’s a little late for that.” Nicholas snapped.

“Perhaps,” she nodded as she finally began to wipe her mouth, “But I’ve known you a long time, Nicholas Flamel, and I know what’s going on in your head. Don’t push them away too much just because you’re concerned for their safety. You’ll regret it if you do.”

“But I’ll regret it more if I let anything happen to them.” he retorted as the guilt creeped on his face, “I meant what I said, if I had to do it again, I would still kill these boys.”

“So long as you do not take pride in it, it proves you still have some part of humanity in you.” she reminded.

“Wait.” he said as something popped into his head, “What did you say?”

“I said, don’t take pride in killing children.” she shrugged.

“Pride.” he repeated, “Pride did this. Pride drove these brats into doing this.”

“The sin or the Homunculus?” Skinner asked.

“Both.” Nicholas concluded, “Freckles over there said that it was some kid dressed in a suit. He manipulated the Lost Boy’s pride and used it to his advantage to carve the final crest of blood. You know what that means?”

“We have an idea as to what one of the Homunculi looks like?” Giles asked.

“Yeah,” Nicholas smirked, “And I’ll bet he’s nothing more than a scrawny kid, too. Which makes our job much easier.”

“Does it?” Pride asked as his own shadows covered the ground around them with hundreds of small, black hands inching towards them, “You seem quite sure of yourself, Nicholas Flamel; and here I thought I was considered to be arrogant.”

“Pride the Arrogant.” Nicholas chuckled as his friends had their weapons at the ready while Pride’s shadow covered the farmhouse facing them, “You bear a rather striking resemblance to your father. You must be his first creation, then. Makes sense. Pride was always his most treasured quality. So what brings the first Homunculus all the way out here? Is it to check and see that he was a good boy and did as his father told him?”

“Hey, you really think it’s a good idea to taunt this thing?” Sawyer asked trying not to show his nerves, “Not all of us are immortal, you know.”

“Relax, he’s not going to try anything. He’s arrogant, but he’s not stupid. He knows that even if were up against just his shadow, we can still do some considerable damage to him. It’s eight League agents against just one of him. The odds are against him tremendously.” he smirked while Pride gritted his shadow’s teeth, “Have I struck a nerve? Have I made you angry?”

“Anger does not exist in me.” Pride retorted, “All emotions were purified from me thanks to Father. All that resides in me is pride.”

“Pride, huh? So he really has rid himself of his inner desires. What a shame.” Nicholas sighed, “There are seven deadly sins of man, lust, greed, sloth, gluttony, envy, wrath, pride. I’ve only had the displeasure of dealing with his Lust up until now. What reason could the firstborn of his children possibly have in facing us tonight?”

“Do I need a reason?” Pride asked, “For all you know, I could simply be observing your strengths.”

“Do I need to retract my remark about you being stupid?” he asked, “Don’t think you can lie to me. I know your kind better than anyone. If it hadn’t been for me, you, or your father and siblings, wouldn’t even exist.”

“You wish to see Father, then?” Pride asked.

“Growing impatient, is he? How lamentable.” he mocked as the shadows continued to glare at him, “Be a good boy and give him this message for me. Tell him Slave 23 sends his regards and that I’ll be sure to pay him a personal visit on the Promised Day. Now run along home before I send you to your sister.”

Pride said nothing as he slunk away to his body. However, he did have the faintest glint in his many eyes at the mentioning of Lust despite no one noticing.

**OUaT**

As Flamel wandered through the woods, still drenched with blood, the horrors of what he had done had finally begun to sink in. His eyes were shaded and widened in shock as the numerous deaths began to fill him with dread. He had no idea of where he was or where he was going; he just didn’t care. He didn’t completely regret killing the other alchemists, but Nina’s death, on the other hand, broke his heart.

As he trudged through the dark, Flamel tripped over a large tree root and fell to the ground. However, he didn’t bother to pick himself up, the dam had finally burst and the alchemist’s heartbroken and guilty tears streamed down from his face; and though he didn’t realize, the strange coin he received in Arendelle fell out of his pocket and rolled about a foot in front of him.

“I’m sorry!” he sobbed into the ground, “I’m sorry!”

Dred and despair began to consume Flamel as what he had done in addition to his past turmoil returning to the surface to haunt him. But as it did, an unexpected presence came into the woods and approached him.

Seemingly cloaked in a warm, pale and comforting light, a barefoot man with a long braid draped over his shoulder in white robes with a blue tunic underneath wielding a strange staff gently walked towards Flamel. Somehow, this person had seen everything Flamel had done since the sun had risen that morning and had something special in mind for him. Kneeling down, he picked up the coin and gently placed a hand on Flamel’s head.

“In these realms we know of, there are those who disregard the sanctity and beauty of life. Those alchemists were such people. When the safety of innocent people is in jeopardy, we take up arms to fight when they cannot. At times, it may end in the death of those whom we fight if they refuse to renounce their ways. What you did was the right thing to do. Those men could not have been allowed to live, and that poor girl would never have been able to return to her original form or live a peaceful life like she deserved. But there are other ways to deal threats like that; other ways to protect people. Let me show you the way, and I can promise you, you will never have to lose the ones you love again. Though, I will warn you, the road will be long and hard and sacrifices _will_ be made. But if you can face this, nothing will be able to stop you.”

“Why me?” Flamel asked.

“Because,” the man smiled patting his head, “Only the extraordinary are capable of taking up this responsibility. And you, well, you are extraordinary, Nicholas Flamel.”

Standing up, the man continued to give a kind smile as he offered his hand to the boy, “Join us, and become strong.”

“Join what?” he asked, “I don’t even know what you’re talking about.”

“I represent and lead a secret organization sworn to protect the realms from dangers their people cannot defeat on their own. We are known as the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and I am its director. Call me ‘S’. What say you, Immortal Alchemist? Will you join us?”

“…Yes.”


	72. First Blood

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG

“He did what?!” David exclaimed into his wife’s cell phone while on speaker. On the other end was their daughter still held up in the mansion. It was two days following the massacre she witnessed the previous night which meant there were only two days left until the eclipse.

“You heard me.” Emma sighed, “He and the others killed them, all of them.”

“My God.” Snow whispered shakenly, “This is the kind of person he really is?”

“I don’t know, Mom.” her daughter sighed, “I don’t know what to believe, anymore. I thought I knew him, but now I realize he’s a complete stranger to me. You should’ve seen the look in his eyes after he killed that kid. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“Oh, Emma, I’m sorry.” she apologized, “When are you coming home?”

“They won’t let me, Zelena or Gold leave. Nicholas said it was too dangerous for us to be out there. And, apparently, his ‘boss’ doesn’t trust us enough to let us out of any of his agents’ sights. Regina’s headed home to check on Henry, so she’ll probably give you the rest of the details.”

“Can’t you just ‘poof’ back for a little bit?” Snow asked.

“If I do, Quartermain said he’ll just send someone to bring me back. These people don’t play games, Mom.”

“Why don’t I head over there and let that old man know that he can’t go around giving my daughter orders?” David suggested slightly angered.

“You can try, but something tells me there’s a pretty good reason why Nicholas is afraid of him.” Emma replied.

“He is?” her father asked.

“I think.” she shrugged, “I’ve noticed he and some of the others get a little nervous whenever Quartermain gets angry, so it’s possible he either scares them or just intimidates them. How bad is it outside?”

“It could be worse, or at least, it will get worse.” Snow sighed, “A bunch of Nemo’s men are blocking off certain areas in town and preventing people from getting past the borders. Some of them are even covering certain spots with barbed wire, sandbags and barricade spikes; the rest are in the woods and on the streets and rooftops with guns keeping lookout.”

“It looks like a warzone.” David remarked.

“The way these guys are talking and planning, it just might be one tomorrow.” Emma scoffed.

“Has Nicholas told you anything else about these Homunculi things?” Snow asked.

“Not really. Aside from each of them having one of his abilities and those crests of blood he mentioned the other night, he isn’t saying much; he’s actually been avoiding me.” she replied in disappointment.

“Maybe he feels guilty about what he did.” David offered in hopes to cheer up his daughter.

“No.” Emma flatly denied, “I could see it in his eyes, he doesn’t have the slightest sense of remorse over what he did; to him his actions were completely justified, no matter how terrible they were.”

“Terrible, were they?” Skinner asked from behind Emma against the wall. He was leaning on the doorframe to the stairwell for the second level with his arms crossed and an arrogant smirk on his makeup covered face.

“Mom, Dad, I’ll have to call you back.” the blonde said glaring at the Invisible Man while hanging up the old fashioned phone, “What do you want?”

“That’s the one question I can never give a straight answer to, darling.” Skinner chuckled, “I’m a very greedy man so there’s a great many things that I want. But I suppose I’ll settle for an answer to my previous question, were our actions really so terrible last night?”

“You murdered a bunch of teenage boys.” Emma growled.

“Ah, so you think we went overboard, then.” Skinner nodded still smirking, “I see. However, you make it sound like we did it in cold blood to a group of innocents.”

“They were kids!” she snapped.

“Youth isn’t an excuse for innocence, sweetheart.” he smoothly retorted, “Have you forgotten that they attempted to kill you and your loved ones and nearly succeeded in killing your father back in Neverland? They had no qualms with killing you, so why should Nicholas, or any of us for that matter, have any qualms over killing them?”

“What?” Emma asked not believing her ears.

“We don’t pretend to be saints, so don’t think we’ll act like them to save face, Swan.” Skinner chuckled, “In our line of work, we’ve all grasped the true understanding of how the realms work; kill or be killed. This realm has just diluted itself and its people into believing some overly complicated moral bull. Consider yourself to be one of the bamboozled.”

“That’s not true.” she denied, “I refuse to accept that. There is always another way, you did not have to kill those boys if you had just tried!”

“Weren’t you listening to Nicholas?” he asked, “It’s like he said, they would have died that night either way, be it by our hands or the Homunculi’s. Besides, you should be thanking us. We managed to save a baby and spare Storybrooke from a domestic terrorist group all in one night. I call that a win-win.”

“They weren’t terrorists, dammit!”

“No? Vandalizing public property and businesses while causing violence in the name of protesting the ruling power of a community without a care over who gets hurt or killed in the process doesn’t seem like terrorism to you?” Skinner asked getting close to her, “Those ‘children’ you keep defending weren’t as innocent as you thought they were. They took advantage of the times you were busy dealing with villains and off to other realms and did exactly those things. Pan may be dead, Swan, but his legacy sure isn’t; well, it wasn’t until last night, that is.”

“I’m not gonna waste my time with you.” Emma sneered as she shoved past him.

“Killing someone may be wrong, but it isn’t necessarily bad, either.” Skinner continued causing her to stop, “It’s a hard choice, but sometimes it can be the best one out of your other options. Where do you think this town would be if Rumplestiltskin hadn’t killed his father or if Nicholas spared George? Or what might have happened if you hadn’t killed Cruella DeVill? Threats were eliminated and people were saved, exactly like what we did, have done, and will continue to do. Is that really such a bad thing?”

Emma may have listened to the Gentleman’s words, but she certainly didn’t reply to them. Instead, she brought herself to head up the stairs in order to get away from the chastising agent behind her.

“Don’t forget, Swan,” he added as she continued to walk, “This is the same ideology Nicholas believes in. If you truly love him, then you _will_ have to accept that.”

Despite wanting to push away Skinner’s words from her mind, Emma couldn’t help but dwell on them. On one hand, she was completely against everything he said and refused to believe in the cold truth in his words. But on the other hand, having grown up in a harsh reality herself, and living her entire life in a cold and cruel world, she could understand how permanently getting rid of an enemy could be a good thing. Had she let her parents’ beliefs cloud her judgment? Could she be clinging to a false hope of redemption for all because Regina and Hook, two of her closest friends who were once villains, were able to turn good? Who knows? Certainly not her at this point.

As she headed up the stairs, she looked up and saw Mina through the metal banister glaring at her as she sharpened her daggers. Unlike before, she wasn’t wearing a black dress and vail like she was going to a funeral. Instead, she was wearing a tight, black leather combat suit with a long skirt wrapped around her waist; she also had her red hair flowing down her back. Normally, Emma wasn’t intimidated by just a glare, but Mina’s blood red eyes narrowing down at her didn’t exactly give her a warm feeling inside.

These people, these “Extraordinary Gentlemen” as they called themselves, they didn’t make any sense to Emma. She had hoped that Nicholas coming clean would finally give her some answers, not more questions. Wanting the answers to those questions, she tried to find her mysterious boyfriend only to bump into him on the stairs.

“Watch where you’re-oh, it’s you.” Nicholas said dropping his annoyed tone to a relieved one and smile; one Emma did not return.

“What are those?!” she asked loudly as she took notice of a pair of strange black, metal gauntlets over his coat sleeves.

“Hmm? Oh, these.” he replied as he raised his arms, “They’re some improvements I made to those lightning alchemy claws I made. Remember? The ones I used on the Chernabog. I finally managed to put the finishing touches on last night. Pretty cool, huh?”

Taking a close look at the gauntlets, cool was not really a word Emma would have chosen. Over his sleeves and alchemy gloves, the gauntlets went from just below his elbows to his fingertips which were covered by inch long claws. Like the older design, there was a small metal plate on each of his palms connected to several steel wires; this time, however, they went between his fingers instead of over them.

“Sure.” Emma said skeptically nodding her head, “Listen, Nicholas, I need to talk to you.”

“Everything okay?” he asked.

“I’m fine, listen-”

“No, you’re not. What’s wrong?” he asked in concern before narrowing his eyes in irritation, “Did somebody say something to you? They did, didn’t they? Who was it? Mina? Quartermain? Skinner?”

“I don’t know, whichever the one who’s invisible.” Emma replied, “Anyway, that’s not the point.”

“Skinner? What did he say?” Nicholas asked while Emma just shrugged it off and looked away, “Emma, you can tell me anything. You know that, right?”

“Can I?!” she snapped, “Or are you going to kill me if I keep secrets from you like you did to the Lost Boys?!”

“Sigh, you’re still angry about that, aren’t you?” he asked in an understanding tone.

“Ya think?!” she shouted, “I can’t believe that you kept this from me the whole time! And the day you tell me is the day that you and your gang, or whatever, kill a bunch of teenagers?! What else aren’t you telling me, Nicholas?”

“First of all, we are not a gang, we are a highly trained, professional organization that has operated for almost a thousand years. Secondly, only what you haven’t asked answers for.” he calmly replied, “It’s like I said, I’ll answer any question you have for me; all you need to do is ask.”

“Fine.” Emma huffed before stomping over to a nearby chair and table and plopped down in the seat with her arms and legs crossed.

“What, now?” Nicholas asked.

“Yes, now.” his girlfriend sharply replied.

“Okay.” he relented as he sat in the chair beside her, “What else do you want to know?”

“Do you even care about the lives you took last night? Or do they not matter to you ‘Gentlemen’?” Emma hotly asked.

“Honestly? Not really.” he shrugged.

“What?!” she shrieked.

“Emma, I don’t know what you’re expecting me to say here.” Nicholas sighed, “Those boys tried to kill my sister and my niece, that’s not something I’m going to forgive easily, if at all. Not to mention, in the past, they’ve tried to kill you, Regina, Hook, and your parents. Why should I feel any remorse for my enemies if they’ve done stuff like that? Quite frankly, I’m surprised that you and your parents feel as though you can lecture me after all you’ve done.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked.

“It means that you’re sounding like your hypocritical parents, that’s what.” Mina replied coldly as she climbed the stairs, “After all, your parents killed plenty of innocent people back in the day, too. Those black knights that served Regina when she was the queen? Yeah, they didn’t have a choice in serving her. Those that didn’t stay out of fear were the ones that either had their hearts ripped out and were controlled by them, or had their families threatened by Nicholas’ deranged sister ended up dead. So many men who didn’t even want to fight for Regina were killed at the hands of your parents and their forces. I guess the fact that their faces were always covered made it easier for them to forget killing them, right?”

“Mina,” Nicholas sighed.

“No!” the vampire snapped, “Enough is enough, Nicholas. I am tired of those people calling themselves heroes and deeming you as a monster when we are all guilty of the same crimes! You know what those arrogant bastards did and how they never expressed their condolences to the families they tore apart! Your parents never cared what happened to those trapped inside that castle’s walls, they only saw them as Regina’s loyal minions. You call yourselves heroes? Please. All you people do is clean up the messes thrown in your faces. There’s no such thing as a hero or a villain; there is only perspective. And if you weren’t so blinded by your own stupidity, you’d-”

“Mina!” Nicholas shouted as he shot from his seat and slammed his fist on the table with a hard glare. The sudden outburst naturally startled Emma and stopped Mina mid-rant. Up until she decided to call his true love stupid, Nicholas agreed to everything his teammate and friend was saying. At that point, he wasn’t going to simply sit down and let his fellow immortal insult her like that.

“That is enough.” he growled dangerously, “Go into town and oversee our next phase in the town’s defenses.”

“Hmph,” she scoffed in annoyance before stomping downstairs and out of the room.

“Sorry about that.” Nicholas apologized with an awkward chuckle while rubbing the back of his head, “Mina tends to rant when she’s angry. Though, aside from her calling you stupid, which was uncalled for, she does have a point. Snow and David did kill plenty of Regina’s knights during their little war and they neglected to offer their condolences to their families once they took back the kingdom, Emma. Trust me, I saw plenty of grieving mothers, widows and children when I was living in the castle. Besides, your father suggested killing Regina after the first curse, and the two of them and you, as well, had every intention of killing the both of us when we were framed for those murders; not to mention when your mother tricked Regina into killing our mother. And let’s not forget what you did to Cruella.”

“That’s not-”

“Any different than what I did to those little thugs last night.” he interrupted dryly, “What you did to Cruella was done in order to protect Henry, just like I did what I did to protect Zelena and Robin. Why can’t you see that?”

To be honest, she didn’t actually have an answer. Emma was unable to come up with any reason or excuse to justify why she was so upset. Even if Zelena wasn’t in any danger thanks to the Homunculi wanting her alive, that didn’t mean that Robin was safe from harm. While she just sat in her chair, Nicholas answered a call on his cell.

“What is it?” he asked.

“We’re about to begin the final sequence in our line of defense.” Quartermain replied on the other line, “Bring the Savior if you feel like coming to watch. Skinner and Sawyer will be keeping an eye on the witch and Dark One in the mansion.”

“Understood. We’ll be there in a minute.” Nicholas nodded before hanging up and rising from his chair, “Well, then, you up for getting some fresh air?”

“What?” Emma asked being pulled from her thoughts.

“Nemo’s about to put the final touches on our defensive measures for the town. Boss wants me to head in and help out which means that you’re gonna have to tag along.” he explained while offering her his hand and a smile she hadn’t seen in what seemed like ages, “Come on, it’s gonna be frickin awesome.”

“O-okay.” she nodded as he pulled her up and transported them to the beach just by the pier where some of the other agents were waiting and staring out at the sea, “What are we doing here?”

“Just watch.” he said trying to contain his excitement. Just a few seconds later, the water erupted in a long wall of water as something very large and long sprung forth from beneath the waves. Emma had to hold back an exclamation when it happened while the others either chuckled, smirked or simply stared at the spectacle. When the mist and water cleared, the blonde savior was able to see the Nautilus in all her glory. It was then that she noticed Nemo wasn’t amongst the group watching this. Instead, he was at the chrome helm of his masterpiece with his crew scrambling to their positions. Instead of seeing the bow of his ship as per usual, Nemo somehow rotated the position of the control- room to face the starboard side of the ship in direction of Storybrooke.

“Preparations have been set, Captain.” Ishmael informed at his captain’s right, “Everything is ready. We await your orders.”

“Disengage couplings to the stern and bow.” Nemo ordered as he grasped two separate handles to rotating panels marked with angle degrees.

“All hands, disengage couplings to the stern and bow. Stand by.” Ismael repeated to the crew via microphone. Outside the ship, the stern and bow of the Nautilus slightly ejected and released steam from the gap revealing what seemed like oversized hinges to Emma whose mouth was agape in bewilderment.

“Couplings have been successfully disengaged, Captain.” Ishmael informed.

“Activate water filters along the keel line and brace for grappler activation.” Nemo ordered while flipping a few nearby switches.

“Aye, sir.” his first mate nodded before relaying the order to the rest of the crew. Just below the water, just above the keel line, the ship opened to revel a long set of water filters that allowed the water to flow through. Following this, beneath the filters, large, fanged wheels dug into the ground and began to pull the Nautilus towards the beach. “All hands, brace for bow and stern trajectory adjustment.”

“Adjust stern ten degrees, Captain.” one of the shipmates advised as he looked through his binoculars.

“Negative thirteen degrees for the bow, sir.” another added as Nemo swiveled the handles. Outside, the two ends of the ship gradually folded in to each specific angle as it drew in closer.

“Another five degrees stern, Captain.”

“Maintain current angle position for the bow for the next five meters.” the sailor said, “Retract three degrees, Captain.”

“Add eight degrees stern, sir.”

“Maintain current angles, Captain.” Ishmael advised, “At the ready…full stop!”

“Aye, sir. Full stop.” the other sailor acknowledged.

As the mighty vessel came to its sudden stop, everyone was able to see the purpose of the event. As a reminder, Storybrooke’s pier is rather small and the beach nearby happens to end at two nearby cliffs/gulfs. With that in mind, picture the angled Nautilus barricading the town from the sea from gulf to gulf with the pier and town within its borders.

“Good work, men.” Nemo praised, “Drop anchors and prepare munitions along the starboard side.”

“Aye, Captain.” Ishmael and the others replied saluting their captain as he left the room.

Needless to say, Emma’s mouth was agape when all was said and done. “What the hell was that?” she asked bluntly as she stared the oversized sub.

“That was our final phase in Storybrooke’s defenses for the Promised Day, Emma.” Nicholas said proudly as he smiled up at the Nautilus, “This is just incase the enemy tries to escape to the sea or if they try to attack us from sea. And if push comes to shove and they have more firepower than we anticipated, we’ll be able to use the ship’s cannons and mortars on them.”

“Aren’t you worried that they might destroy this thing, or something?” she asked.

“Nah.” he waved off, “Nemo did a lot of reinforcement work to the outer hull a long time ago. The Amestrians would need armor piercing tank ammunition to bust a hole in the old girl; which they don’t have because their technology hasn’t advanced enough to develop that kind of weaponry yet. Besides, his crew is under orders to keep them away from the ship as much as possible and try to keep the fighting within the town.”

“Hopefully, that won’t be happening anytime soon today.” Giles remarked jinxing them all.

Beneath Storybrooke, Father sat in his cold, stone throne and smirked darkly as if he just heard what the LXG agent had said up above. All over town, his offspring were scattered in anticipation for their day of triumph. Lust, Envy and Gluttony were in the woods, Greed was wandering through the town eagerly awaiting the chance to kill someone, Pride was at his father’s side, and Wrath was driving into town in an old fashioned car.

“Hear me, my children.” Father said reaching out to them, “The time has come. Engage the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.”

“As you wish, Father.” they all responded with evil grins as they ran off to cause trouble.

“Wrath, I now speak directly to you.” Father informed to his son, “Return with the final sacrifice, at once. Disregard any human along your path.”

“It shall be done, Father.” Wrath replied obediently as he drove.

“If it is a war you want, Flamel,” Father said as his children began their individual attacks on the town, “Then it is a war you shall have.”

Greed was the first begin the assault by tearing out the throats of the two nearest members of Nemo’s crew causing an uproar of panic from the townsfolk who witnessed it. Gluttony left no room for manners as he began to feed on the sailors stationed in the woods while his siblings either impaled them or crushed their skulls with monstrous strength before setting their sights on the mansion. Somehow, the alarm was sounded and alerted everyone in town to the situation.

“And so it begins.” Quartermain muttered in annoyance as he readied his riffle.

“What’s going on?” Emma asked as the others drew their weapons.

“They’ve begun their attack.” Quixote replied.

“What?” she asked in shock, “But-but you said the Promised Day was two days from now! Why are they starting now?!”

“Most likely to get rid of us.” Jekyll suggested, “We are their only opposition, after all.”

“Everyone, get ready.” Mina warned with her eyes glowing red as she sensed the surrounding area, “Something’s coming; something big.”

“Big? How big?!” Emma asked.

“It’s coming from underground.” Nicholas informed as the familiar presence filled his stomach with disgust.

“Who’s coming where? Hello?! Normal person here, I can’t see through concrete!” Emma shouted before the ground erupted beneath them creating a large crater.

“Watch out!” Quartermain exclaimed as he pulled Emma away from falling in. Crawling out of the hole, a large, muscular man with long black hair with shackles on his wrists came into view. He also had a strange red mark covering his right eye and traveling down to his right palm, and he wore what Emma thought to be a cross between overalls and a black wrestling leotard. But the most eye-catching feature on his body was the small Ouroborous tattoo over his right kidney area.

“Augh,” he said in a low, dumb, sluggish voice while shielding his eyes from the sun, “Bright.”

“What the hell is that?” Emma asked as Nicholas practically began to growl.

“Why is everything so bright? Such a pain.” the behemoth complained lazily.

“See that tattoo on his back?” Nicholas asked trying to control his hatred, “That’ll tell you what that _thing_ is. He’s a Homunculus. And judging by that lazy persona he’s giving off, he’s the dwarf’s Sloth.”

“Now, what was it Father wanted me to do, again?” Sloth asked himself as he rubbed his head. Obviously, he hadn’t even noticed the others glaring at him.

“You’ve got point on this, Flamel.” Quartermain reminded, “What do we do?”

“What do you think?” he spat, “Kill it!”

Needing no more words from the immortal, each agent pulled out their own firearms and fired at the Homunculus. Unfortunately, it was too stupid to realize that it was being shot until one bullet went through his nose. It was then that he finally took notice of them as they continued to shoot.

“Ah, I remember.” he said lazily, “I kill the ones from the League or whatever.”

Without any warning, Sloth gave his arms a powerful swing and sent his chains at the agents. “Down!” Quartermain barked as they all dropped just before the chains could hit them, “Flamel! Get her out of here!”

“Roger!” Nicholas nodded as he picked Emma up and led her to safety; unfortunately, Sloth had something else in mind.

“Come back. Sacrifices must come with us, Father says so.” he said as swung his chain over Emma’s head. But just before it could crush her, Quartermain suddenly appeared behind her and blocked the attack with his riffle and a very enraged expression.

“Am I the only one who’s going to do their damn job here?!” he snarled as the others stopped gawking at him and continued to attack.

Giles made the first move by shooting Sloth’s knee which gave Quartermain the edge he needed to pull him in, bash his face, stab him with his weapon’s knife, and shoot him all in one go. After he did, Mina, with her tremendous vampire strength, sunk her claws into his arm, flung him over her shoulder, slammed him into the ground and crushed his face with a mighty punch.

However, when they saw the familiar red sparks cover his wounds, it was then that the agents remembered the disadvantage they had in this battle. In all honesty, even if Quartermain didn’t, the others were regretting sending Nicholas away from the fight.

“Ow,” Sloth moaned as he healed, “Hurt.”

“Well, at least we’ve managed to kill him once.” Mina dryly quipped. As the Homunculus healed, Nemo’s crew scrambled about their stations in the Nautilus.

“Status report.” Nemo ordered as he returned to the control room.

“Reports of Homunculi attacks are coming from all over the town, Captain.” a sailor informed, “One is currently causing a riot in town, another is being engaged by agents Quartermain, Harker, Jekyll and Bluebeard.”

“Civilian casualties?” he asked.

“Three deaths have been confirmed in the town square, sir. We’ve just received word that the Homunculus isn’t working alone.”

“The Amestrians?” Nemo asked surprised.

“Negative, sir. Our men have reported that they appear to be some sort of human-animal hybrids.”

“What?!” Nemo exclaimed.

“You know of these beasts, sir?” Ishmael asked.

“Chimeras.” Nemo nodded, “Nicholas warned us that the enemy might play this card. They are humans given animal features and abilities through alchemic procedures. Send word to all our forces, shoot any chimera on sight; no mercy!”

“Captain!” another sailor alerted with the radio in his hand, “We have a transmission from the mansion; it’s agent Sawyer, sir.”

“Sawyer, it’s Nemo. What’s going?” he asked taking the receiver.

“Nemo, send reinforcements!” Sawyer shouted over the sound of gunfire, “The mansion’s under attack and we’ve lost just about half the men you had stationed here. Three Homunculi are attacking the base. Repeat: _three_ Homunculi are attacking the goddamn mansion! We think they’re here for the sacrifices.”

“Have you been able to contact either Quixote or Shan Yu?” Nemo asked trying to stay calm.

“Negative,” he replied as he fired again, “We have the debriefing room under lockdown and we gave our shells to the witch and Dark One for emergencies.”

“Hold your ground and keep the sacrifices safe; do not let them out for any reason until the Homunculi are either gone or dead. I’ll send Shan Yu and Quixote to give you back up.” Nemo informed.

“You may have to rethink that, mi amigo.” Quixote argued from another transmission, “Yu and I are currently indisposed.”

“Another one?” Nemo sighed.

“The shadowy one, to be exact.” Quixote replied just before one of Pride’s shadows destroyed his radio while trying to break past Shan Yu’s defense, “Ay-ay-ay. For the League!” he cried as he charged the young looking monster with his spear.

“Quixote?” Nemo asked as he checked the feed, “Quixote! Dammit!”

“Sir?” a young sailor asked his furious captain.

“Send all available troops to eliminate the chimeras in town. Use whatever methods, whatever weapons, anything to ensure the safety of the civilians of Storybrooke!” Nemo ordered as grabbed his sword and stormed out of the control room, “I’m going to the mansion to back Skinner and Sawyer. Ishmael, you have the com. If anyone needs our support, tell them to give their coordinates and we’ll blast the enemy away with our mortars.”

“Aye-aye, sir.” Ishmael nodded as his captain left.

Back in town, Greed the Avaricious was having the time of his life. All around him, the lower lifeforms he and his family despised were either being beaten within an inch of death or running around screaming frantically while his “possessions” ran amuck through the town. To clarify, his possessions were the chimeras his father had created and liked to hang around with him. Most of them saw Greed as either their friend or their boss. Either way, when they were told by Nicholas’ pale look-alike they were going to have the chance to wreak havoc in town for a whole day, so long as they didn’t kill too many people, it was like Christmas had come early this year.

“Hey, Greed!” a large chimera called, who had been mixed with bull DNA, lugging around a cinderblock on a metal rod, “You sure we can’t just go ahead and kill these people already?”

“Yeah!” another asked with scales and a tale just above his ratty old sweats. Behind him was a woman wearing a tank top and camo pants and a guy wearing a sweat stained whit hoodie and black pants. “What’s the big deal? So what if a couple of people get killed? As long as we have some fun, right?”

“The big deal, Martel,” Greed warned with a dark smirk as he pressed his shield covered claws against her throat, “Is that we need these people alive for Father’s plan. I told you, you had permission to have fun, true. But I also told you that you aren’t allowed to kill anyone. If you do, then I’ll have to kill you. Same goes for the rest of you. Your ‘fun’ is limited to vandalism, robberies and physical assaults only. Killing, however, is a big no-no.”

“Maybe for you!” Nicholas shouted as he killed the woman and lizard man with his spears before tossing their corpses away. Unfazed by the deaths of his possessions, Greed, still smirking, looked over to the enraged looking alchemist and his Savior.

“Hmm, so he really does look like the old man.” Greed muttered as he straightened himself up, “I take it you’re the so-called ‘Immortal Alchemist’, Nicholas Flamel, huh? Aside from that tacky red coat you’re wearing, I can’t say you’re all that terrifying. Then again, that hell-fire-glare you’re giving me may just change my mind.”

As soon as Greed said this, Emma noticed the expression on her boyfriend’s face, as well; and if anyone had asked, she would’ve admitted that seeing it slightly startled her, even if it wasn’t directed towards her. It was the same look he gave Sloth, dilated pupils, bloodshot eyes, furrowed brow, gritting teeth and an animalistic growl creeping up his throat. Only one word best described this expression; hatred. Pure, bloodthirsty hatred. Not even Regina back when she was the Evil Queen was capable of making such a face. Without any warning, Nicholas sent his spear towards Greed’s head as fast as he could only to grunt in surprise as the Homunculus grabbed it in-between his shield covered fingers.

“Ooh-hoo!” Greed taunted as he broke off the spears, “Feisty. This’ll be fun.”

“Emma,” Nicholas snarled viciously as his wounds healed, “Go back to the loft, or find cover, now.”

“But, Nicholas-”

“Do as I say!” he shouted in his rage causing the blonde to step back in fear. Not wanting to infuriate her lover any further, Emma did as she was told and headed to the loft to check on her parents. Staring the smirking Homunculus down with fury in his eyes, Nicholas readied his claws and roared at his enemy before charging at him. “Come on!” he cried before they clashed.


	73. A Gentlemen's Duty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

“Mom?” Emma asked barging in worried, “Dad?!”

“Emma?” Snow asked lowering her bow by Neal’s crib, “What’s going on out there?”

“It’s the Homunculi. They’ve started their attack.” she replied.

“What?” her mother asked as her eyebrows shot up, “How bad is it?”

“Bad.” David answered after getting off his cell phone, “That was Regina. Zelena called her and said that she and Gold are being held in the mansion while the agents watching them are fighting some of the Homunculi. For some reason, they can’t even poof out. Where’s Nicholas?”

“He’s outside fighting a Homunculus, right now. I don’t know who it is, but he has Nicholas’ shield and a whole bunch of human/animal hybrids tearing up the town. You guys need to stay here, no matter what; it’s too dangerous out there.” Emma warned.

“But what about you?” Snow asked in concern.

“If I’m as valuable to them as Nicholas says, then those guys won’t hurt me. But that doesn’t mean I can’t hurt them.” she said ready to fight.

Back at the mansion, Sawyer and Skinner were finding it difficult to deal with the trio of artificial humans attacking them. So far, more than half of Nemo’s men who were stationed there had been killed/eaten by Lust, Envy and Gluttony. Naturally, because of this, the two agents kept their distance at first and only used riffles. However, they quickly became fed up with this and took a more direct approach.

“Enough of this!” Sawyer shouted before leaping over his cover and sliding down the roof as he fired his weapon.

“Sawyer?! Get back here!” Skinner shouted despite his protest being pointless, “Oh, bloody hell!”

“Well, looky here.” Envy taunted once Sawyer stood before them, “Looks like the little human wants to play up close and personal now.”

“You’ve killed enough people today.” Sawyer seethed pointing his weapon at him, “It’s your turn, now.”

“Well, aren’t you confident?” Lust scoffed with a smirk, “I don’t suppose I need to remind you that it took Flamel himself to kill me. What chances do you think either of you have?”

“Wait, you’re Lust?” Sawyer asked in surprise.

“Oh,” Skinner said with dread, “Nicholas is not going to be happy.”

“I ain’t telling him!” he exclaimed, “But to answer your question, Lust the Lascivious, our chances are just as good because there is one thing we have in common with old Nicholas.”

“And what’s that?” she asked before Skinner rushed over to her, grabbed her head and slammed her face into his knee with tremendous force.

“We, too, are extraordinary.” the Invisible Man smirked.

“What the hell?!” Envy cried in surprise before Skinner knocked him to the ground with a roundhouse kick, “Gluttony, don’t just stand there! Eat them!”

“Okay!” the fat Homunculus cheered. As he ran over to Sawyer, the seventh seat shot off his jaw and filled his fat stomach with lead rather than himself.

“Argh, this is ridiculous!” Envy snarled as he and his siblings healed, but as they did, the ground underneath them shined with red transmutation circles causing them all to look afraid.

“What?!” they all thought while the two agents smirked and thought back to what Nicholas had told them the day before.

**OUaT**

“Alright, guys, listen up.” he said with a pointer’s stick in his hand in front of the layout map of the mansion’s surrounding area, “This is meant as a safety precaution incase any of the Homunculi feel gutsy enough to attack us or the mansion. Throughout the mansion’s surrounding area, I have set up dozens of hidden transmutation circles that will react to the use of tectonic energy.”

“Tect-what?” Shan Yu asked gruffly crossing his arms, “What are you talking about, Flamel?”

“Tectonic energy is the natural energy that flows through the ground and is the main power source of alchemy.” he explained, “Without it, alchemy, or rather, the kind of alchemy I use, cannot be performed. These circles will act as land mines that will detonate whenever tectonic energy is used.”

“But won’t that just blow you up?” Sawyer asked, “Why would you set up land mines that only work on you, Nicholas?”

“Because they don’t only hurt _me_.” Nicholas corrected pointing his stick at his friend, “The Homunculi are incapable of using alchemy like I can, however, they do use tectonic energy whenever their wounds heal. Therefore, in order to activate the circles, they need to be wounded. But with that in mind, I can’t exactly stick around and fight in this area without setting off at least one circle, so all the fighting I’ll be doing will be in town away from the trap zone.”

“That shouldn’t be too hard.” Jekyll observed, “Even the slightest scratch causes your stone to instantly heal you. The same should apply to them, correct?”

“Exactly.” he nodded, “Just remember, these are like land mines; they can only be used once each. Don’t worry about getting caught in the crossfire, though. They won’t cause a chain reaction if one goes off and they won’t cause any explosions. They are designed to only harm anything that uses tectonic energy; so just me and the Homunculi.”

“Wait a moment,” Mina interjected, “You said they _don’t_ cause explosions? Well, what do they do?”

“You’ll just have to wait and see.” he smirked in excitement.

**OUaT**

In a startling instant and display of alchemic genius, the circles activated and did their work on the enemy. Lust impaled by a large spike made from the ground that kept producing smaller spikes like tree branches, Gluttony was wrapped in red lightning before his head popped like a bloody balloon, and Envy was grabbed by an earthy fist that shot into the air before coming back down and slamming him to the ground.

“You know? Sometimes I forget just how much of a sadist Nicholas can be.” Sawyer bluntly remarked.

“Uh-huh.” Skinner nodded.

Back in town, Sloth was still causing trouble for the four agents. Thankfully, due to his lazy persona, his attacks were slow, sloppy and looked more like a drunk body builder trying to swat away a couple of flies. Quartermain and Mina had done a bit of damage to the behemoth, but it wasn’t enough to bring him down. As they took to close combat, Jekyll and Bluebeard gave them support with their guns. Unfortunately, it was a sunny morning in Storybrooke, and Mina was growing weaker by the second.

As mentioned before, Mina was capable of withstanding sunlight for short periods of time, but that had long since passed since she began fighting and she was struggling to keep up the fight against Sloth. Jekyll knew what he had to do.

“Mina can’t keep this up much longer; she needs to get out of the sunlight.” Jekyll replied as he came up with a plan, “Giles, give me your knife!”

“Catch!” Bluebeard replied as he tossed the blade over. Not a moment later upon catching it, Jekyll ran towards Sloth and slid beneath him, through his legs before climbing onto his back where he began to repeatedly stab him.

“Get off!” Sloth sluggishly demanded as he swung his arms and moved in whatever direction Jekyll led him to.

“Doctor,” Quartermain said to Mina as he covered her with his coat, “I believe you’ve been tapped out. Get out of the sun, leave this to us.”

“Whatever you say, Mr. Q.” she reluctantly nodded as she hurried over to the nearest source of shade. As she did, Jekyll continued to stab Sloth while ridding him like a bull. Stab after stab, the lean doctor continued to shank the oversized Homunculus as fast as he regenerated. Unfortunately, this did not last as long as they would have preferred when Sloth finally managed to grab Jekyll and toss him over his shoulder. Thankfully, Quartermain was still able to provide back up with his odd fighting style with Giles shooting the creature at every chance he had. While this went on, Shan Yu and Quixote struggled in their fight against Pride.

Due to the mass of shadows being hurled at them, both agents were struggling to land a blow on the tiny, arrogant, smirking Homunculus. Unlike the others, they were not accustomed to handling firearms in their line of work and did not see a reason to carry any despite Nicholas’ warnings. If they survived this fight, they would relent and arm themselves for next time; even if it would cost them an “I told you so” from the alchemist.

“Mi amigo,” Quixote said behind the cover of a tree, “I hate to admit it, but we may be a bit out of our element here. Any thoughts?”

“Believe it or not, but I actually came prepared.” Shan Yu grinned wickedly as he reveled a few cherry bombs in his hand.

“Cherry bombs?” Quixote scoffed in annoyance as a shadow just barely took off his head, “How will those help?!”

“Observe, but don’t look.” the burly man replied before pulling the pins and tossing them directly at Pride. In a quick instant, the bombs went off, but instead of causing small explosions, they created blasts of blinding, light destroying the shadows and blinding their enemy. “Go!”

As the boy squinted and tried to collect his bearings, the elder men used their weapons to stab, pierce, sever and impale him. It was no more than fifteen seconds before they noticed the shadows returning and forming beneath Pride’s feet.

“Time’s up, get back!” Quixote shouted as they once again took cover before being killed.

“You filthy humans!” Pride shouted as he healed and readied his shadows, “I’ll make you pay for that!”

“You going to talk, chico, or you going to fight like a big boy?” Quixote taunted despite praying for the boy to just keep talking.

“Gah!” he cried as he used his shadows to cut down all the nearby trees in a massive, black buzz saw of teeth and eyes, just barely grazing the top of the gentlemen’s heads.

“I think I may have pushed the wrong button, no?” Quixote asked as they peered over the tree stumps nervously at the red faced boy.

“Yeah, he’s mad.” Shan Yu nodded, “I’ve only got five more flash bombs left. We can either use them to escape like cowards, or we can use them to blind the son of a bitch and inflict some pain.”

“I’m rather opposed to the coward’s path.” the Hispanic curtly replied, “Fight like true LXG men it is.”

“Hear-hear.” Shan Yu nodded before they both jumped over their stumps and engaged Pride. 

Unlike Nicholas, Pride was rather small and despite his superhuman strength, he was not as skilled a fighter as the older men he was fighting and he relied too much on his shadows. With another use of one of his flash bombs, Shan Yu dispelled the shadows again which allowed Quixote to draw his sword and slash away while Shan Yu grabbed his friend’s spear and impaled him in the neck. However, no more than two seconds did Pride’s shadows erupt from beneath his feet and tear through the men’s exposed flesh, causing them both to stagger back while the boy healed.

“Shit.” Shan Yu cursed under his breath.

“Oh, losing your confidence already?” Pride taunted as he licked their blood off the blade-like shades.

Back in town, Nicholas was showing no mercy to the cocky embodiment of his former friend’s avarice. But unlike with Lust, Nicholas did not solely rely on his shield for this battle; no mercy meant no boundaries. As said several times before, Nicholas hated the Homunculi, so he saw no reason to hold back against a creature whom he hated and could regenerate like him. Unfortunately, the Ultimate Shield was made of, arguably, the strongest carbon fiber there is and the best way to deal with such a metal would be to deconstruct it with alchemy. However, Nicholas was so absorbed in his hatred-fueled frenzy, he didn’t consider this and basically hacked away at Greed who was easily fending off his attacks, all the while smirking.

“Is that really the best you can do?” he asked as he grabbed Nicholas’ ankle in mid-kick before slamming him over his shoulder into the ground, “Because I am _not_ impressed.”

“Shut up.” the alchemist grunted before using his alchemy to send a small pillar into Greed’s chest. However, just before it could knock him back, the Homunculus grabbed it in his hands and crushed it in his mighty grip.

“Hey!” a familiar voice shouted off to the side. Turning their heads, the two enemies saw Emma glaring at the artificial human as her hand shined with magic. “Get the hell away from my boyfriend.”

“Well, shit.” Greed bluntly cursed, shaking his head with a faint smirk, “It was one thing to take on the alchemist. But now, with a sacrifice who can’t heal like us? No dice. Ciao.”

Before he took off, Greed made sure Nicholas had a reason to fall behind by slashing his eyes with his razor sharp claws. Emma tried to stop him with her magic, but it only bounced off his shielded body. So with the pursuit seeming pointless, the Savior rushed over to help her lover to his feet as his eyes healed.

“Nicholas?” she asked in concern as he hissed in pain, “Babe, are you alright?”

“Where is he?!” Nicholas spat as he swung his arms around to feel for anything in front of him.

“He-he took off. Just wait a minute, you need to heal.” she stuttered.

“Dammit!” Nicholas shouted as he finished healing, “This is exactly why I told you to leave. He’s not allowed to hurt you, so he ran off. Which way did he go?”

“Nicholas…” Emma said in shock at his behavior. She felt as though she was speaking to a completely different person.

“Bah!” he waved off seeing that she wasn’t being any help. So instead, he had to rely on his keen sense of smell and attempt to track Greed through the smell of fire, smoke and blood.

“Well, Pops,” Greed said aloud as he ran through the nearest alley, “Here’s hoping Wrath’s delivered the package by now, because I am done.”

“You have done well, my son.” Father praised in his monotone voice, “And, yes, Wrath has indeed returned with what we need. You may return once you have shaken Flamel off your tail.”

“You know what?” he asked stopping in front of Marco’s garage as an idea popped into his head, “I think I just figured out how.”

Following the scent, Nicholas ran as fast as he could through the alley and over the trash bins and boxes in order to catch up with Greed. But the moment he reached Marco’s garage, the scent of gas filled his nostrils. When he turned around, his eyes widened when he saw Greed covered in his shield holding a welding igniter in one hand, and a tube releasing gas in the other; and as an added bonus, he was surrounded by sharp and dangerous power tools.

“Oh, shit!” Nicholas cried trying to turn back, but Greed was faster and managed to ignite the fumes causing a mass explosion in the garage. As the explosion went off, Emma, who had gone after her lover, dropped to the ground to take cover before hustling it over to the source. At the same time, Mina, who had been recovering in the shade, used her vampire senses to see what happened and if anyone was injured. Sure enough, when she saw Nicholas, she, too ran over as fast as she could. 

When Emma arrived, the whole shop was up in flames and her true love was on the ground gasping in pain. He was severely burnt and had bits of hot shrapnel from the tools piercing most of his body. But the biggest reason he was in pain was because of the miter saw blade logged in the left half of his face.

“Oh, God.” she gasped as she fumbled and struggled to act accordingly.

“What the hell happened?!” Mina barked as she slid to Nicholas’ side.

“He-he went after a Homunculus.” Emma replied.

“And you let him go alone?! You idiot!” the vampire shouted as she quickly removed the smaller bits of tools that were sticking out, “Don’t just stand there, help me get this all out!”

“O-okay.” she nodded. Still thrown off by what happened, Emma tried to use her magic to pull out the saw blade but immediately stopped once Nicholas cried out in pain.

“Not with magic, you fool! That will just make the stone’s healing process focus on repairing the magically caused wounds. Oh, let me do it.” Mina snapped as she swung her leg over her teammate’s body and straddled him while grabbing the blade, “Damn, it’s in deeper than I thought. Okay, Nicholas, I’m gonna have to do this the old fashioned way. You ready?”

“Get it out!” he slurred through his pain.

“Right. One, two, three!” she cried yanking the blade out while her friend tried to hold back yelling out in pain. Not that anyone would have blamed him, but he wasn’t proud of himself as he clutched his face while rolling back and forth on the ground; but he was even more disappointed that he let Greed get away. In the depths of Storybrooke, the Dwarf in the Flask spoke to his children once more.

“Hear my voice, my children.” he said to them, “We have all that we need. Return home, at once. Leave the humans, do not waste time or energy fighting them any longer.”

“Yes, Father.” they all replied, some more reluctantly than the others.

“Well, boys, as much fun as this has been, I’m afraid we have to go.” Lust informed.

“Oh, no, no, no. The party’s just begun.” Sawyer disagreed before shooting them. Skinner was able to hold off Gluttony’s slobbering mouth from eating him while landing a few good blows.

“You’re making me mad. All I want to do is eat. But you won’t let me eat you, and I’m getting hungrier. You’re being mean! So, I’ll just have to swallow everything!” Gluttony roared as his broken bones healed and his body began to surge with even more red lightning. As it did, his mouth opened wide and began to drop lower than the two agents had ever seen. From that point, his stomach opened to reveal a black void and a gray eye with a black slit for a pupil in the center, although, for some reason, it was in a vertical position. To make the sudden transformation even more terrifying, sharp, long rows of spear-like gangs sprouted from Gluttony’s jaw and along the borders of the void and began to wiggle as though they were ready to grab whatever was near.

“I think I know what that disgusting ability Nicholas always warned us about is, now.” Skinner nervously observed.

“Skinner, I think I’m gonna puke.” Sawyer gagged as he covered his mouth.

“I’ll swallow you all!” Gluttony bellowed before using his true power. Before either agent was caught in it, Gluttony sent a clear blast of alchemic power in their direction. They were able to dodge it, but they looked in fear at what the attack had done to area it hit. In the perfect shape of a tube, spanning roughly fifteen-twenty feet in front of the Homunculus, the ground and trees had lost significant portions of their masses.

“Sweet Jesus!” Sawyer thought as he rolled over and continued to fire with his riffle and Skinner with one of his pistols.

“Gluttony, come on!” Envy ordered as he and Lust retreated.

“But-”

“Now, Gluttony!” Lust snapped before she was shot in the head courtesy of Skinner. But before she or her brothers could escape, each of them lost several limbs in a blur. Taking a knee before his comrades, and looking like a total badass as he did, Nemo arrived with his sword unsheathed, coated in blood that began to disintegrate.

“Nemo, you glorious bastard!” Sawyer cheered, “I don’t know whether to kiss you or smack you upside the head like boss for getting here so late.”

“You can do either or to Skinner instead, _after_ we kill these things.” the captain replied before they chased after the retreating Homunculi. While the siblings ran, Lust used her spears to cut down several trees to provide cover for them while the three agents had to either climb over, under or around the fallen trunks. Unfortunately, she made so many collapse that they were able to get away while their enemies hit the trees in frustration.

“Ha!” Envy cackled, “We lost ‘em.”

“I didn’t get my snack.” Gluttony complained.

“Stop your whining, Gluttony. It’s very unattractive.” Lust chastised as they came to a stop, “We need to separate. Gluttony and I will take the two nearest tunnels and destroy them; Pride will have done the same to the one he’s closest to once he’s escaped. You’ll have to go into town, Envy.”

“What? Why me?” he asked irritably.

“Because out of the three of us, you weren’t killed as many times as Gluttony and I were. You have more energy to spare than we do, and we can’t have Father waste any of his in giving us more before the Promised Day. Just make yourself a bird or something and sneak into town until you reach the sewers.” she said like the bossy, elder sister she was.

“Ugh, fine.” Envy groaned before turning into a crow and flying off to town. Over in Storybrooke, Nicholas was in the process of composing himself after having a saw blade being lodged then painfully removed from his face while Emma did the same and Mina was recovering in the shade.

“What’s our situation regarding Sloth?” he finally asked the vampire.

“Before I ran over to see if you were alright, the boys were handling themselves pretty well against him. That being said, I doubt they’re anywhere near to permanently killing him.” Mina replied, “Can you track the one you were fighting?”

“No.” Nicholas gruffly answered, “I’ve lost it in all this fire and smoke. He’s long gone. What about the others? Can you see what they’re doing?”

“See?” Emma asked in confusion.

“As a vampire, Mina can extend the reach of her senses through animals such as bats or forest animals. From there, she can tune her senses to theirs and broaden her echo-location.” he explained.

“I can also see and hear their hearts beating and the pace of their blood flow.” Mina added only slightly glaring at the blonde now, “But you’re not going to like what I saw, Nicholas.”

“What was it?” he asked as her eyes widened and turned red.

“Shan Yu and Quixote are currently chasing after a small Homunculus in the woods. My guess is that it’s Pride. Mr. Q, Jekyll and Bluebeard are still dealing with Sloth and earlier, Skinner, Sawyer and Nemo were fighting three Homunculi at once just a little past the mansion’s grounds.”

“Why wouldn’t I like that?”

“Because, in addition to those five Homunculi, and the one you were facing, I sensed a seventh moving through town in a car making a total of seven.”

“So? There are only seven left.” Nicholas reminded, “The Dwarf in the Flask and what’s left of his children.”

“No.” Mina said shaking her head, “No, I can still feel his presence through the ground, and that includes those other presences I just mentioned.”

“Please tell me you’re not saying what I think you’re saying.” Emma begged.

“That remains to be seen.” Mina shrugged, “Unless the enemy is somehow capable of recreating his children, there is only one other explanation.”

“That bitch was brought back from the Underworld.” Nicholas snarled.

“How?!” Emma exclaimed in shock, “You said you tossed her into the pit. How can Lust be here?!”

“Either she was able to latch onto the ledge with her spears before the flames consumed her, or that pit just managed to burn off a couple of souls before they completely took her. It doesn’t matter. She’s here now and we have one more Homunculus to deal with in addition to the Amerstrians.”

“Speaking of which,” Mina added as she sensed another familiar presence, “There’s another one of those bastards nearby. You up for some killing?”

After she said this, Nicholas looked at his charred arm and forced it to finish healing before coating it in his shield as he flexed his claws. With malice in his voice and a look that could kill, he said to the vampire, “Hell yes.”

“What?” Emma asked not believing her ears. Just a minute ago, her boyfriend was lying on the ground covered in burns and shrapnel and now he was acting as though it never happened and was leaping to his feet ready to go try and kill another, partially, immortal monster.

“Mina, take Emma back to the mansion, that area should be safe by now. Put her with my sister and Gold.” he ordered.

“You can’t be serious.” Emma denied gaining his attention, “After what just happened, you’re willing to go after another one of those things?”

“Would you prefer it if I left that thing run around town so it can cause us more trouble and possibly turn the tide in the enemy’s favor on the Promised Day?” he asked almost hotly.

“But-”

“No buts, Emma.” he cut off, “You’re going back to the mansion, now. Mina, get her out of here.”

“No.” she refused.

“What?” Nicholas snapped.

“As much as I hate to agree with her, your lover has a point.” Mina admitted in distaste, “You are letting your hatred for these creatures cloud your judgment and you’ve allowed yourself to become sloppy. I’m staying here to make sure someone will around to pull your head out of your ass.”

“No,” Nicholas growled as he crushed a transport rock in his pocket, “You are not.”

Before either woman could stop him, the angry alchemist threw the black dust at their feet and watched as they were transported back to the mansion before he took off after the monster he despised. When the dust cleared from their eyes, both women realized what Nicholas had done and were utterly slack-jawed.

“I can’t believe he just did that.” Emma said flatly.

“Who did what?” Zelena asked as she and Gold came over to them, “Why are you two here?”

“Your soon-to-be severely beaten little brother sent us here before going after one of the Homunculi.” Mina said through her gritting teeth.

“Severely beaten?” Gold snorted, “Can I watch?”

“We need to get back out there.” Emma stressed to Mina, “He’s not thinking straight. Who knows what he’ll do?”

“Agreed, but I’ll be the one to go back and help him.” Mina replied while searching for a transport rock in her clothes, “You three need to stay here where the enemy can’t reach you. Dammit! I used my last one.”

“Seems like your precious alchemist doesn’t want you involved, Ms. Swan.” Gold taunted flashing his gold tooth, “I daresay, he might not want you around.”

“You keep your mouth shut, Dark One.” Mina snapped as she pulled out her shell and spoke into it, “This is Agent Harker, I need someone who’s available to come by the mansion and let me out of the debriefing room and someone else to find Nicholas. He’s going after a Homunculus and he may go out of control. All three sacrifices are with me, but I need to get out.”

“Hang tight, Mina, I’ll let you out.” Sawyer replied, “Who’s gonna get Nicholas?”

“Jekyll, Bluebeard and I can’t, we’re still dealing with Sloth.” Quartermain responded.

“Skinner and I are trying to track the ones who attacked us.” Nemo answered, “And I believe Shan Yu and Quixote are still fighting Pride.”

“Well, then hurry up and let me out, Sawyer!” the vampire snapped impatiently. About a minute later, the shielded door leading upstairs opened for her and shut just before the others could make it through.

Back in town, Envy, who had shed his bird disguise, was running through the streets as he tried to find the nearest known way to his father’s lair. However, just as his eyes locked on target, he watched helplessly as it was suddenly reduced to rubble.

“Leaving so soon?” Nicholas asked darkly from behind before slitting Envy’s throat with his claws. As he healed, the Homunculus staggered forward before turning around with a bloodthirsty smile on his face.

“It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen your face.” Envy cackled, “I think the last time was when you killed that little human. Oops, I hope that wasn’t insensitive of me.”

“I’m going to enjoy killing you.” Nicholas replied unamused as his shield covered his arms. 

Eager for a fight, Envy charged at him and threw a powerful punch which was caught in Nicholas’ palm. From there, Envy was pulled in, struck in the stomach by the alchemist’s elbow and then hit in the face by the back of his fist; as an added bonus, Nicholas had used his alchemy to deconstruct a portion of Envy’s face when he was struck. In retaliation, Envy transformed his right leg into a sharp blade and swung it upwards, nearly slicing Nicholas in two had he not dodged it. After he backed away, Nicholas charged back at him coming in low before delivering an uppercut to his jaw and then another punch to his nose, shattering it on impact.

“You human bastard.” Envy panted as his nose healed.

“If you think this is the point where I’m just gonna stop and have a conversation with you in the middle of a fight, you are sorely mistaken!” Nicholas snarled as he ran up and punch Envy in the face again. However, this time, the Homunculus didn’t budge an inch after being hit. Instead, he had a somewhat content smile on his face before it became a menacing scowl while his body became engulfed in red, alchemic sparks.

“In that case, allow me to show you something neat before I take you down.” Envy informed as he began to change.

“Oh, so that’s how you wanna play this game, is it? Fine by me.” Nicholas coldly said as he, too, began to take on a similar form.

As they both transformed, Mina, Quartermain and Rumplestiltskin were able to sense the massive surge in energy from each of their locations. Dreading what his subordinate was going to do, Quartermain took out his shell and contacted Mina directly.

“Harker, can you feel that?” he asked.

“Yes, I can feel it.” she replied just as worried, “It seems like they’re both going all out for this one. I’m still waiting on Sawyer. What do we do?”

“…Nothing.” the old hunter replied.

“What?!” she shrieked, “If those two have taken on the forms I sensed they took, the entire town may be reduced to debris and corpses by sundown!”

“No, it won’t.” he calmly replied, “Amidst all the fighting, Nemo’s men have safely managed to evacuate the civilians in that area to Flamel’s laboratories like we planned. Also, Sloth was able to give himself enough to escape back underground and through the tunnel he created allowing Bluebeard, Jekyll and myself the chance to keep an eye on them. They’ll lose some buildings, but the townsfolk will survive. You are to stay there unless I tell you otherwise. Understood?”

“You can’t be serious!” Mina exclaimed, “I’m one of the strongest on the team, yet you’d have me stay here and babysit the bloody sacrifices?! That it is utter bullshit, Quarterm-”

“Am I understood, Agent Harker?!” he interrupted angrily.

“…Yes, Agent Quartermain.” Mina replied gritting her fangs as they poked through her lips. After her superior ended the transmission, Mina’s body racked with anger as veins rose on her temples and clenched fists. In a brief fit of anger, she smashed the nearest coffee table into splinters with a single punch as the others watched.

“Do you really think Nicholas would go as far as to take on _that_ form in the middle of town?” Jekyll asked as he and the other two agents hurried over to Nicholas’ location.

“You think he wouldn’t against one of those things?” Quartermain retorted.

“What form? What are you talking about?” Giles asked before the air filled with two monstrous roars and the ground shook from heavy impacts.

“See for yourself.” Quartermain sighed as they finally saw the latest fight. What seemed utterly bizarre to the average person, the three agents looked at two large monsters identical in all but skin color fighting in the middle of town. It was the same body Nicholas had taken on when the Chernabog had been set lose upon the town that he and Envy had taken on for this fight. In order for his allies to tell which monster was who, Nicholas changed his skin tone from green like Envy’s to the dark gray his shield had in addition to a red snake marking going down the right side of his face and snout.

Two giant, lizard-like monsters with six arms fighting like rabid dogs. Witnessing a sight like that would have made anyone think that they were suddenly in the middle of a monster movie. Nicholas had yet to show any mercy in his previous fights with Lust and Greed, so there was little chance that he was going to show any to Envy, even if his size was going to cause more than necessary destruction to the town.

Envy quickly realized that his fighting skills were better suited for his humanoid form rather than the one he had taken on. Quite frankly, he hadn’t anticipated his father’s lookalike to transform into the same thing, let alone be better in using it than him. His attacks were faster, harder and much more precise. Each punch he threw with his first set of arms was aimed at his jaw while his second set grabbed ahold of the crying heads of the souls that powered his Philosopher’s Stone. Envy would have done the same, but he couldn’t think straight from all the pain consuming his mind as the alchemist tore out his throat with his mighty jaw.

Having enough of this onslaught, Envy used four of his arms to shove off his foe so he could pay him back for the pain he inflicted, punching him, tearing away his flesh with his teeth/claws and even throwing him into buildings.

“Stupid human.” he thought angrily as they fought, “Why doesn’t he just stay down?”

As Envy asked himself this question, Nicholas grabbed two of his enemy’s legs and tore off a third with his mouth. Following that attack, with great strength, Nicholas picked up Envy and threw him down the street and charged after him once he landed.

“Dear God.” Giles exhaled as he and the others watched from a rooftop, “It’s not even the Promised Day yet, and Hell has already brought down upon this town.”

“You think this is Hell?” Jekyll asked, “I know you and those other two haven’t been given all the details regarding the Promised Day like the rest of us, but what the Homunculi have done today is _not_ , Giles. Not by a long shot.”

Quartermain simply stood in silence with his arms crossed and his brow furrowed as he watched his subordinate clash with the beast. He didn’t take his eyes off them, but he realized that the sun had begun to set on the town as the sky gradually turned orange. In just several hours, there would only be one more day before the Promised Day, and they were no closer to eliminating the enemy’s forces than when Nicholas had warned them almost fifty years ago.

“Jekyll,” he addressed gruffly, “Go find Quixote and Yu. Take them back to the manor. Bluebeard, contact Skinner, Sawyer and Nemo once you get there and tell them I said to head back, as well.”

“But what about the Homunculi?” Giles asked.

“Whatever they had in mind for today, they’ve accomplished it, that much is obvious.” Quartermain admitted in irritation, “The fact that Sloth ran off as well as all the others we’ve been fighting today proves that we needed to be distracted from something else they were planning. And I think I may know what that was.”

“The fifth sacrifice.” Jekyll deduced.

“Yes, I believe so.” Quartermain nodded, “Whoever they are, they’ve been brought to Storybrooke under our very noses, and I’ll bet that ugly bastard was probably on his way home after he found that out.”

While they were talking, they watched as Envy tore off Nicholas’ tail only to be replaced with not a new tail end, but a seventh fist with a much longer reach hurdled through the air and into his jaw, breaking it on impact. Realizing that it was better to have another useful appendage, Nicholas transmuted the fist into a large, spiked mace before sending it right back at Envy, puncturing his eye and slamming him into another building. In the eyes of the onlookers, Envy was nothing more than a giant, green monster, but to Nicholas, all her could see was the smiling speck in a flask he once called friend.

“Dwarf in the Flask,” he thought in his anger as he thought back to the time they spent together in Xerxes, “Always so cynical, like everything around you was beneath you. Anything regarding humans was nothing more than lowly in your eye. But every now and then, I could see through that poker face of yours, especially when you were teaching me behind the others’ backs. It didn’t matter what it was, but you were willing to teach me anything that came to your mind when you could. That part of you, the envy you must have felt when I was able to demonstrate your knowledge in ways you couldn’t to the humans made it clear that you were a liar. Knowledge is everything to you, but what kind of knowledge are you seeking?”

Flashes of the bodies around him in the desert came to mind, as well as the horrendous deeds his children had done for him. The numerous bodies that surrounded him and the rubble that was once his beloved town, all of these things fueled the raging fire inside him.

“What could possibly be worth all this death and destruction?!” he cried in his mind before throwing yet another punch to the Homunculus’ jaw who returned one in full. He tried throwing another punch, but Envy missed which caused his body to turn too far and let Nicholas grab him from behind and perform a suplex, breaking the monster’s spine.

This was more than enough to make Envy angry, so to get even, he broke free of the hold and quickly both of his enemy’s jaws and began to pull them apart. Even with the resistance Nicholas was making, it still didn’t stop the beast from tearing off his lower jaw and tearing out what vital spots he could reduce to bloody shreds. When he eventually realized that the alchemist wasn’t fighting back, he decided enough was enough and it was time to return home before his stone burned out, so he trudged over to where he knew the entrance used to be while he slowly healed.

“He couldn’t do it.” Giles said hopelessly dropping to his knees, “With all his strength and knowledge over the enemy, Nicholas couldn’t kill it. We are doomed.”

But the two agents who knew the alchemist better than Giles ever could just stared down at him as his enormous healed. Unlike Bluebeard, they knew this fight wasn’t over just yet. Not as long he was still alive, they knew the Immortal Alchemist would not fall today. While he healed, Nicholas suddenly remembered the words Quartermain said to him so very long ago when he first joined his team.

“To rise above monsters, we have to abandon our humanity. What we fight, we become. Fight fire with fire. Look at the ones you are fighting. Will you stop them, or will you let them continue to hurt those you have sworn to protect? What are you going to do, Flamel?”

Although he had already answered that question long ago, Nicholas answered again as his strength and resolve reignited anew. “I…will kill them.” he growled as he watched Envy walk away. Images of Lust, Greed and their father filled his head as well as he stood back up with his eyes glowing and his mouth releasing the hot air of his breath. “Every last one!”

“I have to get back to Father.” Envy thought weakly. But before he could change back, he heard the sound of loud footsteps behind him just as Nicholas tackled him and pinned him to the ground. With quick work of his alchemy, he was able to make seven large spike rise from the ground, six for his arms and one for his torso to keep him still. Afterwards, Nicholas quickly turned back to his human form and landed on Envy’s head as his palm surged with red, blue and white alchemic spark before he slammed it on his forehead.

“You’ve got some nerve calling me stupid, you idiot.” he laughed knowing victory was his, “You overlooked that I spent the first few years figuring out how to kill myself after receiving my stone. So, naturally, after all that, it was bound to happen that while your father learned how to create Philosopher’s Stones, I would be the one to learn how to destroy them!”

In a blast of bright light, Envy cried out in utter agony as Nicholas’ alchemy engulfed his entire body. While he screamed, pillars of red, alchemic lighting erupted from his body as it literally began to fall apart and disintegrate as the others joined with Nicholas. In a matter of seconds, the humanoid body that was on Envy’s head extended to a long reach as it repeatedly spat out body after body before spitting out Envy who voiced his refusal of what just happened.

“So much! So much pain! No! This can’t-this can’t happen. This can’t be happening to me! I could never be defeated by pathetic creatures like you, you filthy League’s men. No, quit looking at me. How dare you look at me?! Don’t look down on me, you worms!” he cried before what looked like a strange, green leach with two large eyes and a mouth going down its body shot out of his forehead.

“Don’t look down on me, worms.” it weakly said in a high-pitched voice.

“I’m sorry,” Giles asked, “But who exactly is that thing calling worms?”

“This thing?” Quartermain asked skeptically as he picked Envy up by the tail, “This thing caused so much destruction and managed to beat you to a bloody pulp, Flamel?”

“Envy the Jealous.” Nicholas panted nodding his head taking the Homunculus in his own hand, “This would have been a great thing to show my sister before she went green. Jealously really is an ugly thing.”

With no more words to say, Nicholas took a deep breath and reached into Envy’s mouth where he found and pulled out what he was looking for, Envy’s Philosopher’s Stone. Making it quick, he used his alchemy to finally destroy the glowing stone and let watch as both it and Envy became dust in the wind.

“One down,” Quartermain spoke up.

“Seven more to go; again.” Nicholas nodded, dusting off his hands. Down below in Storybrooke, the remaining Homunculi were gathered around their father as he sat on his throne in a deathly silence. Gluttony had been sniffling ever since he learned that his brother had been killed whereas the rest of them seemed unmoved by this “tragedy.”

“Envy.” the fat Homunculus whimpered.

“Do not shed tears for your brother, my son.” Father said with no emotion in his voice, “For we have a reason to be joyous today. For your brother Wrath has succeeded in his task of obtaining the final sacrifice. Tell me, son, were there any complications?”

“Nothing I couldn’t handle, Father.” Wrath replied as he thought back to what happened the previous night.

**OUaT**

As he drove through the busy streets of New York, Wrath kept both eyes open for any and all traces of his target. Despite none of the humans noticing, he spotted the large cloud of dust flying through the air and followed it to China Town.

In the back of his humble, little shop, the Dragon was peacefully checking his stock as a sudden change in the wind blew into the room he was in with the cloud forming into a person before his very eyes. When it was finished, he looked at the new arrival with a calm exterior.

“Evil Queen.” he addressed with his hands behind his back.

“Regina should have never let me out to play.” she spat with hatred in her eyes.

“What are you doing here?” Dragon asked.

“I came to set the record straight.” she replied slowly approaching him, “You were right about one thing, Dragon. There was a battle ragging inside Regina and she may have won the fight, but this is a _war_. And it’s just begun.”

Before she could make her move, the Evil Queen was knocked out by a blow to the back of the head, courtesy of the pommel of Wrath’s sword. Still unfazed by the ordeal, the Dragon continued his calm disposition as he stared down the Homunculus invader.

“Do not expect a thank you from me, Wrath the Furious. Or do you prefer Fuher King Bradley of Amestris?” he asked.

“Oh, you can call me whatever you like, co-founder of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and original seventh seat, Dragon.” Wrath replied as he readied his sword and revealed his Ultimate Eye, “Not that you shall live long enough to make up your mind.”

“For the embodiment of Wrath, you certainly have the confident persona of Pride.” Dragon countered, unfazed that his enemy knew his identity as he took a martial arts fighting stance, “Come. Show me your fury and meet your destiny.”

Taking the old Gentlemen up on his offer, Wrath charged at him at an unbelievable speed. But what was even more impressive was that Dragon was able to easily dodge the attack and land a powerful blow that knocked the wind out of the Homunculus just before alternating into a powerful roundhouse which was quickly blocked. After he blocked the kick, Wrath spotted a nearby bottle of poppy dust on one of the shelves and grabbed it in his fist. However, instead of throwing the dust in his foe’s face, he smashed the bottle in his fist as they both struck the Dragon in the face. It wasn’t enough to render one as powerful as him unconscious, but it did leave him dazed giving Wrath the chance to backhand him into the wall, knocking him out on impact. Just as he was about to finish off the old man, he heard the Evil Queen groan behind him as she began to regain consciousness.

“We’ll finish this after the Promised Day.” Wrath promised as he sheathed his sword. After picking up the dark half of Regina and putting her in the trunk of his car, the Homunculus made his way back to Storybrooke.

**OUaT**

“It sounds like your trip was indeed memorable.” Father smirked, resting his head on his fist while looking up towards the ceiling at the unconscious Evil Queen who was chained to a stone spike held in the air by chains, “All the pieces are now in place.”

Back inside the mansion, each agent was ready to give their reports on what transpired throughout the day. Shan Yu and Quixote survived their fight against Pride with a few cuts here and there, but they had still managed to render the littlest Homunculus severely wounded before he escaped. After everyone gave their reports, Nicholas spotted Emma on the balcony above the table looking conflicted. Because of this, he decided to join her, but he had no idea what to say; he had shown more of his darker side than he had planned earlier and was starting to regret it. So, finally, he confessed to her.

“I never wanted to drag you into this.” he said solemnly, “I had always feared that you being the Savior and all, you would have eventually, in some way, become one of the sacrifices, like me. I’m not entirely sure if that’s a good thing because they can’t hurt you, or it’s bad because they’ll keep you alive to witness the Hell they plan for us all.”

“That was the real you today, wasn’t it?” she finally asked, “I must have been kidding myself when I used to think you were the black sheep in your family and was against violence and destruction.”

“When in the hell did you think that?” he asked, nearly scoffing.

“Back when you, me and my mom were in the Enchanted Forest fighting your mom and Hook.” she replied with a nostalgic grin, “God, how things have changed since then.”

“You’re telling me.” he chuckled softly, “Things seemed much easier back then.”

“Too bad it’ll never be like that again.” Emma said sadly.

“I’ve been dreading this week for fifty years, and it’s worse than I could ever have imagined. And yet, we haven’t even gotten to the main event.”

“I have to know.” she said softly as she looked him in the eyes, “You told me that you would answer anything I ask, right? So tell me, why? Why did you join up with these people?”

“…You’d probably like it better if I said it was all just for stopping the Promised Day.” Nicholas sighed, “But in truth, I didn’t discover this until about five years after I joined. You know that I had anything but an easy past, but you don’t know what I went through after I came home.”

“What do you mean?” Emma asked in concern.

“Do you have any idea what it’s like to be constantly pitted by everyone around you?” he asked, “The minute my mother announced my return, everyone around me looked towards me with pity in their eyes. They all felt sorry for me because of what happened and failed to treat me like a regular person. I felt like I was still in Xerxes, people looking at me with those eyes. Those pitiful eyes. It made my blood boil, and it broke my heart to see my parents and sister look at me the same way. After what happened with Nina and the other alchemists, I met a man who, while did look at me with pity, also looked at me with hope in his eyes. I could see that he was willing to help me, rather than just offer his sympathies. So I accepted his hand and he pulled me into a world filled with people just like me. Everyone down there, all who are a part of this League has had tragedy in their lives, but they don’t let that stop them and they don’t insult others by pitying them. I joined the League because I felt like I belonged with the people around me, the people who treated me as their equal despite knowing what had happened to me; those people down there especially. When I told them, they were there in ways neither Regina or our parents could, and they taught me how to take that pain and use it to make me stronger.”

“Oh, Nicholas.” Emma whispered.

“I know you would rather have it if I left the League after this is all over with, Emma. But that’s not gonna happen. This isn’t just a job, it’s a way of life. One that I have dedicated mine to.” Nicholas sighed, “I don’t expect you to understand, but-”

“I do.” she gently interrupted, “I do understand, Nicholas. It’s just…”

“What?” he asked as tears brimmed in her eyes.

“I just…I can’t stand seeing you in that kind of pain.” she confessed as the tears flowed, “Seeing you like that, covered in burns and pieces of metal. I know you’re immortal and all, but…but I hate seeing you like that! It’s too much like that night at the pond.”

Seeing his girlfriend cry was a bit shocking to Nicholas, but, nevertheless, he gently held her in his arms as he tried to soothe her. “Why does it always have to be you?” she asked with her head in his chest, “Why do you always have to be the one who faces so much pain?”

“…So that others won’t have to.” he whispered before kissing the top of her head.

Down below, Quartermain gave a heavy sigh after hearing his subordinate’s conversation. Given how stressful things had been lately, he decided to ease his nerves with a glass of whiskey, but before he could take the first sip, Regina came barging in looking for him.

“We need to talk.” she said leaving no room for discussion.

“So close.” he muttered before setting his glass back down, “And just how may I help you, Your Majesty?”

“First of all, I’m not the Evil Queen anymore, so you can drop the ‘Your Majesty’ stuff.” Regina replied irritably, “Second of all, I want to know just what the hell my brother was doing out there fighting as a giant monster today.”

“He was doing his job, nothing more.” Quartermain replied reaching for his drink and taking a large gulp, “Quite frankly, I, for one, have grown tired of you people badgering him for that. If not for your brother, there would still be another Homunculus running around town. Not to mention all the things he has done for the other realms over the years in his service to the League. If you had any idea the struggles he’s had and the personal sacrifices he has made, perhaps you would show him more respect and be a bit grateful to him.”

“Then, please, by all means,” Regina huffed as she sat down across from the senior field agent, “Educate me. Tell me why my brother decided to work for a man like you.”

“Well, for starters,” Quartermain began, “He didn’t. I chose him as the fourth seat of this branch, just as I personally selected the other five, as well. I saw something special in your brother all those years ago, and I still see it to this day. Would you like to hear about it?”

“What do you think?” she rudely asked.

“Very well.” he nodded before beginning his tale.


	74. Where it All Started

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Many years ago, a slightly younger Allan Quartermain was walking through the halls of the LXG’s headquarters. He didn’t look much different than his elder self aside from different clothes and his hair having a salt and pepper color with more salt than pepper. He still wore his old duster and had his trademark riffle strapped to his back, but at least he seemed less bitter towards everything than he eventually would. Then again, he still had his angry sigh even back then.

“Another mission, another worthless bastard dead.” he muttered to himself making it clear that he had just returned from work. As he continued to walk, he ventured into an unbelievably sized facility. It was deep underground, larger than the entire town of Storybrooke, and was filled with weapons, ammunition and League agents honing their skills in certain areas. Quartermain could see all of this as he stood on a steel hanging bridge close to the ceiling. While he took the time to gaze at his fellow Gentlemen, a nearby voice alerted him.

“Allan? Allan Quartermain?” someone asked. Turning to the source, Quartermain saw Nemo looking at him as though they hadn’t seen each other in years.

Instead of his blue coat and matching turban, Nemo had a darker sense of style in the past. He still had his sword strapped to his side and wore white pants and black boots. However, rather than a blue coat, he wore a black one with a white outline on the cuffs of his sleeves and a black turban held together by the shell from his wife. It also had three strings of pearls wrapped in an angle and was topped by a peacock feather; also, his beard was much shorter and matched the length of Quartermain’s.

“Nemo?” Quartermain asked looking bored, “Fancy seeing you here. It’s been too long.”

“Indeed, it has.” Nemo nodded as he joined his old friend, “You’ve been so busy as of late, I haven’t been able to chat with you.”

“The same can be said of you.” he retorted, “No one hardly ever sees you on dry land. How’s your wife been? Any children yet?”

“Allan, Ursula and I have had children for the past eight years.” Nemo informed as though he was reminding him.

“Really?” he asked, “It’s been that long?”

“It’s been even longer since we last talked.” Nemo clarified.

“I don’t socialize.” Quartermain replied with a shrug.

“Clearly.” the captain chuckled, “But why are you here? Unless you’ve suddenly changed your habits since I last saw you, you never venture too far from the admissions offices.”

“I was told to meet with the director in person today after I completed my last assignment. I actually left his office just moments ago.” Quartermain replied.

“You met with S? In person?” Nemo asked in surprise before narrowing his eyes, “What did you do?”

“Nothing. But S had a good reason for why he wanted to see me.” he said before relaying what had happened earlier.

**OUaT**

After walking down the halls of the League’s headquarters, the immortal marksman came into the waiting room that led to the director’s office. It was mostly red with a touch of gold and sand-colored marble in the walls and columns, and over the secretary’s desk was a large portrait of the director and the other six members of his team/the other six highest ranking members in the organization. He then approached his leader’s secretary and informed her of his arrival.

“Quartermain to see the director.” he said.

“Ah, yes, Agent Quartermain.” the woman kindly smiled, “Please, go on in. The director is free to speak with you.”

“Thank you.” Quartermain nodded before heading into the office. Sitting in a comfortable, leather chair, before a large, mahogany desk, S greeted his top agent with a welcoming smile.

“Ah, Allan!” he said happily as they shook hands, “Good to see you. Glad you could make it. How are you?”

“I’m doing well, sir. Thank you for asking.” Quartermain replied with a small smile of his own, “I take it you’re doing well, also?”

“Never better!” S replied as they sat down, “I’ve got a great job, an exciting life, and good people and friends working by my side helping me protect the realms. Now, I bet you’re wondering why I’ve called you here, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct, sir.” the elder man nodded, “Have I done something wrong?”

“Wrong?” S asked, “Pft! Hell no! No, quite the opposite. You’re here for good reasons, Allan, very good reasons. Care for a cigar?”

“Um, no thank you, sir.” Quartermain politely declined while his superior took one and began to smoke while rising out of his chair and staring out the nearest window to view his realm and organization.

“Your loss, then. The fact of the matter is, Quartermain, you’re probably the best damn agent I’ve got. I’ve yet to see you fail any mission you take on, and your skills definitely give you the right to call yourself extraordinary.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“The only problem is that your talents are being wasted on small stuff.” S continued facing him, “You don’t have nearly the level of clearance to take on the tougher missions I know could use you; the ones I know you want to take on more than those measly little ones from admissions. So, starting today, I’m rectifying that. As of now, you are officially promoted to the rank of Senior Field Agent. Congratulations, Allan, you’re gonna be a branch head, now.”

“Thank you, Director. I am glad that I was able to prove myself to both you and the League. Whom shall I be leading as branch leader?” he asked.

“Well,” S trailed as he tapped his cigar over his ash tray, “Normally, I would assign you agents I’ve already selected. But, I know just how picky you can be, Quartermain. So, just this once, I’m going to allow you to select the six members of your branch, yourself. You will have three days to come up with the names of the agents you want assigned to you and which seats you want them designated as. If you cannot fill all six positions yourself by then, I shall select whoever I want to fill in the remaining seats for you. Are we clear?”

“Yes, sir. I shall begin promptly.” Quartermain nodded.

**OUaT**

“You’ve been promoted?” Nemo asked in surprise, “That’s excellent. Congratulations!”

“Hmm.” he hummed, “Now, I just need to find six competent agents for my team in the next three days. I had hoped to seek out potential candidates here by observing this place.”

“And?” Nemo smirked, “Do any of them impress ‘the great Allan Quartermain’?”

“So far, just one.” he replied giving his friend a knowing glance. It took the sailor a moment to realize what exactly his comrade was getting at, and needless to say, it surprised him.

“Me?” he asked placing his hand on his chest, “You want me to join?”

“Can you think of anyone else who’s better with a sword or inventing?” Quartermain asked with a faint smirk, “Truth is, Nemo, you are actually one of the few people I trust, and you have my respect; and that is not something that is easily earned. I want you as the second seat on my team.”

“I am honored, old friend.” Nemo said with a kind smile, “I accept your offer. You have my word that I will do everything in my power to ensure victory in all that we do.”

“Excellent.” Quartermain smirked as they shook hands, “Now, all we need is five more. You spend more time here than I do. Do you know anyone who could keep up? I need strong, cunning fighters. They have to be smart and tough.”

“In that case, I know of several people we could coax to join us.” he replied as he took the lead.

**OUaT**

Not long after the edge of the sun had slowly faded away on the horizon, the LXG’s forces were waiting for any sign of the Homunculi’s next attack. There had been no sign of any of them since Nicholas had killed Envy, and there was still no indication that the Amestrians were on their way, either. There was a heavy silence all throughout Storybrooke.

Given that the Promised Day would officially begin once the sun rose, none of the sacrifices were allowed to leave the mansion; including Nicholas. The mansion was heavily guarded by Quixote, Skinner Mina, Jekyll, and Shan Yu outside while Nemo, Sawyer and Giles guarded the sacrifices inside. Quartermain was supposed to be guarding them, as well, but he was too busy giving the team’s origin story to Regina. With no other options available for them, Nicholas convinced his sister and girlfriend to a game of cards.

“So, they’re really just gonna keep us locked down here until tomorrow, huh? Hit me.” Zelena asked taking a card from the deck.

“Pretty much.” Nicholas replied staring at his hand, “Even if the rest of the Homunculi do start up another attack later, we’ll be here. Raise you five dollars.”

“Why is it that we aren’t allowed to fight back even though you said they aren’t allowed to hurt us?” Emma asked.

“Because, those bastards play dirty and may try to force you guys into fighting for them, thus crippling our forces. Let it ride.” Nicholas answered taking a pair of dice and rolling them on the table.

“So, basically what you’re doing to Gold?” she asked, “Call it.”

“Yeah,” he nodded nonchalantly, “But we’re not too broken up about that given all the shit he’s put everyone through.”

“But you’re not really going to kill Belle and her child if he doesn’t cooperate, are you?” Zelena asked sticking an ace on her forehead.

“I’ve got a better question,” Emma interjected, “What the hell kind of card game are we playing, anyway?!”

“Uh…I thought we were playing poker.” Nicholas defended when he realized they had been doing things for completely different games.

“I thought this was the one where you put cards on your head.” Zelena replied.

“Anyway,” Nicholas trailed, “It comes down to what the director orders us to do once he reads the report we’ll send him after tomorrow.”

“You have to give a report to Quartermain?” Emma asked.

“No, Emma. Quartermain’s not the director. Me and Sawyer just call him ‘boss’ out of respect and to show that we recognize him as our leader.” he reminded, “No, we have someone else in charge of the League in another realm, altogether. He’s the one who oversees everything and runs the organization.”

“Oh.” she said, “Well, then, who’s your director?”

“That’s actually the one thing I am not allowed to tell you under any circumstance.” he replied, “I know I said I would tell you everything, but that’s the only exception. The only people who are allowed to know his identity are LXG agents. If Gold actually proves to be useful in all of this, we will vouch for Belle and their unborn child. But Rumplestiltskin is guilty of many, many crimes. The only reason he’s still alive is because of these two reasons: 1. We don’t know how to kill him without creating another Dark One. And 2. He’s a sacrifice.”

“Is that why I’m still alive, then?” Zelena asked, “Because I’m a sacrifice, too?”

“Well, yeah, and the League doesn’t exactly see you as a threat.”

“Come again?”

“Sis, I don’t mean to be rude, but you never really did anything that caught our attention before the second curse.” Nicholas informed.

“What?!” she exclaimed.

“Well, we don’t really have any agents stationed in Oz, so, we weren’t really aware that you had taken over. That, and you really didn’t do much aside from scare munchkins and try to figure out a way to go back in time. Which, probably, would have been the only thing about you we would have taken seriously if we had heard about it.”

“Well, my sense of pride just took a sucker punch to the jaw.” Zelena bluntly muttered.

“Don’t take it personal.” Nicholas shrugged, “If we had heard about you, we would have either killed you or attempt to recruit you; or, possibly, keep you prisoner until we decided whether you were useful or not.”

“You actually take prisoners?” Emma asked.

“We _rarely_ do. Why else do you think we have a prison set up in the Land of Untold Stories?” he asked bluntly, “Girls, that place is for the most dangerous and wanted criminals the League marks as targets; and more often than not, it’s for those whom we are not sure how to kill. Like if we ever decided to capture Rumplestiltskin, or any Dark One for that matter, that’s where they’d go.”

“That reminds me,” Emma recalled, “You said that Jekyll is a member of your team, right?”

“Yeah.”

“So, why was he the warden over there and not here with the rest of you guys?”

“Well, because, technically, he’s not the fifth seat of our branch, anymore.” Nicholas replied with a heavy sigh, “The fact of the matter is that Jekyll’s on a sort of probation for something that happened the last time all seven of us took on a mission. We had a very important job to do, but we weren’t able to succeed. We had all made mistakes on that job, but the director thought Jekyll’s was the worst of all and believed that he was the reason why we failed. So, as punishment, he was demoted, taken off the team and reassigned as the warden of that prison. And the only reason he was able to come here was because his name was never removed from the contract we signed when we were given permission to handle the Promised Day; which we only got because of me. If he wants his seat back as like the rest of us do, he’ll have to give it his all and prove himself to the director.”

“Sounds rough.” Emma remarked.

“He’s a good man, girls.” he sighed feeling sorry for his friend, “He deserves better.”

**OUaT**

“So, what can you tell me about this agent?” Quartermain asked as he and Nemo headed to the research division of the building.

“He’s a brilliant doctor who was driven out of his realm by a relative of his who accused him of murder. Before that, he was a well-known and highly respected chemist who sought to help people face their inner demons.”

“Clearly, he wasn’t that respected if he was forced out of his own realm.” Quartermain remarked, “Do you think he’s capable of keeping up?”

“Oh, yes.” Nemo nodded, “In fact, he briefly worked with the Deputy Director before he was offered to join.”

“The Deputy Director recruited him?” he asked actually surprised before looking judgmental again, “Well, regardless, he and I have different standards, therefore, I will decide whether or not he is fit to join us.”

“Don’t get too picky, Allan.” Nemo reminded, “Remember, you have a deadline or else S will fill the remaining seats for you. And besides, I’ve done several missions with him in the past and can vouch for his skills. If I didn’t think you would be impressed by him, I wouldn’t have suggested him.”

“Fine. Let’s see what he can do.” Quartermain sighed.

Over at a nearby lab table, covered with all sorts of lab equipment, a younger looking Henry Jekyll, in a white lab coat over his tail coat, was carefully adding the ingredients to whatever concoction he was trying to create.

“Henry!” Nemo called startling the poor scientist as he poured too much of the chemical into his beaker. It then quickly began to bubble, change color causing the doctor to panic and look for anything useful. With little other choice, he grabbed some random nearby cork, plunged it into the beaker, and tossed it as high and far as he could.

“Fire in the hole!” he shouted as everyone took cover before it exploded. Once the fumes had cleared, Jekyll finally took spoke to his visitors. “Goddammit, Nemo! You could have killed us all!”

“I’m terribly sorry, Henry.” Nemo chuckled as his colleague sighed and tore off his safety goggles.

“What do you want?” Jekyll asked.

“Henry, I’d like to introduce you to a friend of mine, Special Agent Allan Quartermain. Allan, this is Dr. Henry Jekyll.” Nemo introduced as they shook hands.

“How do you do?” Quartermain asked.

“Fine, thank you.” Jekyll nodded.

“Allan here has just been recently promoted to Senior Field Agent, and he’s looking for people to fill in the remaining seats for his team.” he explained.

“I thought S was the one who chose who was assigned to those?” Jekyll asked removing his gloves.

“He gave me the privilege to select them, myself.” Quartermain replied, “Nemo’s my second-in-command and he suggested your name. I’m here to see if I think you have what it takes to join us, if you want.”

“Hmm,” Jekyll pondered, “My very own branch seat? That is rather tempting. Out of curiosity, which chair would I receive?”

“That depends on whether or not I find your skills acceptable; especially compared to the other agents I will be meeting with.” Quartermain dryly replied, “But before I officially offer you the position, let’s see what you’ve got. Care for a quick spar?”

“Gladly.” he smirked. After leaving the research division and selecting a sparing ring at the training center, both gentlemen rolled up their sleeves and took their respective fighting positions while Nemo took his place as the referee.

“Remember, this is just a brief spar; no killing.” Nemo reminded.

“No worries,” Jekyll said with a confident smirk, bouncing on the balls of his feet, “I won’t go too hard on the old man.”

“I was talking to _him_.” Nemo corrected indicating to Quartermain, “Begin!”

Throwing a quick jab, Jekyll made the first move. Quartermain, however, was able to easily swipe it away before going for the doctor’s jaw. He was sure that the punch would land, but much to his, slight, surprise, Jekyll had managed to catch to the man’s fist and twist his arm into a lock. The older man quickly broke from it after hitting Jekyll’s nose with the back of his head, grabbing him by the belt and back of his shirt, and tossing him over his shoulder so he could slam him into the ground.

Quartermain was about to tell him to yield, but Jekyll wasn’t done just yet. He grabbed Quartermain’s collar, drove his knee into his stomach and rolled him over with a slam on his back before they simultaneously leapt to their feet once again. Punches continued to be thrown and blocked as the fight continued. That is until Quartermain grabbed the scientist by the collar and head-butted him with tremendous force causing the man to fall to the ground clutching his head. Taking the chance, the older man pinned him down by stepping on his chest just enough to keep him where he was.

“Yield.” he ordered in a frightening tone.

“Alright.” Jekyll sighed with his hands lazily up before Quartermain helped him up, “So, I take it this means that I won’t be joining you gentlemen?”

“You weren’t supposed to win the match.” Quartermain replied as he unrolled his sleeves, “Or rather, there was no chance in hell of you actually winning. I never said you had to beat me. I said, I wanted to see if you could keep up. And you did.”

“Quite frankly, I would have been surprised if you had even managed to land a single blow on him, Henry.” Nemo smirked as he joined them.

“Congratulations, Agent Jekyll of Branch Quartermain.” Quartermain smirked as they shook hands.

“Thank you, sir.” Jekyll nodded with a smile, “Out of curiosity, what seat shall I be assigned?”

“First of all, do not call me ‘sir.’ It’s Quartermain or Agent Quartermain; and don’t think we’re close enough for you to address me by my first name. But you shall know what your seat is once we’ve acquired the remaining four. Which reminds me. Nemo, who were those others you had in mind?”

“Well, several of which I planned to show you if Jekyll had not impressed you.” the captain admitted, “However, there were two that I believe you will want. Shall we go see them?”

“Let’s.” he nodded.

**OUaT**

Outside the mansion, the agents stationed out there continued to keep their eyes and ears open for any sign of the enemy. Strangely enough, there wasn’t any, at least none yet. “They sure are taking their sweet time, don’t cha think?” Skinner asked.

“Why aren’t they here yet?” Mina asked rhetorically, “It’s the eve of the Promised Day and there have been no signs of the Amestrians coming to aid the Homunculi.”

“Perhaps Nicholas was misinformed?” Quixote asked, “I mean, how long ago did he mention this, eh?”

“I don’t think that’s the reason.” Skinner offered, “Think about it. All the townsfolk are meant to be used in whatever it is they’re planning, yeah? So why bring over an army that could, potentially, kill most of them in the crossfire?”

“So, what then?” Quixote asked in disappointment, “They aren’t coming?”

“Or maybe, there are no Amestrians.” Shan Yu remarked gruffly.

“What are you talking about?” Jekyll scoffed.

“I’ve never heard of Amestris. Have any of you?” he asked, “Besides Flamel, who has ever mentioned that place, or even been to it? Or has anyone seen this ‘Dwarf in the Flask’ he’s rambled on about all these years?”

“Excuse me, Shan Yu?” Jekyll calmly asked before grabbing him by the collar with a menacing glare, “You should watch what you say, or else there will be one less Gentlemen assisting us tomorrow.”

“Ah, come off it, Henry.” Skinner groaned as he smacked his friend’s arm away, “The man’s entitled to his own thoughts. We aren’t doing this because we’re some band of loyalists to Nicholas. We’re here to put an end to this threat and the ones behind it all; whoever that might be. Remember? As for you, Shan Yu, whether Amestris is an actual place with an army headed our way or not, we still have to deal with the Homunculi and eliminate as many as possible before tomorrow. Otherwise, if there are Amestrians coming to fight us, we will have more to juggle with as we try to stop them. So, until this ordeal is over like, shut your gob.”

“Actually, all of you should shut it.” Mina snapped with her eyes glowing red and a serious look on her face, “I can see one of those wankers taking a stroll two-hundred yards from here.”

“Which one is it?” Skinner asked.

“Pride.” she replied causing Quixote and Shan Yu to grit their teeth.

“Is that so?” Quixote growled, “And, pray tell, what is the chico doing?”

“Nothing. He’s just standing there smirking. Wait. He’s looking towards us. I think he can see-”

“Mina, get down!” Jekyll shouted as he pulled her to the ground as he and the others ducked out of the way of Pride’s shadows. If he hadn’t done so, the beautiful vampire might have lost her head.

“That little shit!” he cursed, “When I get my hands on him, I’ll-”

“Jekyll, move!” Skinner cried just before ten Ultimate Spears came at them. Unfortunately, three of them managed to cut Jekyll’s right bicep while the others impaled the ground before retracting back into the trees and shadows. “Mate, are you alright?”

“Son of a bitch!” he said in pain, “What was that?!”

“Here, let me. Boys, give me cover.” Mina ordered as she spit into her hands before smothering the wounds with her saliva. To further explain, as a vampire, Mina has a multitude of strange abilities, as you should be aware by now. In addition to immortality, turning into a swarm of bats, controlling said creatures and using their senses to extend her own, the undead redhead’s saliva is capable of closing wounds inflicted on human flesh. This is used as way to prevent human’s from bleeding out after taking small doses of blood for replenishment.

“So, that’s how they wanna play it, eh?” Skinner muttered to himself as more shadows came at them in addition to the spears. Thankfully, he was able to avoid them with ease while Quixote defended himself and the others with his shield. As five of the spears were about to skewer his face, with a calm expression, the Invisible Man caught them all in one hand and began to squeeze. As he did, the other five attempted to repeat the attack, only to be caught in his other grip. Not a few seconds later, Skinner crushed the Homunculus’ weapons into dust with only his bare, transparent hands. Having worked with Nicholas for so long, he knew that he had a limited amount of time before Lust would resume her attacks. However, he also knew of the weakness of Pride’s shadows.

“Mina!” he called, “I need you to go into the town and find the main power generator.”

“What good will that do?” she asked.

“Well, for starters, it will give us a leg up on Pride, if you catch my drift.” he retorted as realization dawned on her face.

“Oh!” she gasped before smirking, “Rodney, for once, you’re actually a genius.”

“Just hurry it up!” Skinner snapped, “Oh, and don’t forget to give us some cover; it’s a full moon out tonight.”

“Right.” she nodded. Not wanting to waste any time in flying, Mina took out her transport rock and used it to take her to the generator.

“Good thinking on your part, Skinner.” Jekyll praised, “Now, how do you suppose we deal with the voluptuous homunculus out there?”

“Depends on what you mean by deal with.” Skinner chuckled.

“Skinner!” Quixote snapped as they continued to defend themselves.

“Right, not the best time. Uh, as soon as Mina gets rid of the light, we split up and two of each take on one of them.”

“Quixote and I have Pride.” Shan Yu said with no room for discussion.

“Fine, we’ll handle Lust, then.” Jekyll shrugged from behind his cover, “Anytime now, Mina!”

Back in town, Mina was searching aimlessly for the generator’s power switch. Unfortunately, all she could find was console with buttons. “Bloody hell, why can’t things ever be simple for us?” she asked the heavens, “Okay, got to pick a button. Pick a button, pick a button, pick a button. Um…oh, hell with it.”

Without much care, the lovely vampire slammed her fist through the console and watched as it shut down and emitted smoke as the power finally shut down. “There, that ought to do it. Good Lord, we’re going to owe this town a hefty payment for all the damages after tomorrow.”

**OUaT**

Following Jekyll’s recruitment, the three gentlemen continued to discuss who would be acceptable for the remaining four positions. Nemo did have other agents in mind, but Jekyll did, as well. So, as to compromise, Quartermain listened to both suggestions starting with his newest subordinate.

“So, how skilled is this one, Jekyll?” he asked gruffly as they walked through headquarters.

“I’d say very.” the doctor replied, “I’ve never worked with the man, myself, but I have seen his skills displayed here during training. I can’t say that I know much of his past, but I can vouch for his combat prowess. He currently holds the title of the most profound hand-to-hand combat fighter in the entire League. Fair warning, though, he’s incredibly annoying and will most likely try to steal your money. Oh, and he’ll most likely be naked.”

“We should have gone with your choice, instead.” Quartermain dryly said to Nemo.

“Oh, don’t be like that, Allan.” Skinner said making himself known, despite being unseen.

“No games here, Jekyll.” the old man warned, “What is this?”

With a smirk, Jekyll gave his reply. “Some time ago, a brilliant, although misguided man of science discovered the means to become invisible.”

“Yes, I recall. But didn’t he die?” he asked.

“Oh, he did. But his process didn’t. You see, I stole it and here I stand for all to see.” Skinner clarified with a hint of playful sarcasm.

“Is this some kind of joke?” Quartermain asked.

“Believe it.” Skinner said bumping into the old man before barely dodging the swing of his arm, “Easy, Allan. Hmm, I’m feeling a draft in my nether regions; I kind of like it. Allow me to introduce myself; Rodney Skinner, Gentlemen Thief.”

“Or as he is more commonly known, the Invisible Man.” Jekyll added while Skinner but on his coat and hat.

“I thought invisibility would be would be a boon to my work before joining up with the League, and it was. But, as you can imagine, the thrill of thievery loses its edge once it becomes too easy. So, after trying to steal a certain trinket from one of the higher ups, I was given a choice by S; become an LXG agent, or be killed by the one I robbed. Obviously, I made the right choice. This job has been the best thing of my entire life!”

“This is who you think would be a good addition to the team?” Quartermain asked the doctor, “An invisible nudist thief who runs his mouth without stop?”

“Oh, he can do more than you think, Quartermain.” Jekyll assured before reaching for a large, nearby cinderblock on the ground and hurling it towards the man, “Skinner, think fast!”

Hearing these words, the other two agents thought what was to happen next would be Skinner simply catching the block, however, he did something that managed to impress them, instead. As soon as the block came towards him, the Invisible Man reduced it into fragments with a single, yet powerful, punch. After he wiped the dust and granite off his fist, he began to wrap his hands and head with goths along with adding a pair of black lensed goggles.

“While I may be a thief, I also happen to be a master of over a dozen different styles of combat. That’s the thing when it comes to invisibility, if you want it to be effective, you can’t afford to carry anything visible. Luckily for me, I already developed those skills long before I stole that old man’s formula.” Skinner explained, “And after years of intensive training, I’ve honed my body into the only weapon I’ll ever need. You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve literally crushed people’s skulls in my bare hands over the years.”

“There isn’t any other non-enhanced human in the League with his skills, that I have seen.” Jekyll informed, “It’s your decision, Quartermain, but I truly think he’d be usefully to us.”

“His stealth would prove to be helpful in times when we need to acquire information or covertly eliminate our enemies, Allan.” Nemo consulted.

“Come again?” Skinner asked after he finished wrapping himself.

“S has promoted Quartermain to Senior Field Agent and has allowed him to personally select the members of his branch. I suggested you as a possible addition.” Jekyll explained.

“Not possible,” Quartermain said, “Acceptable. You’re in.”

“Is that right?” Skinner asked crossing his arms, “While I’m flattered, what makes you think I want to join up with you lot? I’ve got a pretty good arrangement going on with my rank.”

“It pays more.” Quartermain said flatly.

“My friends! My pals!” Skinner cheered happily before trying to wrap his arms around his new leader. However, just before he could, Quartermain pulled out and cocked his revolver before pressing the barrel under his jaw.

“Don’t do that again.” he dryly ordered.

“Not a problem.” Skinner nervously chuckled then cleared his throat, “So, I take it that I’m number four, then?”

“Looks that way.” Quartermain nodded, “Nemo, are you still willing to introduce me to your other suggestion?”

“Only if you don’t mind firing a few bullets, Allan. From what I hear, he’s actually a fan of yours.” the captain replied before they all headed down further into the training area. At one spot in particular, the four agents saw two men readying themselves for a contest. One was a younger looking man with a bored look on his face dressed like a cowboy armed with two revolvers and a belt filled with bullets. The other was a greasy, fat man slightly older with a long black beard, two knives in his hands and his tongue sticking out like a dog would when sticking its head out of a car’s window.

“Gather round, folks!” the fatso hollered, “Today, you’ll bear witness to the finest display of knife throwing you’ll ever see! I’m here to show you that a blade, no matter what size, can still outmatch a gun any day of the week.”

“Tell me that you aren’t going to convince me that we need that loudmouth?” Quartermain asked his second-in-command.

“No, no, not that one.” Nemo eased, “Besides, we already have one now that we have Skinner.”

“Hey!” the other agent whined.

“It’s the other one.” he said pointing to the younger man, “Agent Tom Sawyer. Highly skilled marksman, proficient in hand-to-hand combat, expert in both tracking and espionage and, as I said before, a fan of your work. He hails from the realm known as the ‘Wildlands’ and, at one time, was a member of a group of men who did similar work to ours in that realm before he was recruited. The only other person I’ve seen out shoot him is you.”

“Interesting.” Jekyll mused as they all looked down at him, “He does carry a look of experience on his person.”

“Looks like we arrived just in time to see if the urchin’s got what it takes.” Skinner pointed out.

“Are you ready, everyone?” the man hollered earning a roar from the crowd, “Alright! The rules are simple; whoever knocks the other’s can over with their weapon first is the winner. Don’t blink. You ready, boy?”

“For this little shindig to get started or for you to stop running your mouth like a jackrabbit?” Sawyer dryly asked with a faint smirk at the end, earning him a scowl. The two then took their places and had their hands hang over their weapons in anticipation.

“Call it.” the man ordered the overseer. A few seconds later, he fired his gun and everyone watched Sawyer fire his gun and the man throw his knife, both hitting their targets. The crowd was silent before the fat man started bolstering about winning, despite the overseer not declaring the winner. Sawyer, on the other hand, couldn’t care less and decided to take a seat on the ground against the post of the fence they were in.

“Well, you see, folks? I won!” the man cheered while the overseer walked past him towards Sawyer with a small sack of money.

“No, you didn’t. He did.” he said dryly as he walked past the fool.

“Wait, what?” he asked.

“Congratulations, here’s your prize.” the overseer said, dropping the money in his lap.

“What are you talking about?!” the fat man bellowed, “Folks, you saw it, right? You’ve all got eyes, I won! Kid, tell ‘em, I won!”

“You lost, hoss. Let it go.” Sawyer said covering his eyes with his hat.

“…You’re a liar.” the fatso accused while kicking his boot, “I said, you’re a liar.”

Sawyer responded with silence as the man continued to vent his anger and accuse him.

“I said, you’re a coward and a liar! Get up, let’s do it for real. Get up!” he shouted before taking his own gun and shooting around his crossed legs. 

Having enough, Sawyer raised his hat and rose to his feet so they could return to their previous spots. The fat man readied his knife while Sawyer drew his own weapon. Looking over at the stoic overseer, Sawyer gave him a nod and told him to call it. After another few seconds, his signal was fired and everyone watched what happened with conflicted looks on their faces. Faster than they could blink, Sawyer drew his other revolver and shot the arrogant agent directly in the heart. The overseer then went over to check on him and looked up at Sawyer blankly.

“He’s dead.” he said, “You killed him.”

“Well, that’s what he gets for bringing a knife to a gun fight.” Sawyer said clearly unfazed by the life he just took. Unfortunately for him, fatso wasn’t alone that day. He come with five other men, all of which brandishing their own weapons directed at Sawyer. But just as they began to charge at him, he cocked back the hammer and, with great skill and expertise, shot all five of them, one after the other, in a matter of seconds and walked away.

“He’s good. He’s _very_ good.” Skinner acknowledged, “I’d really like to see what the kid’s like when he’s serious in a fight.”

“Despite his age, Agent Sawyer has more experience in being savage than most agents. That group he was a part of in his realm revered him and his partner as the best among their numbers. He would definitely be a good addition, Allan.”

“I’ll decide that, Nemo.” Quartermain reminded as he headed towards the young agent, “Boy, a word.”

“Agent Quartermain?” he asked, surprised to see the agent he most respected approach him, “Wh-what can I do for you, sir?”

“Not call me ‘sir’ for starters.” Quartermain replied, “Second of all, I saw your little contest there.”

“It was either them or me.” he shrugged.

“Oh, I agree.” the old man nodded, “And after that little display you gave, I have an offer for you.”

“What kind of offer?” he asked.

“I’ve been appointed to lead my own branch and select its members. You want in?”

“Yes!” Sawyer immediately replied before composing himself, “Ahem! I mean, yes, I accept your offer.”

“Just two more to go.” Quartermain thought.

**OUaT**

All over town, every source of electronic devices was cut off from their power source causing yet another town-wide blackout. As soon as this happened, Mina used her powers again to cover the light of the moon with a complete and thick overcast. Inside the mansion, the lights quickly shut down before restoring.

“The hell was that?” Emma asked.

“That would be one of the guys outside coming up with the idea of shutting down the town’s power in an attempt to cripple Pride who, I am guessing, is currently attacking us.” Nicholas nonchalantly replied.

“Why would they do that?” Zelena asked.

“Duh,” Nicholas scoffed, “He uses shadows. Even those, bizarre though they may be, need a light source to create them. No light, no shadows, no threating ability. Just a smug little kid who needs a trip behind the wood shed.”

“Aren’t you going to go out there and help?” his sister asked.

“And risk letting any of you sneak out while the doors are unlocked?” he asked with a scoff, “Nice try, sis, but none of you are getting out until I say so. Especially you, Dark One.”

After raising his voice, Rumplestiltskin decided to join them in their little card game. “What’s the matter, Flamel? Afraid I might go back on our deal? I agreed to cooperate, as per the terms in our arrangement, and I’ll have you know, I am a man of my word when it comes to such things.”

“And you’re also a slimey bastard that looks for loopholes in every deal that you make.” he retorted, “What exactly were you doing back there?”

“Just admiring your collection of artwork.” Gold smirked, “I must say, they are all quite intimidating; especially that one at the end of the hall.”

“Fair warning, Mr. Gold, if you touch any of those paintings, especially that one, I will shoot you in the head.” Nicholas warned while looking at the cards he was shuffling.

“And why is that? Sentimental reasons?” he asked.

“If you think that I am going to let any sort of details slip, Dark One, then you still haven’t learned.”

“Learned what?”

“That when compared to me, you are not that smart or clever.” Nicholas replied with a smirk causing the other sacrifice to glare at him, “Don’t forget, the League still wants you dead and we’re not known to provide information about our organization to our targets. Once we’ve killed all the Homunculi and the Amestrians, you’ll no longer be off limits; and there are plenty of agents who want to kill you. But, until then, care to join us?”

“Well, it’s not like I can do much else right now.” Rumple relented as he took his seat, “You seem rather calm right now, Flamel. Given how severe you’ve made tomorrow sound, I assumed that you would be more on edge.”

“Not at all.” he replied as he passed out the cards, “I have faith in my plans and my comrades, so there’s not much of a reason to worry. Besides, I’ve been waiting for what comes next for over fifty years. I want this to be over with so I can move on with my life.”

“Are you ever going to tell us exactly what it is they plan to do?” Zelena asked.

“I did tell you.” her brother replied, “I told you that none of you would understand it. And if you did, I know for a fact that Emma would be charging straight into the battlefield to stop them.”

“But why aren’t you out there fighting like you were earlier?” Emma asked.

“Unfortunately, that’s because Quartermain doesn’t want me to get led into a corner and ambushed by the remaining Homunculi so I can be brought to their father. Especially since we’re gonna need my strength and immortality to deal with the Amestrians.”

“Yeah, about that,” Rumple interrupted, “I’ve never heard of this Amestris place before.”

“Maybe that’s because it’s fairly new and it rose to its current power during the first curse; it wasn’t effected like the other realms were.” Nicholas replied, “They’ll be here.”

“How do you know?” Zelena asked.

“I just do, sister dear.” he said indicating that he was losing his patience with all these questions. Back outside, Mina rejoined the others after flying over as a swarm of bats.

“The main generator has been taken care of.” she informed, “I don’t know for sure, though, if there’s a backup power source the town uses in case of emergencies. If there is, or if they decide to use non-electrical sources of lighting, then it won’t be long before those damn shadows come back.”

“If there isn’t another generator, then the only other way for them to turn the power back on is by fixing it with magic.” Quixote pointed out, “And we happen to have all of Storybrooke’s magic users inside, no?”

“No, we don’t.” Skinner clarified, “Those damn fairies have their magic, too. They may try to fix it while we’re working. Shit!”

“Mina, can you sense where the Homunculi are positioned?” Jekyll asked.

“Yes,” she nodded, “I can see that Lust has left and that Pride isn’t that far off from here.”

“The kid is useless without those shadows of his.” Shan Yu offered, “If you can see him, it’d be best for all of us if you face him while he’s crippled.”

“My thoughts exactly.” she nodded, “Can you boys hold on without me?”

“Lust left, didn’t she?” Jekyll asked, “We’ll be fine. Just eliminate Pride before he gets any closer to the mansion. If we lose any of the sacrifices, we’ll be worse for wear. Go.”

Through the darkness and trees, Pride looked up at the sky in search of any sign of potential gaps in the clouds but to no avail. “That damn vampire’s completely covered the sky.” he thought, “But that means the others won’t be able to see in this darkness, either. Sooner or later, the town’s lights will come on.”

As he thought this, he was interrupted by the pain of having claws slice through his back with great force. Given how close his attacker was, Pride was able to make out Mina’s form and red, glowing eyes in the darkness as he tried to get out of her reach.

“You’re not getting away!” she snarled as she continued to claw at him.

“You’ve got some pretty strong nerves to attack a small child without even flinching.” he mocked.

“That would be different if you were an actual child, but I know what you are!” Mina shouted as she slashed at him, slammed him against the trees and rocks, and tossed him around like a rag doll, “Not only that, but I’d have to be an idiot to not strike you while I can. Every fiber of my being is telling me to kill you before you kill me!”

Over with the others, Jekyll had offered an idea of them sticking close together just in case any other Homunculi decided to show up. Just before he was about to discuss with them their next plan of attack, he heard Shan Yu’s voice cry out.

“Get down!”

A split second later, after warning the others, a large mass zoomed past them and struck a nearby tree. Out of the four of them, only Skinner was familiar with the sound of its voice and excessive munching.

“I smell you, invisible gentleman.” it said.

“Tch, perfect.” Skinner growled.

“What? Which one is it?!” Quixote asked.

“It’s that fat sod Gluttony.” he answered, “This one has Nicholas’ heightened sense of smell and an ability to swallow anything with his peculiar, second mouth. So, now we know what their plan is. Pride will fight when the lights are on while Gluttony will do it in the dark thanks to that nose of his; he’ll smell us out like a rabid bloodhound.”

“I also smell people I’ve never smelled before.” Gluttony said sniffing the air, “And they smell tasty.”

“If that’s the case, then it’s time for us to put this dog down!” Shan Yu roared as he charged directly towards Gluttony with his sword. In a rapid blur, he was able to slice through the large Homunculus’ flesh and even severed a few limps in the process. All Gluttony could do was cry out in agony due to being unable to see his attacker.

“Now, for the final blow!” Shan Yu shouted as he used his arm to perform a lariat on Gluttony. However, he mistakenly ended up striking Skinner, instead.

“Jekyll, you rat bastard. You said that we should stick close together to _avoid_ hurting each other!” he wheezed while cradling his stomach on the ground.

“Sorry, but in my defense, that was Shan Yu’s fault.” the doctor sheepishly defended, “How is it that he can attack Gluttony so easily in all this darkness?”

“He’s got the eyes of a hawk and probably did this sort of thing all the time back in his realm.” Skinner offered as he rose to his feet while Gluttony continued to scream in pain in between spewing out blood from his mouth, “Either way, I’m not going to let Shan Yu have all the fun!”

“Will you stop killing me?” Gluttony wailed while Shan Yu continued to cut him, “I don’t want to die anymore!”

“Too bad, fatso!” Skinner shouted as he jumped on him, wrapped his legs around his neck and grab his head before crushing it in his mighty grip.

“Gah!” he cried as his head grew back after Skinner backed away, “That hurt! Why won’t you just let me eat you already?”

“That’s a stupid question!” they all shouted while Shan Yu thrusted his sword into his enemy’s mouth before yanking it out and decapitating him.

“I don’t get it,” Gluttony sobbed after his head grew back again, “It’s so dark here. So, how do you know where I am? You can’t see me!”

“I can, and even if I couldn’t, you’re too big a damn target to miss!” Shan Yu shouted as he delivered an uppercut to Gluttony’s jaw with his gauntlet covered fist, which caused the Homunculus to bite his tongue off.

Quixote then charged in with his own sword and cut off both of Gluttony’s hands while Jekyll backed him up with his spear skewering his thick and fat neck. While the men were having it easy in dealing with Gluttony, Mina was struggling with keeping Pride down. Despite the brat not being able to use his shadows, he had a more durable body than the other Homunculi, thus wasn’t suffering much harm from the vampire’s attacks. Even after being thrown and pummeled into the ground, the boy simply looked up at her with contempt.

“What do I have to do to make you stay dead?” she asked herself. As she reared her claws back for another strike, an unfortunate occurrence happened. Two random citizens of Storybrooke, using kerosene lamps of all things, stumbled upon them with looks of horror.

“What is that thing? A monster?” one asked before noticing Pride, “Oh, no, it’s got a kid!”

It took a moment, but Mina realized the problem the two onlookers just made for her. With a look of panic, she jerked her head down to see Pride giving her a devious smirk as the light from the lamps danced on his face. From there, he decided to envelope the entire cleared area behind them with his shadows and use them to slash through Mina’s flesh. Following this attack, Pride took the liberty of knocking the lamps out of the citizens’ hands causing them to set fire to the bushes and grass they landed in. Slowly, but surely, the woods began to burn as the fire quickly spread, thus giving Pride all the light he could want for his shadows.

“Dammit,” Mina hissed as her wounds healed.

“I’m glad they could shed some light on us.” Pride smiled as he readied a shadowy spear, “Now, let’s shed more of your blood. I wonder how many times it will take for a vampire like you to truly stay dead. Goodbye, Ms. LXG Agent.”

In an unbelievable speed, the shadow darted towards Mina’s head only to be caught in her the grip of both hands. That being said, the attack did manage to push her back enough to cause small trenches where her feet stood. “It’s ‘Mrs.,’ you damn brat.”

Having enough of the odd shadow, the vampire lady turned into a swarm of bats before engulfing the small boy. Granted, even if the small bites of bats were not enough to cause significant damage to him, Pride still couldn’t maneuver his shadows to get rid of them in such close proximity. This proved inconvenient for him the moment Mina reverted back to her other form and took the liberty of snapping his neck and breaking his spine with a powerful kick.

“You damn, woman!” Pride cried as he healed, glared at her and aimed a sea of shadows at her. But she was not afraid. Quite the opposite, for all she had on her face was a triumphant smirk.

“Sawyer!” she shouted as she crouched down and covered her face with the skirt around her waist. It was then that Pride gasped and looked up to see Sawyer jump out of the non-burning trees and hurl one of Shan Yu’s flash bombs at the boy’s feet. Before the Homunculus could react, the bomb detonated and destroyed all of Pride’s shadows. As this happened, Gluttony ran towards his brother for help as he cried and allowed his arms to grow back.

“Bastards!” Pride shouted as his shadows charged them.

“Have another!” Sawyer cried tossing another bomb as Gluttony joined them.

“Did you see that bright light, Pride?” he asked before the light blinded them and destroyed his brother’s shadows once more, “My eyes!”

“You’re pushing your luck.” Pride warned after the others joined and the lights dimmed, “They’ve really roughed you up. Haven’t they, Gluttony?”

“Yeah, but only because those meanies weren’t fighting fair.” Gluttony answered like an innocent child, “They were doing something that could see me in the dark.”

“Really?” his brother asked before licking his lips.

“Now what’s he doing?” Sawyer thought taking notice of this.

“Gluttony, how many times have they killed you?” Pride asked darkly.

“I lost count. But I know it was a lot, though.” Gluttony replied.

“They’ve beaten me up pretty badly, too.” he admitted as his shadows discreetly surrounded his brother, “The way things are going, there’s a very real chance that they might kill us for good.”

“Yeah,” Gluttony said unaware of what was about to happen to him, “But that’s okay because Father will fix us.”

It was then that the childlike Homunculus took notice of the dozens of black hands squirming around his feet, like predators about to attack their prey.

“No! Please, don’t do it, Pride.” Gluttony begged in fear while the shadows opened their mouths. 

Pride himself merely chuckled while licking his lips before snatching up his brother with his largest shadow and holding him in its maw. The agents looked up in horror at what they saw next. The mouth bit Gluttony in two as he sobbed in fear while the upper part of his severed body slowly disintegrated.

“No, Pride! Don’t eat me. It hurts! Please help me, Lust!”

But no help came from his sister, or anyone for that matter. And so, rather than being killed by Nicholas Flamel, or one of his fellow League members, Gluttony the Voracious was devoured by a member of his own kind, his brother of all things.

“Ah, this should make things much easier.” Pride sighed in relief having finished his meal, “I can practically smell every movement you make. I could do without the ravenous hunger, though. Oh, well. Perhaps all of you will be enough to hold down my appetite.”

“How could a monster like this come from Nicholas of all people?” Mina asked herself in horror as he mind flashed back to when he was still a boy.

**OUaT**

“So, does anyone have any ideas for the last two seats?” Skinner asked the day after Sawyer’s recruitment. Currently, they were outside their headquarters, sitting on various giant, fallen, yet intentionally placed, marble columns.

“None that would be able to keep up with this merry band.” Jekyll remarked.

“Well, we’ve only got ‘bout one other day left before S comes in and picks ‘em out for us.” Sawyer reminded.

“Unfortunately, I, too, have no one else to suggest, given the skills we all possess.” Nemo added, “What about you, Allan? You’ve asked all of us at every turn but have yet to select one, yourself.”

“I have _one_ in mind, Nemo.” Quartermain replied from his seat with his back to the others, “And I shall recruit them, myself, when we have acquired our sixth member.”

“Why wait until then?” Sawyer and Skinner asked.

“You’ll know when I tell you.” he replied.

“I suggest we head back inside and observe the training arenas, again.” Jekyll recommended, leaping off his seat, “Perhaps we overlooked someone who could work well with us.”

“Better than sitting around here all day.” Skinner muttered loud enough for them all to hear. Once back inside, all five gentlemen looked down at the arenas with bored looks on their faces.

“I mean, what are we even looking for?” Sawyer asked with less patience than what he had earlier.

“Well, we’ve got the greatest hunter and marksman who ever lived, a genius swordsman, an outstanding chemist, the greatest and handsomest invisible thief in all the realms, and a sharpshooter. We’re not exactly what most would consider compatible, so finding other partners will prove to be difficult.” Skinner pointed out as sounds from an arena grew louder.

“Sounds like someone is causing quite the ruckus down there.” Jekyll observed, “I think I see them.”

“Is-is that a child?” Skinner asked.

Sure enough, it was indeed a child that was causing all the noise down below. A young boy, no younger than sixteen, with brown hair and eyes wearing a strange, long, red coat fighting incredibly large golems made of bronze. Who was certainly holding his own against them as proof when he punched a golem’s incoming fist and destroyed it in a burst of red lightning.

“Huh,” Sawyer remarked, “I guess those rumors goin’ around are true.”

“Rumors?” Nemo asked.

“You haven’t heard? Apparently, the director personally recruited some kid from the Enchanted Forest about a year ago. Since then, he’s done just as good a job as you, Quartermain.” he explained, “I’ve never seen him myself, but the ones who have say that he looks just like that kid down there. I think his name is…Nicholas! Nicholas Flammable, or something.”

“…Yeah, I don’t think that’s it, Sawyer.” Skinner said dryly, “Still, he seems to be holding his own quite well down there. And if S of all people recruited him, I’m curious as to what makes him extraordinary.”

“As am I.” Jekyll nodded, “What do you think, Quartermain?”

But the moment he looked over to where Quartermain was standing, he finally noticed that he was gone and headed down towards the arena. Not that anyone had asked him, but the older gentleman had indeed heard of the mysterious youngster that had been recruited by the director, and he was most certainly interested as to why.

“You there. Boy.” he called.

“Who said that?” he asked just before one of the golems’ fists broke off and from its wrist and sliced the poor kid in half with a diagonal slash with its axe.

“Oh!” Sawyer shouted as shock overtook him and the others.

“Holy shit!” Jekyll cursed.

“Oh, my!” Nemo shouted.

“Why must the good die young?!” Skinner screamed overdramatically as he fell to his knees.

But before Quartermain could say or do anything, red sparks of electricity surged from the severed legs. In an instant, the boy looked completely unscathed as though nothing happened.

“Ow.” he said bluntly dusting himself off, “Is there something I can do for you?”

“How are you not dead, boy?” Quartermain asked, mouth agape.

“Uh, that’s a long story.” he said sheepishly while rubbing the back of his neck, “And one I don’t exactly tell people.”

“Is your name Nicholas Flammable?”

“No. It’s _Flamel_. Special Agent Nicholas Flamel.” Flamel dryly corrected, “And you are?”

“Special Agent Allan Quartermain. Tell me, what was that little surge of red just a moment ago?” Quartermain asked.

“It’s called alchemy. And, no, it is not a form of magic. It is a complex science that requires years of training just to understand the basics.” he snapped, “Sorry, it’s just that everyone automatically assumes that it’s magic for some reason. As if that is the only logical outcome.”

“And what I just saw, that comes from obtaining your level of experience?” he asked.

“No,” Flamel replied looking away in what Quartermain saw as shame, “No, I obtained that by other means, which were not my own. It’s what has earned me the appropriate title of the Immortal Alchemist.”

“You cannot be killed?” Quartermain asked.

“So far, nothing has proven fatal for me.” Flamel shrugged, “Any wound I receive heals instantly.”

“So let me get this straight,” Sawyer began bluntly as he and the others somehow managed to hear everything, “The kid is immortal.”

“Can regenerate any of his wounds.” Jekyll added.

“An apparent master of his craft.” Nemo continued.

“And is clearly a top notch fighter.” Skinner finished before they all looked at one another with the same thought in mind.

“He’s in.” they all said.

“Not to sound rude, Agent Quartermain, but what is it that you want with me?” Flamel asked giving the older agent a suspicious glance.

“I have been given the authority to put together my own branch by S, himself. After observing that little display of yours, I have decided offer you one of the remaining positions.” Quartermain explained.

“…Why?” Flamel asked, not letting his guard drop for a second.

“You have the potential to do great things. And…there’s something I can see in you, something I have yet to see in anyone else in this entire organization. I don’t know what, but I can tell it is special. What say you, Immortal Alchemist? Will you join us?”

“…No.” Flamel said as he turned away to storm off, “I work better alone. Find someone else to join your damn team.”

But as he hurried away from the old man, Flamel stopped dead in his tracks when Quartermain suddenly appeared right before him in an instant. But rather than a look of anger or impatience on his face, as most would expect, he had a calm, fatherly expression a parent normally used when trying to understand their child; something no one would expect Allan Quartermain to have.

“I thought you were offering me the position, not forcing me.” Flamel snapped as he tried to brush past him only to be stopped and pushed back.

“I am giving you a choice. That being said, I would like to know why you declined.” Quartermain clarified.

“You said that you’re building a team, right? Well, in order for a team to work, you need your people to trust one another, and I, Agent Quartermain, learned quite some time ago not to trust anyone. So, pardon my rudeness, but take your team, take your offer and piss off!” Flamel spat.

“Boy,” Quartermain said in a warning tone as he once again stopped Flamel, “Take it from someone who has spent a lifetime of being alone. You may think that it is better to keep yourself from others, but you are wrong.”

“Oh, you think you know me so well, don’t you?” Flamel asked, anger rising, “Tell me, old man, with all your experiences, how does one cope with the venomous sting of betrayal? The scars it leaves on your soul. How should I move forward when the only friend I have ever known used me and robbed me of the one thing I have desired? That I deserve!”

“And that was?” Quartermain calmly asked.

“That’s none of your business.” he said wanting to drop the subject, “Just leave me the hell alone!”

“Wow,” Sawyer said as they all watched the boy storm off, “That kid’s got issues.”

“Hm-hmm.” Skinner nodded.

“Does anyone else find it odd that while we four accepted Quartermain’s offer without a second thought, that young man down there flat out refused him?” Jekyll asked, “Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?”

“Pft, yeah! Makes you wonder if we made a terrible mistake.” Skinner laughed.

“Hmm, don’t count your chickens before they hatch, gentlemen.” Nemo warned, “It doesn’t look like our fearless leader is through with him just yet.”

“Will you stop following me, already?!” Flamel asked as Quartermain continued to pursue him.

“Not until you agree to join my team, boy.” Quartermain retorted.

“Ugh! Listen to me, you old coot!” the boy yelled, “I’m not joining anything. Unless S himself comes down here from his office, bops me on the head with that golden scepter of his, and says the words, ‘Agent Flamel, I order you to join Agent Quartermain’s team, or so help me, I will tell your mother about your job and have you dragged by the ear all the way back to your estate in the Enchanted Forest.’ Only then, will I join you.”

“…You are from the Enchanted Forest?” Quartermain asked as though he ignored everything else the boy said.

“Yeah?” Flamel trailed.

“So am I.” he said with a faint smirk, “Which kingdom do you hail from?”

“Um, the, uh, the Southeastern Kingdom ruled by King Xavier, my grandfather.” Flamel replied.

“So, you’re a prince, then?” he asked as they sat on a nearby bench.

“Eh,” the younger agent replied turning his hand, “Kinda sorta. Let’s just say that there would need to be a substantial amount of deaths in the family before my father would be recognized for the throne, if you catch my drift.”

“Ah.” Quartermain said understanding the hint, “So, I take it that your grandfather doesn’t show much interest in any of you, then?”

“Please,” Flamel scoffed, “The man has never shown any interest in us ever since my parents married. Neither my sister or I have even seen the bastard in person; just an ugly ass portrait we have to keep since he, technically, owns our estate. In fact, if it weren’t for my high maintenance mother, people would probably forget about us, all together; not that I or my sister would mind, however.”

“How old’s your sister?” Quartermain asked.

“Oh, she’s about four years older than me, so, almost twenty-one. All she wants to do is spend every day riding her horse with our stable boy, but Mother always seems to interfere with that. I’ve never seen a more smothering parent.”

“And she doesn’t do that to you?”

“Oh, no, she does.” Flamel assured jokingly, “Just not as much as she does my sister; thank God. So, what about you? You got a family?”

“…Had. I had a family.” Quartermain replied somberly, “A wife and…a child. Both of whom, when they needed me the most, I failed them and in doing so, lost them forever.”

“Oh,” Flamel said realizing what happened, “I see. My condolences. I’m not really a person of faith, but, uh, who knows? Perhaps, one day, you’ll see them again.”

“That’s unlikely.” the older man whispered, “You look like you’ve experienced a similar loss.”

“Not personally, but I know _plenty_ of people who have.” he replied thinking of all the wailing souls inside him, “Agent Quartermain, why are you asking me all these questions?”

“To show you that it is easier than you think to make a friend.” he answered fondly, “You’ve been hurt been very badly by someone, haven’t you, son?”

“Yeah,” Flamel nodded, “But the sick thing about is that he doesn’t see it that way. He thinks that everything he did for me was a way to express his gratitude for what I did for him. Since then, I dunno, I guess I was too afraid to take another chance.”

“Fear is irrational.” Quartermain bluntly stated, “It is nothing but a roadblock one can overcome once they try.”

“And how do you suppose I…” Flamel trailed before he made the connection, “Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no-agh! Fine, dammit! I’ll join you. Happy now?”

“Let’s settle with, pleased that I won our little battle of wit.” Quartermain smirked as he pulled the boy off the bench. As he did, the others finally joined them, eager to meet their newest comrade. “Gentlemen, allow me to introduce our new companion, the Immortal Alchemist, Nicholas Flamel.”

“Hey, how’s it going?” he nonchalantly greeted, which earned him a look from his new leader, “What?”

“Howdy.” Sawyer nodded.

“Welcome aboard.” Nemo said kindly.

“I look forward to working with you.” Jekyll said with a smile.

“Sure you’re not pull our legs with that ‘immortal’ bit, eh, Nick?” Skinner asked.

“Yeah,” Flamel said sucking in the air through his teeth in annoyance, “I would rather that you refrained from calling me that. No offense, but I don’t like it when people abbreviate my name. You can just call me Nicholas or Flamel.”

“Okay then.” Skinner said awkwardly.

“Oh, don’t get me wrong! I’m not trying to sound pretentious, or anything.” Flamel clarified hastily, “It’s just a little quirk of mine.”

“Eh, I can understand that.” he shrugged, “You can just call me Skinner.”

“Oh, because of the bandages, right?” Flamel asked.

“Pardon?” the Invisible Man asked as they all began to leave the arena.

“Well, your bandages. They’re meant to cover your body due to your lack of skin, hence why you’re called Skinner, right?”

“Um, no.” Skinner replied, “My name’s Rodney Skinner. People just call me Skinner on account of adults having a tendency to refer to others by their last name.”

“Oh. So, what’s with the bandages, then?” Flamel asked curiously. To answer that question, Skinner simply unraveled his left hand to revel absolutely nothing to the young agent.

“They don’t call me the Invisible Man for ‘nothin, lad.” he smirked.

“Incredible!” Flamel said in awe, “But wait. You wrap yourself in bandages when you want people to see you?”

“That’s right.” Skinner nodded.

“Doesn’t that take a while?” he asked.

“Eh, at times, I suppose it does.” his new friend admitted, “Just with my face, though.”

“And that isn’t suffocating for you?” Flamel asked.

“Well, a little bit.” Skinner nodded as the youngster began to make him bashful at how he hadn’t thought his method through, “But in my experience, it’s the best way for people to notice me when I want them to.”

“Why not just wear gloves and makeup?” Flamel suggested.

“Huh?”

“Just wear gloves on your hands and wear a kind of makeup that comes off easily with liquids.”

“…Nicholas,” Skinner said wrapping an arm around the young man’s shoulder, “This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”

“So, now that we’ve added Flamel to our ranks, who’s gonna fill in the last seat, Quartermain?” Sawyer asked, “You said earlier that you had someone in mind.”

“That I did.” Quartermain nodded as they exited the building and went outside, “And in order to speak with them, we will have to make a trip to the Land of Untold Stories.”

“The Land of Untold Stories?” Jekyll asked, “Why there? There are plenty more agents here at headquarters. That place is mostly filled with refugees and family members of other agents.”

As Jekyll reminded them all of that well known fact, they found themselves following Quartermain inside a small, domed building. Inside was a single room, a tube made of glass panels, a, large hexagon platform on the floor with a strange design, and a window with a man dressed as a cowboy chewing a piece of tobacco on the other side.

“Six going down.” Quartermain said to him with a short glance.

“Six ‘goin down.” the cowboy nodded while spitting into his spittoon and using his console to activate the hexagon to send them all down the glass tube.

“While all of that is true, Agent Jekyll, there is, in fact, a place in that land the League had specially made for a significant purpose. And now that I am a Senior Field Agent, I have permission to enter that place at my own free will. Nemo, you will be accompanying me once we arrive.”

“Very well, but I do hope that you will explain your intentions to me once we arrive.” Nemo replied. That being said, once they reached their destination, he was not at all please with what he heard.

“You cannot be serious!” he all but shrieked as he followed Quartermain down the hall of the prison their comrade would one day be warden of, “Allan, this is madness!”

“How is this madness?” he asked rolling his eyes.

“Look, I know S said that you were free to select anyone you wanted for our branch, but I highly doubt what you have in mind is acceptable!” Nemo bellowed.

“Maybe, but he never said that it was unacceptable, either.” Quartermain countered.

“Yes, but _her_?! You want to add _her_ to the team? Need I remind you that the deputy director almost lost his life before he finally subdued her?” Nemo asked frantically as he tried to stop the man.

“No, you do not.” Quartermain replied as he brushed past him and reached the room he was headed towards, “As I do not need to remind you that I am the one who decides who is fit to join us, and who is not.”

“And should S refuse your decision?” Nemo asked as the guards stepped aside and opened the door for Quartermain.

“Then I shall take it up with him.” he calmly replied, “Just wait here. And don’t contact the director…or the deputy director…or the League’s third-in-command, either. In fact, don’t speak to anyone, let alone contact anyone while I am in here, Nemo. That’s an order.”

After finally closing the door, Quartermain entered what seemed like an interrogation room. However, rather than just a table and two chairs, there were armored guards with drawn weapons in each corner of the room; all of which had their eyes fixated on the woman wrapped in chains and bound to her chair. Underneath those chains was a torn black and white prison jumpsuit with a number sewn over her large left breast. It was difficult to tell at first, given that her hair was draped over her face, but Quartermain was able to spot a glowing red eye glaring in his direction. Unfazed by this glare, Quartermain took his seat across from her and opened the file laying on the table and took out his reading glasses.

“Dr. Wilhelmina Harker, formally Murray. Hails from the Land Without Color. Respected and widely known chemist. Widow to the late Dr. Jonathan Harker. And formally ranked as the League’s third most wanted criminal up until being captured by the deputy director.” Quartermain listed before closing the file and looking up at the woman with a fake playful smile.

“Are you going to read my horoscope next? I’ll have you know, I’m a Pisces.” Mina said in low, rough, threatening voice.

“Not today.” he replied, “My name is Allan Quartermain, Senior Field Agent of the LXG.”

“I’ve heard of you.” Mina acknowledged, “I’m quite surprised your director never sent you, the great hunter, to come find me.”

“Well, I can’t do all the work, now can I?” he asked.

“What do you want, Quartermain?” she flatly asked as another guard walked in with a tray of food; or to be more precise, a big, bloody steak with potatoes and water.

“Thank you.” he said to the guard before turning to the hungry looking vampire eyeing the steak, “Oh, please, excuse me. I haven’t had lunch, yet. But to answer your question, I have come to offer you something, doctor. Consider it a once in a lifetime opportunity.”

While she may not have looked as though she was paying attention, due to her licking her lips at the rare meat being cut, Mina was listening to the proposition intensely. “I’m listening.”

“Yes, I believe you are.” he chuckled before taking a bite, “Despite what your file may say, I know there’s more to your story than most. I know that you weren’t always what you are, and that you, for a brief time, worked alongside our deputy director with your husband.”

“And just what am I, Mr. Q?” she asked, daring him to say it.

“A vampire.” he replied without hesitation or fear as he kept eating, “And a powerful one, at that. You and your late husband helped my superior in hunting down a certain monster in your homeland quite some time ago. Unfortunately, you all were unsuccessful and in the end, you lost your husband, and your humanity in the process. From there, you yourself were labeled as a monster by your people and acted in self-defense whenever the torches, pitchforks, and wooden stakes were brought out. However, there were times when you went overboard.”

“According to those paranoid idiots who survived.” Mina interrupted defensively.

“Be that as it may,” Quartermain argued, “While you did act in self-defense, there were times when you killed innocents. We don’t tolerate that in the League.”

“There was a different reason for that.” Mina snapped, “And you can thank that miserable bastard for what happened.”

“Blaming Dracula for your mistakes won’t clear you of your crimes, Dr. Harker.” Quartermain dryly pointed out. Unfortunately for the weak guards in the corners, the presences radiating off of Mina nearly made them collapse in fear. The mere mentioning of the one who turned her made even her cold blood boil in anger.

“…Weren’t you going to offer me something, Mr. Q?” she asked as her voice racked with anger.

“Indeed.” he nodded, “Now, despite what you have done, I am willing to look past this. Fact of the matter, Dr. Harker, you are more like us than you realize. You, too, are extraordinary. My reason for coming here today is that I want to offer you a place in not only the LXG, but my branch, as well. As a Senior Field Agent, I have the authority to recruit people I approve of into the League; and I also have special permission from the director to appoint the members of my branch personally. Should you accept my offer of joining the League, I can immediately add you to our ranks.”

“What do I get out of it?” she asked reluctantly.

“Well, freedom from this place, for one thing.” Quartermain scoffed, “And you shall be able to use your position and our resources to track down Dracula so you can kill him. That is what you want, isn’t it?”

“Oh, no.” Mina disagreed with a terrifying smile as her body shook with anger and the arm rests in her chair cracked, “I do not simply wish to kill Dracula. I want to carefully tear him apart limb from limb, cut open his chest and skull, and slowly take my time in examining everything that makes him tick. That way, I can finally understand what drives a creature to do what he did to me and my husband; just before I snuff out his godforsaken life.”

“None of which you will be able to do whilst being a prisoner here.” he reminded.

“Hmm,” she hummed, “Well, when you put it that way, what else can I say but yes? I shall join your League, and your branch, Mr. Q.”

“Excellent.” Quartermain smirked. 

“However, I do have one condition.” she informed.

“Oh?”

“As I am sure that our little partnership will continue to go on for many years, should there ever come a time when the name Dracula is involved with our work, or we, by divine providence, actually come across the man, I want your word that I have your permission to pursue and end him.”

“Deal.” he nodded before digging into his pocket and placing Mina’s new LXG coin on the table, “Guards, release _Agent_ Harker. Return her belongings and escort her, with care, out of the building once she is situated. I and the other members of our team shall be waiting for her outside. Oh, and one last thing before I forget, doctor.”

“Yes?” she asked only to meet a terrifying glare from Quartermain’s eyes which, for a moment, she believed had purple fire glowing behind his irises.

“Do not mistake this as a sign of trust.” he warned standing from his seat, “You may now bear the coin, but I shall be watching you until the day you have proven yourself to me. Do not forget that.”

Having left the room, Quartermain walked past his second-in-command who fumbled off the wall he was leaning on before following. “Well, what happened?” Nemo asked.

“We now have our seventh member.” Quartermain replied.

“…I am not sure how I should feel about that considering who you just enlisted.”

“Oh, relax, Nemo. Harker will cooperate.” he assured, “We are the only ones who can give her what she wants.”

“While that may be, you are aware that those guards you left behind are most likely informing the director as we speak, yes?” Nemo asked.

“Naturally.” he nodded before exiting the prison. However, as soon as they did, they witnessed a strange sight. Flamel’s entire right arm was now an enormous red snake with black and green eyes.

“Bloody hell!” Jekyll exclaimed in wonder.

“Now that’s pretty slick, right there.” Sawyer laughed.

“I know, I know.” Flamel grinned.

“So, you can do that to any part of your body?” Skinner asked.

“Sure can.” he nodded, “I can reconstruct my body however I want. Be it a limb, my face, even my voice. I could even turn myself into a woman or an animal if I so desired, which has come in handy ever since I joined up.”

“…I am so glad that I got him before anyone else.” Quartermain chuckled before dropping his smirk and joining them, “Gentlemen, gather round. We now have our seventh member.”

“Bout damn time.” Sawyer grinned, “Who’d you get, one of the workers here?”

“Wilhelmina Harker.” he corrected causing them all to pale.

“What?!” they all cried.

“Are you crazy, you old geezer?!” Skinner shouted, “You recruited that blood sucker?!”

“Quartermain, there was a reason she was once the third most wanted criminal on our list.” Jekyll reminded, “Even Nicholas is worried!”

“Yeah, and I’m the new guy!” Flamel agreed in panic, “Even I’ve heard of her. She’s-she’s-”

“A member of our team.” Quartermain cut off, “And I expect all of you to treat her as your equal, for she is now an LXG agent, as well. Now, enough crying over it. If I hear one more whimper over my decision, I’ll stick my riffle up that person’s arse.”

“Well, ain’t he a bossy one?” Sawyer muttered to Flamel.

“Yeah, we might as well start calling him ‘boss’.” he joked.

And so, the mystery behind that has now been revealed.

“Seems like I’m not the only one with a temper.” Mina playfully remarked as she exited the building, now wearing her black dress, gloves, overcoat, hat and veil along with her red scarf. “A pleasure to meet you all, gentlemen. I am Dr. Wilhelmina Harker. I look forward to working with all of you.”

“Hello.” Flamel politely nodded while the others made their own remarks.

“Ello, gorgeous.” Skinner flirted walking up to the lady.

“Did anyone else hear something?” she asked walking past him, “It’s as though something invisible is speaking. Too bad. I only have sex with things I can see and am impressed with.”

“Oh!” Sawyer laughed before taking his shot, “Howdy, ma’am. I’m-”

“Not impressive.” she flatly cut off as she walked past him and Jekyll, “Same goes for you, tail coat.”

“But I didn’t even-oh, forget it.” he sighed dejectedly as she approached Flamel with a saucy smile.

“And you are?” she asked causing him to become nervous.

“I’m, uh…I forget.” he replied as his face turned as red as his coat.

“Here, let me help.” she giggled as she cupped his face and gave him a passionate kiss; which muffled his outcry of surprise. Much to the others’ surprise, and utter irritation, the kiss lasted for roughly fifteen seconds, not that Flamel could comprehend the concept of time as it happened.

“There,” Mina smiled, “Is that better?”

“Nicholas Flamel.” he groaned about ready to fall backwards.

“Hmm, charmed.” she smirked before walking off to the side with a sexy sway.

“Oh, that boy is going to be so much fun when he gets older.” Mina thought as she discreetly licked her lips.

“I hate him.” Jekyll, Skinner and Sawyer though as they glared at Flamel.

“Hey, Quartermain?” Flamel asked after regaining his senses.

“What is it?” he asked gruffly as they all returned to the entrance to their headquarters.

“Not to make it sound as though I am questioning your choice, but…does S know that you just released and recruited our newest edition?”

“Please, call me Mina.” she said to them.

“R-right, Mina. Does he?” Flamel asked nervously as they stood on the platform.

“Seven going up.” Quartermain barked to an identical copy of the cowboy on the other side.

“Seven ‘goin up.” he nodded before sending them up.

“Flamel, you worry too much.” Quartermain sighed, “If the director has found out about this, then I am certain that he will notify me promptly.”

True enough, after they crossed over and exited the room, they all were greeted by their leader’s beautiful secretary, who did not look at all pleased to see them. “Agent Quartermain, the director demands your presence in his office, immediately. Follow me.” she said firmly before turning on her heels and making her way towards the main building with Quartermain behind her.

“Well, our merry little band was short lived.” Sawyer said bluntly after they were all left behind. Everyone else, including Mina, nodded in agreement as they watched the head of their branch walk away.

**OUaT**

After decades of service to the LXG, every agent present in Storybrooke had witnessed, and delivered, their fair share of carnage and gruesomeness. However, watching Pride devour one of his own kind, his brother, left a pit in each of their stomachs that didn’t seem close to fading away. That being said, they had no choice but to ignore it until their remaining opponent was dealt with. Even if it was cold of him, Pride wasn’t at all disturbed by what he had done and was relishing in his newly added ability and extended life. Using his sense of smell, his wicked smirk grew even larger.

“Ah, I see.” he said giving the agents a side glance, “So that’s where you’re keeping them. Now that I have Gluttony’s heightened sense of smell, I can easily pinpoint exactly where it is you are hiding Father’s sacrifices. Once I’ve finished all of you off, I’ll be sure to fetch them for him.”

Before anyone could retort back at the runt, Pride once again unleashed his shadows on them all. Sawyer found himself being nearly impaled numerous times as Pride made spikes of shadows erupt from under his feet while his quickly backed away. As this happened, Quixote leapt into the air with his spear and made an attempt to drive its tip into the boy. Unfortunately, he was knocked back down by a row of teeth before rolling away from the other attacks. Skinner was unable to use his old tricks thanks to his scent being more obvious to Pride. Because of this, it was difficult for him to get in close without any weapons to back him up. 

Back underneath the mansion, Nicholas was trying to keep himself under control as the fight went on. Given the great amount of noise they were all making, it was easy for him to understand that his friends weren’t having an easy time against Pride.

“Boss,” he called while bouncing his legs, “I know you said I can’t go out there, but-”

“But nothing.” Quartermain cut off, “You’re staying here. Last thing any of us needs is you getting caught by those monsters the day before all hell breaks loose.”

“But, boss-”

“I said, you’re staying here!” he shouted causing the room to fill with silence. The air began to fill with tension as the two agents stared each other down with menacing glares. The air felt so heavy that the three women felt as though it was difficult to breathe.

“They’re going to die if I stay here.” Nicholas lowly growled past his teeth.

“And you risk everything if you leave.” Quartermain retorted, matching his tone, “You need to stay here and protect the other sacrifices. I will let you leave when the sun rises, no sooner.”

“Then you’ve sent out people to die.”

“So be it.” Quartermain replied.

“You heartless bastard!” Nicholas cried as he jumped out of his chair and charged at his leader. However, before he could sink his claws into the old man, Quartermain drew his riffle, topped with his knife, and pressed it against Nicholas’ Adams Apple.

“I seem to recall hearing you say that you had faith in your comrades earlier when you were speaking to the Dark One. Have you lost that faith, Agent Flamel?” he coolly asked.

“Quit using my own words against me, old man.” Nicholas hissed.

“They know what they’re doing. Do not insult them by rushing in to finish off the enemy after they’ve done all the work.” Quartermain lectured as he put away his weapon.

“Fine.” he huffed, “But those doors better be unlocked _before_ sunrise. If things don’t work out the way I’ve planned, I wanna see at least one more sunrise.”

“Do you really think your plan will work?” Emma asked as they all sat back down.

“It has to, Em. Or we’re all doomed.” he replied.

“Tell me you’ve at least worked together a Plan B.” Zelena begged.

“Oh, Plan B is what I’ve been working on the most out of everything I’ve set up in our counter measures. It’s _the_ most elaborate thing I’ve developed for this.” Nicholas explained.

“Then what’s Plan A?” Emma asked.

“Plan A is simple, kill the Dwarf in the Flask before the eclipse begins tomorrow.” he replied.

“Wouldn’t that be rather difficult?” Gold asked finally joining in on the conversation, “He has your regenerative properties, am I right?”

“Actually, you’re not, but I can see why you would think that.” Nicholas corrected, “You see, that body you all saw him in in my memories isn’t like what I have, or what any of you have. The best way I can describe it is to compare it to a leather bag.”

“A leather bag?” Zelena asked.

“Yes.” her brother nodded, “It’s basically an imitation of my body acting as his new flask. If I can tear through that leather bag, he should die rather easily. That’s why he has his ‘children’ doing all of his dirty work. He can’t afford to do that sort of stuff without risking any damage to his container.”

“It can’t be that easy.” Emma denied flatly.

“My thoughts exactly.” he agreed, “Which is why I spent so much time setting up our alternative in case I either can’t tear up that leather bag, or that doesn’t work for some reason. But in either situation, he’ll avoid confrontation at all costs which is why he’ll stay down below until the time comes. And unless we kill as many of the other Homunculi as possible before that happens, he’ll have more thrown in our way as we try to handle them and the Amestrians.”

“There’s just one thing that I don’t understand.” Gold interjected.

“And what’s that?” Nicholas asked in annoyance at his old foe.

“Well, you’ve known about this for over fifty years, as you’ve said? So, why is it that with all your power, all your resources and all of your knowledge on the matter of the situation and your enemies…why are you just _now_ deciding to act, Nicholas Flamel?”

Whether they did not think of this question, or if they simply wanted to avoid hearing the answer, neither Emma or her lover’s sisters thought to ask him that since he informed them of the Promised Day. Emma, more so than Zelena or Regina, felt a cold grip on her heart as they waited for his answer; and it didn’t help when he decided to rise from his seat, turn his back on them and begin to smoke his pipe. Adding to her dread, he began to chuckle like the villain would before explaining his evil plan.

“So, you’ve finally pieced it together, eh, Mr. Gold?” he asked with a smirk as he let out his smoke, “Well, you can’t really blame me for this. I am an alchemist, after all. We are very hungry and curious creatures. You want to know why I haven’t done anything up until now? Well, I’ll tell you. It’s because I want to know if his little procedure will actually work. Oh, if you knew what I know about what he’s planning, you’d want to see it for yourselves, too! I mean, come on! He’s planning on making what happened in Xerxes look like a tea party, here. No one’s ever done anything on this scale before. And this is going to affect the nine major realms, for crying out loud! How could I not want to know?!”

Just as Emma was about to shout at her true love in protest, after getting over her shock at his words, she was stopped once he turned around to face them with a dry look on his face.

“Or at least, that’s what I would say if I was a complete and utter sociopath.” he said flatly.

“What?” Emma asked.

“Oh, come on, Emma! How long have you known me? Would I ever say something that crazy and actually mean it?” he dryly asked.

“Well, I-I-but you, you’d-”

“In actuality,” Nicholas interrupted with a heavy sigh, “That’s what the director wants.”

“What?” she asked again.

“Our director wants to know if the dwarf’s plan will actually work. That’s why he ordered me to come up with a counter measure that can reverse the process, afterwards. That’s Plan B.”

“How could anyone be that curious?!” Zelena shrieked.

“Well, the realm where our headquarters is located at isn’t one of the realms caught in the alignment. So the way I see it, if he’s not in the same level of danger as the others are, he has no qualms in wanting to know if this theory is possible or not.” he replied, “Besides, it took us forever to find out all the information we’ve got on those guys. No small feat, I assure you.”

“How could you possibly follow a man like that?” Emma asked hotly.

“It wasn’t always like this.” he whispered.

**OUaT**

Back inside S’s office, Allan Quartermain was getting the scolding of a lifetime; which was ironic considering the age difference between him and his director.

“In what possible way could you have put together that I would support such an undermining and downright ridiculous choice in a member of your team, Allan?!” S ranted in anger.

“I was only using the privileges you bestowed upon me by promoting me and granting me the authority in selecting the members of my branch, sir.” Quartermain replied as he stiffly sat in his chair while S stomped and paced in front of him.

“I did not give you permission to exonerate and release prisoners from the Land of Untold Stories just so you could add them to the League!” S retorted, “Wilhelmina Harker, of all people, especially! You know how long it took us to finally catch her.”

“I do, but I also believe that you were too quick to imprison her.” he defended.

“Argh! The deputy director gave her more chances than I allowed him to give. All of which, she turned her back on in her pursuit of Dracula. I know what happened to her, Quartermain. And while I may have sympathies for her, I cannot let that cloud my judgment given all that she has done.”

“With all due respect, Director, that seems hypocritical on your part. Have you forgotten how you and I met? I committed many crimes in my youth, some more severe than Harker’s, and yet you, yourself, looked past those and offered me to join the LXG; even after I broke in and attempted to raid your vault.” he argued.

“Yes, but there is a difference between you and Mrs. Harker, Quartermain. You accepted my offer the first, and _only_ time I gave it to you. Harker, on the other hand, refused it more times than I can count.” S lectured, “I don’t disagree with you, she is extraordinary. But remember, that does not mean she has a right to bear the coin.”

“She is a grieving woman who seeks closure. I believe I can give her something better than what she thinks she wants.” Quartermain defended.

“Allan, if this is because of your wife, I-”

“Everyone in this league has lost someone.” he snapped in anger before controlling himself, “Everyone. Harker, myself, even you. We all understand loss. The only problem is, no one is capable of fixing themselves alone. Nemo believes I chose him and those agents based solely on their fighting capabilities, but he’s wrong. I chose them because I could see that they all needed to be with people who could understand their pain and help them move on; and that included Harker.”

As the new senior field agent gave his explanation, S calmed down, with the help of a cigar, and looked out to view the realm they were in through his window. With a heavy sigh, and a large plume of smoke, the director spoke once more.

“If you’re in the League, it’s proof enough that you never had an easy life and you never will.” he said somberly giving another sigh, “Alright, Harker’s in. But! If I catch wind of her falling into old habits, she goes back to that cell of hers with you in one of your own.”

“I understand, sir.” Quartermain nodded in thanks.

“You better, you crazy tiger.” he grumbled while plopping in his chair, “I’ll have you know, though, I didn’t just call you in here to voice my anger and concerns about the vampire. There’s another agent you recruited I want to talk to you about. It’s about Nicholas.”

“What about Flamel?” Quartermain asked cocking an eyebrow.

“Listen, Allan. Nicholas is going to have a hard time balancing out his personal life with his new position with the League.”

“So the lad has to make up a few things to his family. Big whoop.” Quartermain scoffed.

“Oh, it’s a bigger whoop than you think.” S flatly replied, “I take it he didn’t tell you much about his family judging by that remark of yours.”

“He said that he was from a royal family but his father practically has no chance at becoming next in line.”

“Did he mention his mother?” S asked still looking dryly at the man before him.

“Only that she’s incredibly high maintained and smothers him and his elder sister.” he replied.

“There’s more to it than that, I’m afraid.” S corrected, “You’re originally from the Enchanted Forest, correct? You ever hear of a sorceress named Cora?”

“Only that she’s the only person to have ever been considered Rumplestiltskin’s rival.”

“And she also happens to be Nicholas’s mother.”

“…I should have pieced that together faster than I did.” Quartermain bluntly admitted.

“Yeah, well, because of her, he has to make sure that no trace of the League exists probably more so than any other agent. If she were to ever find out about us…well, I think you know what would happen.”

“We’d have to kill her and rob Flamel of his mother.”

“Right, but I’d rather avoid that. I’m actually quite fond of that boy, I don’t want cause any bad blood between us.” S nodded.

“Is it true that you recruited him?” Quartermain asked, “He’s a bit young.”

“Maybe, but he’s no child, that’s for sure. There’s more about him I want you to know, some personal stuff. He’s a smart one, so he’ll probably figure it out that I’ve told you about this. That being said, I want you to keep your mouth shut until he feels comfortable with telling the rest of you about this.”

“What is it?”

“For ten years of his life, Nicholas was a slave in the desert kingdom of Xerxes.” S informed causing Quartermain’s eyes to widen in shock, “From the age of four, to fourteen or fifteen. He belonged to an alchemist that served in the king’s court and was appointed as his assistant about eight years or so after being sold to him.”

The older agent said nothing, for his teeth were too clenched in anger. Even though he met Flamel only hours before, he was still his subordinate.

“It’s left some scars on him. Not physical, but emotional and mental. Because of this, he has developed a fear of whips so strong, he’ll start having panic attacks at the mere sight of one. I know you don’t use them, but Agent Sawyer has for his previous missions. Do not let him wield one if you’re going to have Nicholas onboard.”

“Yes, sir.” he nodded.

“Also, in case you haven’t seen it, there is a reason why he’s called the Immortal Alchemist.”

“I’m aware. Myself and the others witnessed a demonstration earlier.”

“But did he tell you how it was possible?” S asked earning silence, “I thought not. The source of his immortality comes from what is commonly known as the Philosopher’s Stone. Have you heard of it?”

“No.”

“Few have and even fewer know how to make them.” S replied while using his magic to pull a book across the room into his hand, “Contrary to what Nicholas thinks, I know quite a bit about alchemy. The stone has appeared in legends, often under different names. The red stone, the elixir of life, the grand panacea; it’s all the same thing. And Nicholas’ got one.”

“I didn’t see anything like that on him.” Quartermain remarked.

“That’s because it’s not _on_ him, it’s _in_ him.” he corrected, “The Philosopher’s Stone can indeed grant immortality, but only when entered into the body the one seeking it. From there, it changes the body and grants them eternal life and longevity; and an apparent regeneration ability.”

“You said that only a few know how the stone is created. Do you?” Quartermain asked.

“Unfortunately.” he sighed, “The stone is a concentrated form of a person’s life force. It is made by sacrificing multiple human lives and using that energy to amplify an alchemist’s alchemy and bypass the laws of equivalent exchange. The more souls that are sacrificed, the more energy the stone has for the alchemist to use.”

“I find it hard to believe that Flamel was willing to perform such an act, director.” Quartermain debated, “He told me that it was forced on him by someone he knew.”

“Yes, he told me the same thing. Well, regardless of who actually did it, I was able to put the pieces together as to what happened. Someone in Xerxes made a Philosopher’s Stone by sacrificing the entire kingdom’s population; and the only person who survived was Nicholas who acquired the stone in the process.”

“Hmm.” the old man hummed as silence filled the room.

“You cannot let the others know about this, Allan. Not until Nicholas is ready to place his trust in all of you. He needs your companionship more than he knows. Remember,” S said as he flipped up his bangs to reveal a third eye in the center of his forehead, “I’ve got my eyes on you people.”

“Yes, sir.” he smirked, “I understand, Director Solomon.”

**OUaT**

The clashing of blades and gunfire continued to ring through the air as the agents pressed on against Pride. Despite Quartermain’s orders, Nicholas still wanted to go out there and help. That being said, he wasn’t completely useless. It took him some time, but he was able to discreetly make a small tunnel with a tendril from under his heel. It wasn’t meant as a means of escape, but rather a way for him to fight, as well. As Pride arrogantly smirked at the struggling gentlemen, he failed to notice the small hole digging up behind him.

As soon as it broke through the dirt, the tendril extended about six feet and turned into a black hand and arm with an eye at the center of its palm. Surging with red alchemic lightning, it charged and grabbed the brat’s head before deconstructing it. While the boy cried out in agony, the other agents smirked and took action.

“Nicholas, you are one glorious bastard.” Sawyer smirked before they all rushed Pride.

Quixote made the first move by launching his spear into the air, which went straight into Pride’s chest before Jekyll yanked it out and Skinner kneed the boy in the face. From there, Sawyer put him in a headlock giving Shan Yu the chance to repeatedly punch his ribs until they were broken into tiny pieces; not that they could tell, but he managed to collapse the kid’s heart in the process before it healed. After tossing him to the side, Mina carried on by tearing out his throat with her claws. Panting while he healed, Pride began to notice that he was at the end of his ropes and that he was struggling to maintain his shadows’ stability.

“Damn, miserable humans!” Pride cursed as his body began to break apart. This did not go unnoticed by the others, so Sawyer took the chance to grab the boy from behind with his arm under his neck. Not even bothering to say anything witty, the agent wasted no time in snapping Pride’s neck, thus finishing him off. With his deconstructing body falling to the ground and becoming dust in the wind, Pride let a few tears fall and gave his final words.

“Father?” he whispered in fear as death finally took him.

“What a foolish boy.” Quixote sighed, shaking his head. Back inside the mansion, Nicholas rose from his chair and made his way over to the massive doors keeping him inside.

“Boss?” he asked in almost a sad tone.

“Hmm, go on.” Quartermain sighed as he unlocked the doors.

“Emma, Zelena, come on. I want you to see this.” he said to his girlfriend and sister.

“And that’s what happened.” Quartermain said to Regina as he finished his tale, but leaving out his director’s identity, “Since then, your brother has worked alongside us fighting for the stability of all realms.”

“Well, that was riveting tale, Mr. Quartermain.” Regina sarcastically remarked, “But it still doesn’t excuse the fact that my brother has kept this side hidden from me for all these years.”

“Perhaps, but I hope it does allow you to comprehend the sacrifices he has made during that time. As well as keeping you from facing death at the hands of another agent.” Quartermain retorted causing realization to dawn on her face, “You didn’t really think that after everything you had done, you weren’t on the League’s radar, did you? Had it not been for your brother constantly convincing our people to let you live, well, you would have been killed a long time ago, Your Majesty; I believe the same can be said regarding your mother, as well. All he has ever done, was for the sake of those he loves. I hope you remember that the next time you lecture him for doing his job.”

Outside the mansion, Nicholas gazed at the horizon with his sister and girlfriend watching behind him. To them, the upcoming sunrise did not have as much meaning as it did to Nicholas. Nevertheless, they still joined him as he patiently waited. As he did, the other agents were walking through the clearing Pride had created back to the mansion.

“Well, that makes three Homunculi taken care of, now.” Sawyer remarked, “That just leaves Sloth, Greed, Lust, Wrath and their father.”

“This won’t be as easy as I had hoped.” Mina sighed.

“How easy did you think it would be, Mina?” Skinner asked.

“I mean, I had hoped that we would have been able to defeat at least one Homunculus without Nicholas’ help.” she clarified, “So far, he’s the only one who’s been able to do the most damage to any of them. We may have killed Pride, but it was only after he used his alchemy on him.”

“Well, then we’ll just have to find another one before tomorrow and kill it without him.” Skinner chuckled.

“I’m afraid that won’t be possible, mi amigo.” Quixote denied, “Look.”

Sure enough, they all turned to witness the beginning of what might be the end.

“The sun is rising.” Shan Yu said as their hearts hardened.

From his spot on the porch, Nicholas said aloud as light shined on his face the words that he had dreaded, and waited to say for so many years. “The Promised Day has begun.”


	75. On the Battlefield

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

What seemed like any other morning in Storybrooke was actually so much more. Silence and tension filled the air as the sun continued to steadily rise. Snow and David managed to spread the word about the Promised Day, as well as Nicholas’ involvement; although, concerns were raised when they learned about the Lost Boys. Nevertheless, the defenses were set and the civilians were kept safe and off the streets. Standing at the one spot where all of Storybrooke could be seen, Nicholas took in the sight of his home for what he feared could be the last time.

“I have both waited and dreaded this day for over fifty years. Now I find myself at risk of losing so much more than what I once had.” he said aloud.

“But you are not alone today, Nicholas Flamel.” Quartermain reminded as he and the rest of their team joined him.

“Not on this day or that _will_ follow.” Nemo added.

“We stand together.” Mina nodded.

“As one.” said Jekyll.

“From the beginning to the end.” Skinner promised.

“As family.” Sawyer finished.

“Hmm,” Nicholas smiled, “I love you guys.”

Almost in unison, the seven gentlemen took out their coins, ready to flip.

“Head, we win,” Quartermain began as they all flipped.

“Tails, they lose!” they cried. Inside the mansion, Rumplestiltskin watched as Bluebeard released Belle onto a sofa.

“Make it quick.” he said stiffly before giving them space.

“My dear Belle,” Rumple sighed kneeling at her side, “Today marks the ‘Promised Day,’ as Flamel calls it. As one of the ones chosen to be sacrificed, there seems to be no escape. And while I would like nothing more than to continue finding a way to wake you, I’ve been told that it is safer for you, and our child, inside the box. But once this day has ended, I will come running back to you and continue my work so that, finally, we can be together again and become a proper family.”

To prove his love for her was true, Rumple pressed his lips against his wife’s, with a desperate hope that it would wake her up. But much to his disappointment, she continued to sleep.

“Time’s up, Dark One.” Giles informed from behind.

“I love you, Belle.” Rumple whispered before Giles sealed her away once more.

In the main room, Emma looked around while Zelena paced around while talking on her cell phone. Regina had returned home not long before to keep an eye on Henry, which, somewhat, put Emma at ease. Although, her boyfriend’s eldest sister was still concerned about her child.

“Zelena, Robin will be fine. My parents won’t let anything happen to her.” Emma coaxed.

“I know, I know.” she sighed, “But sweet, little brother didn’t exactly paint today in a pretty picture.”

“And for good reasons, sister dear.” Nicholas retorted as he and the others came in, armed and ready.

“So, when exactly is the eclipse going to start?” Emma asked.

“I’d say about…12:38.” Nicholas speculated.

“12:38?” she asked.

“What, were you expecting 8:15?” he asked bluntly, “But you can expect that the Amestrians will be here before then.”

“My crew is keeping an eye, as we speak.” Nemo informed, “We are expecting them to arrive via portal past the town line. If not there, we have multiple squads and platoons stationed out throughout the woods and town.”

“Then the fun begins.” Sawyer grinned in excitement.

“Fun?” Emma snapped, “You think this is fun?”

“Oh, yeah.” he nodded while drawing his pistol, “It’s been a long time since I really got to kill people.”

“What about the Lost Boys?” she dryly asked.

“Oh, they don’t count. They we’re just a warm up.” he taunted knowing it would set her off. But just as she was about to say something, her alchemist interjected.

“Hon, he’s just trying push your buttons. But in any case, they’ll more than likely only come after us League agents.”

“Why?” Zelena asked.

“Well, it’s like we told you, they need you ladies, Gold and the civilians alive in order to perform the procedure. And we’re the ones trying to stop them and kill them.” Skinner reminded, “Out of all of us, Nicholas is the only agent they don’t plan on killing; not just yet, anyway.”

“Even so, we can handle the Amestrians.” Mina assured just before Nicholas jolted upright in his chair. With his eyes wide and his breath hitched, he softly spoke to them.

“They’re here.”

Just as Nemo had predicted, several portals opened at the edge of the town line. Leading the way on a white horse was an old, highly ranked officer with glasses, gray hair and matching mustache wearing a decorated blue uniform. Walking at his right side was a, younger, highly ranked officer wearing the same uniform with black hair and dark eyes.

“What are you thinking, Colonel Mustang?” the old man asked.

“About what, General Grumman?” Mustang asked, “This land, sir? Well, it certainly seems like it rains quite often.”

“No, no, about what the Fuher said, regarding this ‘League’ we are up against.” Grumman clarified.

**OUaT**

Looking down upon the vast army he controlled, Wrath, or Fuher King Bradley as he was known to them, cleared his throat before making his grand speech to the foolish humans he had under his control.

“Soldiers of Amestris, as you all have come to understand, our country has stood as the strongest power over all others we have fought against. Since its foundation, Amestris has been the proud example of bravery, honor and duty. Each and every one of you has dedicated your lives to defending this nation and its people. While you may come from villages in different parts of the country, your oaths as soldiers bring you together. As your Fuher, I have asked much of all of you, and today, I must ask for more. In an attempt to discover secrets beyond our world, the government’s alchemist made a startling discovery; our world is not the only one. We are, in fact, just one of many. Since this discovery was made, we have attempted and succeeded in crossing over to these other lands in hopes of learning of their cultures and sharing our prosperity with their own. However, we were quick to learn that there are others whom know of the other lands and have exploited and dominated them for their own selfish desires. An organization that calls itself ‘The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.’ Corrupt and powerful individuals whom kill any that stand in their way of controlling any land they set their eyes on. I have seen the carnage they have wrought for myself, and it has plagued my mind ever since. As both a soldier and a leader, I cannot allow innocent people to be terrorized by those who deem themselves superior to them because they hold more power. It may be presumptuous of me to think this, but I believe that all who wear this uniform, can agree with me. So, I stand before you know, brave defenders of Amestris, and ask you this. Who here is willing to put an end to this tyranny before it consumes us all?”

Not surprising him in the process, every naïve soldier cheered in agreement at their leader’s words. While still maintain his stoic expression, Wrath’s mind was filled with disgust as the lesser beings he despised cheered for him in a blind act of agreement to give up their lives for such an obvious lie.

“What naïve creatures humans are.” he thought.

**OUaT**

“Well, not sound arrogant,” Mustang said with an arrogant tone and expression, “But I highly doubt that Amestris’ finest will have any difficulty against just seven people.”

“Really?” Grumman asked skeptically.

“Are you worried, sir?”

“Well, I wouldn’t use the word ‘worried’ per say.” Grumman defended, “But the way I see it, if a man such as Fuher Bradley felt compelled to warn us about such a small group of people, and believed that an entire battalion was necessary for them, then they just might be a bit stronger than most would believe at first glance.”

“I suppose. But may I ask you something, sir?”

“Of course.”

“Why is it that you’re the only one who gets a horse?” Mustang dryly asked.

“Because I’m old and I’m a general, that’s why.” Grumman flatly replied with a wide, cocky smile covered his face.

After marching for several hundred meters, the leading officers eventually led their troops into the quiet, little town. However, they did not find themselves alone once they reached the town square. Standing alone with only a flask in his hand, Jekyll looked down his nose at the general once he stopped roughly ten feet in front of him.

“Good morning.” Jekyll politely greeted.

“Good morning.” Grumman nodded with a smile, “A bit early for liquor, don’t you think?”

“You’ll have to excuse me, my companions and I had a tiresome night.”

“I take it you are a member of this league I’ve heard so much about, then?” he asked.

“Yes, and you are all members of the Amestrian military.” Jekyll nodded, “I have a message for you from our leader. Abandon this act of suicide. Leave this land and never return, or else all of you shall die.”

Anyone that heard this busted into laughter; all except Mustang and Grumman. Both were experience war veterans, in their own right and could tell the difference between blind arrogance and absolute certainty. And Dr. Henry Jekyll did not strike them as an arrogant man. Still, taking the words of just one man while having an entire armed battalion at your back did not set the best example one wants as a leader.

“While we appreciate the warning, I’m afraid we cannot allow you people to continue to subjugate the people of this town any further.” Mustang replied, “Also, if you’re going to threaten an armed military force like ours, you should at least bring another person to back you up.”

“…What is your name, sir?” Jekyll asked.

“Colonel Mustang. Why do you ask?”

“Because we completely agree with you, Colonel.”

“ _We_?” Mustang thought as Jekyll downed the flask, “What are you doing?”

“Bringing out the other person.” he smiled. 

Not a moment later, the doctor began to erratically twitch and convulse as his body and muscles grew to an unnatural size. While the sight did frighten them, the soldiers acted on instinct as they readied their weapons and aimed them at the monster before them. But just before they could open fire, the transformation was complete and a mighty roar filled the air before a massive arm and fist collided with their bodies, flinging them into the air. Even after so many years, the other six agents who knew this sound better than anyone knew what was happening. Mr. Edward Hyde had returned.

**OUaT**

Earlier that morning, Nicholas had explained his plan for the battle that lied ahead. “So, here’s how we’re gonna play this out. After the Amestrians arrive, Jekyll will intercept them once they reach the town square and offer them a warning to leave while they still can. In the unlikely event that they accept it, Quixote and Shan Yu will escort them back home. But, should they refuse, and they will, Jekyll, I want you to let Hyde do the talking from there, if you catch my drift.”

“Understood. I’m sure he’ll be happy to handle negotiations from that point.” Jekyll nodded.

“Yes, I’m sure he will.” Nicholas nodded, “From there, Nemo’s men will engage the enemy as they scatter away from Hyde, thus acting as the signal for the rest of us to join in, as well. Once we’ve revealed ourselves, it should draw out the remaining Homunculi that haven’t been ordered to stay and guard their father. You guys can pair up however you like, I don’t care. The important thing is to kill as many of them as possible and keep the civilians safe until the eclipse.”

“What about you, Nicholas?” Emma asked.

“I’ll be going alone once the fighting starts. While everyone is fighting up top, I’ll be working my way down below to confront my old friend. He and I are long overdue for a little chat.” Nicholas growled, “As for you three, Gold, I want you to reinforce the barriers we have set up on the buildings and homes filled with people. Zelena, you need to stick close to Regina and Henry; since the enemy can’t hurt you, I need you defending our family. Emma, you can do the same for your parents and the Hooks if you want.”

“And why should I do that?” Gold asked.

“Because you and I have an agreement; and I can still kill your wife and child if you don’t do as I say.” Nicholas retorted with an annoyed glare.

“Fine.” the Dark One spat past his gritting teeth.

“Are you sure you want us out there?” Emma asked, “After all that talk and work about keeping us away from all that?”

“That was different.” he replied, “They can’t afford to bring any harm to any of you with what little time they have left. And, we won’t be able to keep our eyes on you while we’re all fighting. Besides, one way or another, he’ll have us all gathered when he’s ready to use us; unless I can kill him before it happens. So, it’s up to you. You can either stay with your family, or you can join in on the fighting. Like I said, either way, unless I kill the bastard, we’re all gonna end up in the same place when starts getting dark out. But, if you’re gonna fight, don’t show them any mercy. You’ll have to kill anyone out there wearing an Amestrian uniform. Think you can?”

“I’m not a killer, Nicholas.” she argued.

“Then stay with your family and out of our way.” he coldly suggested, “Z, I know you don’t really care much for other people, so, you can kill them if you want to.”

“It does sound tempting.” his sister smirked, “I’ll think about it.”

“Better think fast, we’ve got like five hours before the eclipse begins.” he warned, “By the way, Jekyll, you may want to poof yourself to the town square. Those jack wagons should be there by now.”

“Consider it done.” he smiled before crushing a rock and poofing away.

**OUaT**

As Hyde continued to knock away the soldiers, just as Nicholas planned, Nemo’s crew emerged from the rooftops and alleyways armed and firing at the blue wearing foreigners. However, unlike the previous battles in town, Nemo decided to lead his men, sword drawn and dripping with blood. As he did, Hyde dug his massive hands into the ground and lifted up a large piece of concrete to act as a shield for his old, turban wearing friend.

“Good to see you after so long, Edward.” Nemo greeted as he and Ishmael took cover, “Sorry that it had to be done during all this trouble.”

“Trouble?” Hyde asked in a monstrous version of Jekyll’s, “I call it sport. Nicholas asked us to help, and help him we shall. Let us show these Amestrians what happens when you pick a fight with the LXG!”

Crying out another tremendous roar, the hulking gentlemen resumed tearing through the enemy’s defenses; sometimes literally when he would rip them in half. Nemo wasted no time in displaying his mastery of swordplay as he used his scimitar to slice off the soldiers’ arms, heads, and the barrels of their weapons with Ishmael’s guns to back him up. As they continued their onslaught, two Amestrian soldiers took cover in a nearby alley while they loaded their riffles.

“This is insane!” one of them cried, “What in the world is that monster?!”

“He’s not a monster, he’s just extraordinary.” Skinner whispered in his ear before snapping his neck from behind. Before the other man could even scream, Skinner punched him in the throat, causing him to stop breathing before he suffocated and died.

“Oh, yes.” he said softly to himself as he clenched and unclenched his hands, “This is going to be fun.”

Out in the woods, the small company that had broken off earlier before the battalion reached town began to advance their movement through the trees in an effort to join the others. However, they were not able to make it as far as they planned. In a swarm of bats, Mina wasted no time in picking off the nearest soldier into the trees where she feasted on his blood. It took his battle buddy a moment, but he realized soon after the other one was missing; that is when his pale corpse was dropped right in front of him.

“We’ve got company!” he cried as Mina jumped down and sank her fangs into his neck. With her eyes as red as the very liquid covering her mouth, the beautiful vampire drew her daggers and used them to deflect the barrage of bullets aimed towards her as she advanced on the Amestrians. For some, she stabbed. Others, she slit their veins or throats. For those few that were left after she took down the others, she made a meal out of each of them, as well. As she did this, Giles was watching her from his position on the battlefield through a spy glass.

“Looks like the good doctor is enjoying herself.” he said aloud as a young soldier charged and screamed at him, only to be shot in the chest by the priest’s short, double-barrel shotgun, “I only pray that she’s not enjoying herself too much.”

Coincidently, as Bluebeard said this, Mina continued to drink the blood of the soldiers trying to kill her. As she did, her skin began to grow paler, her fangs and claws grew longer and sharper, and it seemed as though her eyes became darker with each quart of blood she drank. All of this, Giles saw which made him concerned for his comrade.

“Oh, Lord,” he prayed as he gave the sign of the cross, “Though she is a creature made by the hands of demons, guide this poor woman to your warm, loving light. Lord, hear my prayer. Amen.”

After briefly showing the side of himself that made him a priest, Gilles returned to the side that made him an LXG agent, a cold hearted killer like the others. Rather than continuing to use his shotgun for the entire day, which would have meant death considering how long it takes to reload, Giles opted for another weapon in his arsenal. Like all agents, he was skilled in multiple styles of combat and weapons, so it came as no surprise that he would bring a sword for such an important mission; and to match his strong sense of faith, it was designed like a Templar’s sword, to boot.

Though his skills were nowhere near the level of Nemo’s, Giles was still a master swordsman, in his own right. Given the number of corpses he left behind, he certainly proved they weren’t anything to sneeze at, either. By this point, some of the Amestrian soldiers were able to find cover and bring out the bigger guns; namely machine guns to match the ones used by Nemo’s crew. Back at the Mansion, everything from the town could be heard, even through its thick walls. Emma and Zelena hadn’t left yet but the ringing of gunfire in the air made them hesitant to go. Sawyer, on the other hand, was practically skipping through the halls in excitement with a sadistic grin on his face.

“It’s guns. I love guns!” he cheered before stopping once he heard the machine guns, “Machine guns? That’s even better! This’ll be fun. Sounds like death, and danger. It sounds bad. Danger, danger! What’s happening outside? Is there blood? Who’s killing who? Where did they get shot? I have to see. Things are finally getting exciting~! Yes! Yes, yes, yes. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!”

After running outside, raring and ready to kill, Sawyer looked upon the very weapon he had been waiting to use ever since Nemo put the finishing touches on it. With the captain’s signature design, a large tank was parked on the lawn, fully armed and prepped for battle. Filled with excitement, Sawyer couldn’t help himself but clap like a giddy schoolgirl.

“Yay!” he laughed as he climbed in, “Let’s go kill some Amestrians, boys!”

While the chrome covered tank slowly made its way towards town, the other agents continued to tear away the enemy. Quixote and Shan Yu joined in at one point and assisted their fellow newcomer, Bluebeard, in cutting them down. Plenty of bodies, both from the crew and the arm, littered the ground and grew with each ring of gunfire and slash of blades; and in Hyde’s case, every ground shaking fist to the road. So far, none of the agents had a single wound on them, only the blood of the soldiers they were killing. Quite frankly, they were all becoming bored, Shan Yu, especially.

“Is this it?” he asked, yanking his sword out of a fresh corpse, “Is this all these Homunculi have to offer?”

As soon as he asked this, Mina’s eyes widened just a split second before they all felt the ground tremble while a noise from below grew louder and louder. Just as he did before, Sloth erupted from the ground with his ever tiresome expression and personality.

“Oh, you shouldn’t have asked that.” Giles bluntly remarked.

“It’s so noisy up here.” Sloth complained, “Such a pain. But it’s such a bigger pain that Father told me to shut them up, too. Oh, well.”

“You think he means us?” Mina joked.

“I’d be offended if he didn’t.” Nemo replied.

“Can we please stop bantering and deal with the problem at hand?!” Skinner shrieked. Apparently, Sloth’s physique intimidated him and made him concerned at the possibility of him having to fight the big guy.

“I’ll have to agree with Skinner, on this one.” Giles admitted nervously, “Perhaps we should talk later. This one is rather tricky to injure.”

“Quite right.” Mina nodded before letting out a sharp whistle, “Oh, Hyde!”

Causing the ground to shake with each step he took, the behemoth gentlemen hustled over to join in. As he did, the others gave him plenty of room once they noticed that he had caught on to what they wanted. In other words, they got the hell out of his way as he roared and charged at Sloth before sucker punching him in the jaw thus knocking him through Granny’s.

“No!” Skinner cried dramatically, “Not the diner! Where else are we going to have the majority of the town scenes?!”

“Hey,” Mina snapped smacking him upside the head, “No fourth wall breaks.”

“Sorry.” he grumbled as a wild bullet zoomed over his head, “Oh, right. Forgot about them. Charge!”

Shrugging their shoulders, the other agents followed the Invisible Man’s lead, drew their weapons and ran back into battle with their own battle cries. Back with Hyde and Sloth, both monsters went back and forth between punching each other with all their might. With every hit Hyde landed, Sloth’s broken bones healed themselves and with every punch he threw, Hyde embraced the pain and bled. Knocking him over, Sloth held Hyde to ground, ready to smash his head. Unfortunately for the Homunculus, just as it was about to bring down its fist, a well sized hole suddenly burst from his wrist followed by another which blew off the rest of his hand. Far off at the spot where he spoke with Nicholas earlier that morning, Quartermain looked down the barrel of his riffle, lacking a scope, with his ever heartless glare. After readying the next shot, he fired again, watching as the next round went through Sloth’s eye.

Hyde then took the chance to slug him again into another building, tackle him and drive him through even more, empty, buildings. That is until they hit a magic covered house which prevented them from going any further; with the added bonus of burning through Sloth’s back as he continued to push. However, Sloth wasn’t willing to let death take him, so he relentlessly slammed his fists into Hyde’s back.

“I could use a hand here!” Hyde shouted past his teeth and pain.

“I’m coming, big guy. Hang on.” Mina said to herself as she jumped over each rooftop then onto Sloth’s shoulders, straddling his collar and tearing out his eyes and punching his face into a bloody pulp. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to do much.

“Get off!” Sloth slurred as he grabbed her and hurled Mina away before lifting Hyde off the ground and throwing him away, as well. 

While she tried to pick herself up and let her wounds heal, Mina grunted in pain as she thought to herself, “Where the hell is Nicholas when you need him?”

To answer this question, while all the fighting was going on, Nicholas had slipped by, unnoticed, into the library and its elevator. Once he made it all the way down, he had to maneuver his way through the secret tunnel he discovered so long ago to his former friend’s lair. If one was to ever dive that deep underground, they’d know when they would begin to reach the lair by the amount of metal pipes and halls taking place over the carven rock tunnels. Unlike the previous battles the past few days, where he was selective of his weapons, Nicholas decided to take everything with him for this. His sword, guns, knives, gloves, and even his gauntlets. All of which he kept on his person where anyone looking could see. This was meant to show any enemies willing to pick a fight with him that he was armed and ready. Of course, this would mean nothing to the ones he actually planned on fighting today. As he continued his walk, he stopped dead in his tracks at the sound of a familiar voice.

“Well, look who finally decided to come back down here.”

Looking up with a dark expression, Nicholas saw Greed, smirking down at him with his shield already covering everything from the neck down. “Hey, Greed. What’s up?” Nicholas asked.

“Oh, not much. Just been waiting down here for you to show up, is all. Father knew you’d be coming down here on your own.” Greed replied.

“Did he? So, what are you here for? My welcoming committee?” he dryly asked.

“Ha!” Greed laughed before jumping down to the alchemist’s level, “As if. Father wants me to keep you from going any further until it’s time for the sacrifices to gather together.”

“…You know he’s sent you here to die, don’t you?” Nicholas asked, slightly feeling sorry for the artificial human, “You can’t beat me, and you certainly can’t hold me back for that long. You’re just meant to give him a little more time.”

“Oh, and like you know how he thinks?” Greed scoffed.

“Better than any of you.” he replied, drawing his sword, “In fact, I know more about you and your siblings than you think.”

“I find that hard to believe.” Greed scoffed, “The others always keep to themselves, but me? I’m an open book. I’m greed itself. I want money, women, and power. Status, sex, and glory. I demand the finer things in life. I want everything.”

“The finer things in life, huh?” Nicholas asked, slightly lowering his sword, “Are you sure all those things are what you want? What you truly want?”

“Hahaha! Of course that’s what I want!” he laughed, “What else is there for me _to_ want? Why would anyone not want any of those things?”

“All that glitters is not gold, as they say.” Nicholas rejected, “No matter. After today, you won’t be able to want anything ever again. Prepare yourself for death, Homunculus.”

“Bring it on, alchemist.” Greed smiled before covering his face with his shield and charging at his opponent with his claws.


	76. On the Sidelines

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

As the fighting raged on outside, and while Nicholas was having his rematch with Greed, the remaining three sacrifices headed outside in order to protect their loved ones. Unfortunately, because of the barriers Gold made on their homes, they couldn’t automatically poof inside and were forced to bear witness to the carnage the agents were wrecking on the streets. The smell of smoke and blood was like a punch in the face as they breathed it in. Despite not wanting to be caught in any of it, they couldn’t help but stand still as they watched.

Nemo was without any mercy as he cut the soldiers down while his crew continued to shoot, or beat the enemy with their weapons and/or fists and feet. Skinner may have been naked and unseen, but they could tell it was him by how the soldiers would suddenly jerk their necks and drop dead as a sign of him breaking them. Given how long she had been outside, Mina had no choice but to stay in the shade as she pulled any nearby Amestrians into the shadows to replenish her strength. Shan Yu and Gilles were doing their best to hold off a large group of soldiers who tried to overwhelm and kill them. As for Quixote, as soon as they heard his war cry from behind, they saw him charging on his horse with his spear ready just before using it to impale four soldiers at once.

For Rumplestiltskin and Zelena, they weren’t too fazed by what they saw. Emma, on the other hand, she couldn’t help but look in horror at what was being done to her home. So many memories of what she and her friends and family had done at that exact spot were being covered in rubble, blood and corpses. If it hadn’t been for the stray bullets almost killing her, she could have stared at it all for hours.

“Emma, we need to get out of here.” Zelena stressed, pulling her away, “Quit staring into space, already!”

“R-right, sorry.” she said. Once they had gotten safely out of the line of fire, they had gone their separate ways. Once they had gotten safely out of the line of fire, they had gone their separate ways. Emma headed to the loft while Zelena poofed herself outside Regina’s house and Gold went to his shop. It wouldn’t have mattered what path they took; the fighting was everywhere.

None of her past exploits since arriving in Storybrooke seemed to compare to what was happening around her; not even her time in the Underworld. Even though she had come to accept the people and their stories as reality and not fairytales, all the monsters and villains she faced couldn’t compare to this day. If you were to ask her after it was all said and done why this scared her more than anything, she would probably reply that this particular battle was the closest thing to this realm’s horrors of war she had been told about all her life.

As she ran through the alleys and over the garbage and rubble, the blonde savior’s eyes locked onto a squad of Amestrians ahead of her. Unlike the other invaders, they were not currently engaged with any LXG forces. In fact, from what she could tell, they were trying to sneak up on the others and ambush them. Unfortunately, as she tried to back away to avoid getting shot at, her heel accidently bumped into a stray bottle which caused the sound of the clinking glass to alert the Amestrians.

“You two,” the squad leader said to his subordinates, “Go check that out.”

Nodding their heads, the two soldiers split away from their squad and headed towards Emma while the rest of them continued on their way. Even though she had magic, the fear that had been filling Emma to the brim all day prevented her from using it against the men heading towards her. The most she could do was hide and try to steady her breathing. But, with hair as beautiful as hers, it was difficult for the men not to spot her.

“You!” one of them barked once they spotted her, “Show me your hands.”

“Hands up!” the other ordered as they aimed their weapons on her, “Think she’s with those league people?”

“Probably.” the soldier shrugged, “Better not take any chances.”

“Wait, wait!” Emma panicked, “Y-you guys can’t kill me. I-I’m one of the Sacrifices.”

“Sacrifices? What the hell are you talking about?”

“Forget it, she’s just trying to stall.” the first soldier waved off as he readied his weapon, “Let’s just finish her and get back with the rest of the squad.”

“Alright.” his battle-buddy sighed before they were about to shoot.

Knowing they were going to kill her, Emma readied herself to knock them out with her magic. But before she could wave her hands, all three sets of eyes simultaneously looked to the ground as it suddenly surged with red, alchemic sparks beneath the soldiers’ feet. Emma shielded her eyes just a split second before it happened and when she opened them, she saw what had been done. Both soldiers’ heads had been impaled by to longs spikes, that sprung from the ground by alchemy, while the weight from their limp bodies slowly dragged them down.

For any normal person, the sight would have made them vomit and in that moment, for the first time in almost three years, Emma Swan acted like a normal person and emptied out her stomach in that blood soaked alley. As she finished puking, only one person capable came to mind of who could have been responsible.

“Nicholas?” she choked, wiping her mouth with her sleeve, as she looked around for her boyfriend, “Nicholas!”

But it wasn’t Nicholas who killed those men. It was, in fact, his even more cold-hearted doppelganger, the Dwarf in the Flask. Even though he had rid himself of emotions, he couldn’t help but shake his head and sigh in annoyance at the incompetence of his son’s forces. Elsewhere in Storybrooke, Zelena hurried into her siblings’ house while the fighting raged on.

“Regina?” she called, banging on the door, “Regina, let me in!”

Before the witch could holler again, her sister quickly opened the door and pulled her in before slamming it shut.

“Bloody hell,” Zelena exhaled as she stumbled in, “First time I actually come knocking and you practically throw me in.”

“Sorry, it’s just that I didn’t want to risk any stray bullets find their way into my home and into me or my son.” Regina quipped dryly.

“Right. How is Henry, anyway? I haven’t seen him since…”

“Since his uncle repeatedly called him an idiot after busting his lip?” she asked hotly at the memory.

“Yes,” Zelena awkwardly nodded.

“He’s safe, for now at least.” Regina replied, “I’ve been keeping a close eye on him since I left the mansion. How bad is it out there?”

“Oh, fine. If you don’t mind wading through debris, blood and corpses.” Zelena scoffed sarcastically, “Those ‘gentlemen’ as they call themselves aren’t pulling any punches out there.”

“…And Nicholas?” Regina asked unsure of her feelings towards their brother.

“Haven’t seen him since this morning.” she replied, “He said he was going on his own to face that Homunculus we saw in his memories. He’s probably down there as we speak.”

“You mean he’s not out there fighting?” she snapped, “After all that talk he made about fighting those damn Homunculi and soldiers, he’s not even doing anything?!”

“Well, all the other agents are fighting, if that’s any consultation. Plus, he did say that out of everyone, he’s pretty much the only one who can hold his own against him.” the eldest sibling defended, “You really had no idea he was keeping all this a secret, did you?”

“No!” Regina shouted as she angrily paced about, “And that’s what’s pissing me off! The man spends his entire adult life trying to convince ME not to do all the terrible things I’ve done, and yet here we are in the middle of the biggest shit hole in the history of every realm in existence, which happens to be all his goddamn fault! Not once did he think he could trust any of us, trust ME, to help him. You heard what he said, he only told us because he thinks we’d be a nuisance if we got involved.”

“Maybe he’s just trying to protect us.” Zelena offered.

“Be that as it may, he still spent all these years lying to me instead of asking for my help.”

“Is that why you’re so angry?” she asked, “Because he didn’t tell _you_?”

“Look, Zelena, try to understand.” Regina sighed while pinching the bridge of her nose, “Nicholas and I were all either of us had, or so I thought. Before he was taken, we were always together, and when he came home, it felt as though we were back to being like it used to be. Now I find out that he had other people playing an even bigger role in his life than I did and that he trusts them more than he does me.”

“Our brother’s allowed to put his faith in other people, Regina.” Zelena reminded before realization dawned on her, “Oh, I see. This isn’t about him not telling you. This is about those friends of his being there to protect him for all these years instead of you. You’re not angry at him, at all. You’re angry at the fact you weren’t there for him and they were.”

“That’s not true.” Regina denied despite her flushed face and ears saying otherwise.

“You can’t stand someone else being there for our little brother!” Zelena chuckled before the sound of an explosion caused them both to duck their heads in precaution, “Storybrooke’s going to be a pile of rubble before the day is out. Any secrets of his might just get buried along with it.”

“Maybe, maybe not.” Regina argued.

“What are you thinking?” Zelena asked, narrowing her eyes at her sister.

“I’m thinking that it probably couldn’t hurt for us to get a leg up on our baby brother.”

“What do you mean by ‘leg up’, Regina?” she asked.

“I mean, we need to know more about this League of his, and not just whenever we get the chance to ask Nicholas a question or two, whenever that might be if we survive this day.” Regina replied.

“You want to sneak into the mansion?!” the witch exclaimed, “Now, of all times?!”

“Can you think of a better opportunity?” she retorted.

“Preferably never!” Zelena shouted.

“Oh, don’t tell me you’re afraid of those guys, sis?”

“Yes, I am, Regina, and for good reason.” she snapped, “I’ve never felt a stronger murderous intent than those people’s, not even from Hades. I get chills just thinking about what they did to the Lost Boys. I’m only being kept under their protection for today and I’d rather not get on their wrong side.”

“And if we could prevent them from ever harming us? Would your feelings about them change, then?” Regina asked.

“What do you mean?”

“While we’re there, we can look for Henry’s Author’s pen and if we can get our hands on that and get it back to him, we can use it to make sure that no one from that League of theirs can hurt or kill us. Just like Isaac did to Cruella. And maybe, just maybe if we can find it in time, we can stop this whole Promised Day thing from even happening.” her sister explained.

“We could stop the eclipse.” Zelena gasped.

“And get rid of those Homunculi and Amestrians.” Regina added.

“Regina, that’s brilliant.” Zelena admitted almost in disbelief.

“Hmph, and some people think Nicholas is the only smart one in the family.” she smirked.

“But what about Henry? It’d be risky to take him with us and we can’t poof back here without someone to let us in.”

“But we’ll have the pen, remember? He can use it to get rid of everyone so we won’t have to worry about all that.”

“Right.” she nodded, “Okay, you go get Henry and tell him while I make sure the coast is clear.”

While the sisters were planning their little field trip, Gold had managed to slink back to his shop. However, when he arrived, he saw one of the many people he never enjoyed seeing perched on the counter of his register with a gun in his only hand.

“I was wondering when you’d make your way back here, Crocodile.” Hook smirked knowing that his presence was pissing off his oldest enemy.

“And just what do you think you’re doing here?” Rumple asked dangerously.

“Trying not to get killed, that’s what.” Ariel snapped as she came from the back with a crossbow ready and aimed at him.

“And yet, you came here of all places.”

“Yes, the most secured place in town, second to only that mansion belonging to our esteemed friends out there.” Hook playfully agreed, “Besides, it’s not like you can bring harm to us anymore.”

“Now what gave you that foolish impression?”

“Your deal with Nicholas.” Ariel replied, “He said that you aren’t allowed to hurt any of his loved ones during or after today. And if us being brought to the mansion wasn’t proof enough, I think Killian going down to the Underworld for his sake and putting our wedding on hold is proof enough how much we care about him.”

Gold couldn’t help but grit his teeth at the mermaid’s words. That deal he made with the town alchemist seemed to be biting him in the ass at every turn as of late.

“While that may be, Mrs. Jones, it doesn’t mean that I have to provide the two of you sanctuary in my shop. Now get out.”

“No, you see, we won’t be leaving anytime soon. At least until we find what it is we’re looking for.” Hook replied, “We need something we can use against the remaining Homunculi. I believe that you have something like that right here, in your little pawn shop.”

“And what makes you think that I have such a thing, pirate?” Rumple challenged.

“Because you hate Nicholas almost as much as you hate me, if not more.” he smirked, “And despite your history with Cora, you couldn’t stand her son being more powerful than you. So you searched for a way to kill him. And if you did find something that can do that, or at least significantly hurt him, we use that on the Homunculi. So then, Crocodile, do you have anything like that hidden somewhere?”

“Even if I did, I wouldn’t give it to the likes of you. I would have used it already for what that _slave_ did to Belle.” Rumple hissed with venom in his voice. However, that anger was quickly replaced with pain after the sound of gunfire rang through his ears. Crying out in pain, the Dark One clutched his left ear as he glared at the pirate and his smoking gun.

“Don’t call him that, again.” Hook lectured, “Now while you’re just standing there letting your ear heal, answer us this one question; do you or do you not have anything we can use against these Homunculi we’re up against?”

“… _I_ don’t.” Rumple confessed in pain, “But that doesn’t mean there isn’t someone else in town who doesn’t, either.”

“What do you mean?” Ariel asked after he finished healing himself.

“I don’t currently possess the magic we’d need to hurt our enemy, but the nuns of Storybrooke do.” he replied.

“And just what do the fairies have that you don’t?”

“Fairy dust; the one form of magic that has the capability of severely harming someone with a Philosopher’s Stone.” Rumple informed, “I’ve heard that Flamel has been exposed to it several times, each of which caused him enough pain and injuries to incapacitate him, for however brief a time.”

“So if we use fairy dust on the Homunculi, we might be able to kill them?” Ariel asked.

“It’s a possibility.” he shrugged, “But why are you so concerned about this when those LXG fellows are out there fighting them right now?”

“Because they aren’t fighting them now, Dark One.” Hook retorted, “At least not all of them. They’re too preoccupied with dealing with the Amestrians and that large Homunculus to go after the remaining three. If it’s taking all of them to deal with just those in the streets, those other three are free to do as they please whatever that may be. And that can turn into a problem for us.”

“Look, we know you don’t care about anyone except yourself, Belle and maybe Henry sometimes, but the people of Storybrooke are in danger and you have the power to help them.” Ariel explained.

“You just said that I don’t care about anyone but my-”

“And if there is room in that black heart of yours for anyone else to love, it’d be your unborn child. And if you don’t try to come up with a better reputation, the little guppy’s life will be about as bleak and miserable as your first son’s was. Is that what you want?”

Staring down the bridge of his sharp nose, Rumplestiltskin narrowed his eyes at the fish out of water daring to test him. For some reason, though, the glare didn’t intimidate Ariel and she met his gaze with her own. Killian, on the other hook, well, he couldn’t help but be impressed with his wife’s ferocity.

“…Shall we be on our way, then?” Rumple begrudgingly asked holding the door open for them.

After getting away from the remaining members of the squad she ran into, Emma finally managed to get back to her parents’ loft, her heart pounding from the fear of getting shot by the invaders outside. But just when she thought she’d be able to calm down enough to regain her composure, she found another weapon being aimed at her.

“Don’t shoot!” she shouted looking up the stairs at her father and his handgun.

“Emma?” he asked in concern, lowering his weapon. As soon as he did, his daughter ran up the stairs and threw her arms around him in, probably, the tightest hug she ever gave him. “W-what are you doing here? I thought you were staying in the mansion?”

“They let us go. They didn’t want us all cooped up in one place while everyone was fighting.” she said still holding him tightly, “Are you and Mom okay? How’s Neal?”

“We’re fine. None of the bullets are coming over here, but all the noise is spooking your brother pretty bad.”

“Really? Let me see him.” she said brushing past him to see her baby brother in her mother’s arms.

“Emma, thank God, you’re okay. We were so worried.” Snow said hugging her with her free arm, feeling relief knowing that both of her children were safe, literally, in her arms.

“Me too. Hey, buddy!” she cooed, kissing her little brother’s head.

“Wh-why are you here? Didn’t Nicholas and the others want you in the mansion?” Snow asked.

“Apparently, they let ‘em go ‘cause they thought it was safer for them since they’re all fighting outside.” David answered for her.

“It’s even worse than before, those Amestrians are everywhere. I was almost killed on the way here.” Emma informed.

“What?!” David exclaimed in shock.

“Are you okay? What happened?” Snow asked just as concerned.

“You don’t need to worry about it.” Emma sighed in her hands.

“Emma, you were almost killed by some Amestrians, that’s reason enough for us to worry.” Snow retorted with concern on her face.

“I meant, you don’t have to worry about them because they’re dead!” she snapped as she raised her head out of her hands before putting it back, “Nicholas killed them.”

“He did?” Snow asked.

“Or somebody did. They were about to shoot me and then suddenly, these two spikes sprung out of the ground and impaled their heads.”

“And it was Nicholas?” David asked.

“I don’t know, alright? He said that he’d be going underground to fight the head Homunculus, or whatever, and whoever or whatever killed those soldiers did it with alchemy. So, unless there’s another alchemist running around trying to keep me alive besides him, he’s the one who did it. Wasn’t exactly a graceful way to go, if you know what I mean.”

“Yeah, that’s typical.” David scoffed under his breath. That being said, Emma was still able to hear him and see her father roll his eyes.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked.

“Nothing, don’t worry about it, honey.” Snow quickly dismissed while giving her husband a look.

“No, say it. You guys have had your complaints about Nicholas before, what’s stopping you from saying them, now?” she asked defensively.

“Well, aside from that he might kill us if we say anything he doesn’t like?” David said bluntly.

“David!” his wife scolded.

“Oh, Snow, come on! You’ve been thinking it, too!” he defended.

“Is that true?” Emma asked, looking back and forth between her parents, “What exactly were you two talking about while I was gone?”

“Okay, here’s the truth.” Snow sighed as she sat next to her daughter on the couch, “Your father and I have been talking about Nicholas and his ‘associates’ lately and what we might have to do.”

“Do what, exactly?” Emma asked, not liking the way things were going.

“Emma, we know how much you love Nicholas,” David gently began, “But he is NOT the man you thought he was. The secrets were one thing, but this- _all_ of this?! This is insane! He brought a war to this town and barely warned us about it.”

“You’re blaming him for this?” she asked incredulously.

“Well, he had plenty of time to stop it; fifty years from the way he tells it, I might add.”

“That’s not true, his director made him-” she began only to stop, realizing she said too much.

“His what?” David hotly asked, “He has a director, someone above Quartermain? You mean there are more of them? Just how many more are there?!”

“I don’t know, Dad, maybe dozens!” she shot back, “Look, Gold asked him last night why he didn’t take them on sooner and he explained why. The League’s director ordered him not to because he wants to see if the Homunculi’s plan will work and if it’s possibly to reverse it.”

“Then he’s going to let it happen, anyway?” Snow asked in anger, “He’s going to allow them to do to us what happened in Xerxes?”

“Well, that’s not what I-”

“See, this is exactly what I was talking about.” David exasperated to his wife.

“Just what were you talking about?” Emma asked again, no less agitated.

“…We’ve been talking about what needs to be done with Nicholas and his _friends_.” Snow said, hissing the word friends.

“What?” Emma asked in disbelief.

“Emma, we can’t let them stay here in Storybrooke.” her mother said flatly, “They’re all too dangerous; just look at the damage they’ve done in the past few days! Ever since Nicholas brought us to the mansion, it’s been nothing but death and destruction throughout the town. They killed nearly all the Lost Boys, burnt down half the forest, destroyed two different sections of the town’s most populated areas, blocked us off from the ocean, held you and the others against your will and have allowed an army from another realm to come here and attack our home while letting some immortal monsters run around trying to turn us into Philosopher’s Stones.”

“But, Mom-”

“No, Emma. They have to go, all of them. Including, no, _especially_ Nicholas. This is all because of him, anyway.”

“You’re blaming him?” she asked, looking disgusted, “After everything he has done for us, you are blaming him for what _they_ have done?!”

“No matter what he’s done for us, it still doesn’t change the fact that every chance he had to tell us about this day, he instead chose to keep it a secret.” David defended.

“Oh, and when should he have told you? During the twenty-eight years you were either cursed or in a coma or when you were hell bent on turning the entire town against him after he was framed for murder?” she snapped, “Are you really convinced that he wanted to keep this a secret from us? If it hadn’t been for Gold, he would have told us months ago!”

“Yeah, and he could have told us right after the first curse broke and we all got our memories back or even during that time between Gold being banished and when he, Ursula and Cruella came back.” David argued.

“It doesn’t matter when he could have told us. What matters is that he didn’t and that he’s brought war to Storybrooke, putting everyone in danger.” Snow interjected.

“He’s trying to put an end to that danger, guys!” Emma stressed, “We’d be defenseless without him or the others right now.”

“We’ve made up our minds, Emma.” Snow said firmly, “Whoever’s left standing after today that’s a part of the League will be held accountable for what they have done and sent out of Storybrooke.”

As the argument between the Charmings went on, the tiny Mills family hurried up the driveway to the mansion while keeping their eyes peeled for any unsavory eyes. Regina and Zelena looked worried the most while Henry had a defeated look in his eyes. It was obvious that his was still shaken up by what his uncle told him the other day, both in New York and the mansion his mom and aunt were trying to break into.

“Quickly, come on!” Zelena ushered after getting the door open. Once inside, they took the entrance Henry originally discovered that led to the debriefing room.

“Alright, fan out. Look through and in everything. That pen could be anywhere.” Regina said as they began their search.

“I’ll take a look down this hall.” Zelena said heading to the door none of the agents let her or the others go through after Gold snooped through it the night before, “There must have been a reason why they didn’t want any of us to go in here.”

“Okay, we’ll keep looking in here.” her sister nodded.

“Mom, I don’t we’re gonna find it this way.” Henry debated, still sounding broken down.

“Maybe but it doesn’t hurt to try.” she replied with a hopeful smile only to see her son remain downcast.

“Hey,” she said gently, raising his chin so he would look at her, “We’ll find it, then everything will be okay, sweetheart.”

“Yeah, right.” he muttered.

“Henry, I know what your uncle said hurt, but you have to try and see things from his perspective.” Regina sighed.

“So, you agree with him?” Henry asked.

“Kind of.” she admitted, “I agree with him that you were a bit selfish with your actions and that wasn’t the first time you’ve done something like that without thinking of the consequences and how your actions affect others. But, I don’t agree with him calling you an idiot and busting your lip, like he did. Be honest with me, was he really all that wrong? I mean, about your actions.”

“No, he wasn’t.” Henry finally admitted with a sigh, “I just…I’m just so tired of having to watch you guys go through so much because of magic, all the time from the sidelines.”

“Sidelines?” she asked.

“Oh, come on, Mom. Every time there’s a new villain in town, I’m always watching you guys fight and doing nothing. I can’t use my magic, it’s against the rules of being the Author. I’m an observer, that’s it. I can’t interfere with the stories I’m recording. I just thought if I got rid of magic, you guys wouldn’t have to face so much hardships.”

“Well, life is full of hardships, Henry.” Regina gently replied, “And, yeah, our friends and family have had to face a lot of hardships, a lot of which were caused by magic. But, there’s also been a lot of good things that have happened to us because of magic.”

“Like what?” he asked.

“Well, for starters, if it hadn’t been for the magic that brought us all here and created Storybrooke, we wouldn’t have the family we have today.”

“Besides that.” Henry flatly retorted.

“Okay, well…you wouldn’t have been able to meet Violet and have…whatever it is you’re having with her.” she awkwardly replied.

“Mom, you say it. Me and Violet are-”

“Please, don’t say it.” Regina cut off with her hand held up, “It’s bad enough that Nicholas is dating, I don’t need to hear any confirmation that you are, too. Especially with how weird his relationship sounds when you make all the connections.”

“…It really does, doesn’t it?” Henry asked looking a little grossed out.

“Yeah. Okay, changing the subject, what is taking your aunt so long?” Regina huffed as she stopped rummaging and headed to where her sister was, “Zelena, have you found the pen, yet?”

“No,” she replied from the hall, “But I did find something else. Come see.”

Curious as to what the redhead found, mother and son entered the hall and found not just Zelena, but a hallway filled with portraits similar to the one of Nicholas and the others over the mantle. Like that painting, the ones they were all looking at each had seven different people, each unique and imposing as though they were trying to intimidate anyone who dared to look at them. For some reason, each painting left them all speechless.

“Who are these people?” Regina asked, “I mean, besides obviously being members of the League.”

“Do you think they’re the other branches? Like what Nicholas is with the others?” Henry asked.

“I don’t think so.” Zelena replied, “I think…I think these are past directors.”

“What do you mean directors?” Henry asked.

“Well, Nicholas said that the person in charge of the League is called the director. And he also said that the league was originally founded by seven people. So that means…these paintings are of the League’s past directors and the other six members of their teams.” Zelena realized.

“Well, they certainly don’t try to keep things in common, from what I can tell.” Regina remarked as she looked at some of the strange appearances.

“What about that one?” Henry asked pointing to a painting standing alone on the wall at the end of the hall, “Who do you think’s in that one?”

“Let’s find out.” his aunt suggested. Once they reached the end, they took a closer look at the framed portrait. 

With a light shining overhead of the frame, they saw seven people standing together. But unlike some of the others, these people were actually smiling. On the far right stood an Asian looking young man wearing a red, silk robe with a black trim on the sleeves, which he had his hands tucked into. On the opposite side stood a very tall and muscular man covered in tribal tattoos wearing nothing but a grass skirt and a necklace made out of bones and a mop of long, curly black hair with a very large fish hook made from some kind of bone, almost as big and tall as him, in his right hand. Next to the Asian was beautiful, dark-skinned woman wearing a white dress and turban. She had no weapons, but she did have a long bronze colored boa constrictor loosely wrapped around her from her left leg to her waist and to outstretched right arm. It appeared to be the woman’s pet based on the loving look she was giving it with her vibrant colored eyes. On the opposite side of her was a man with tanned skin and long brown hair wearing nothing but a loincloth. But rather than standing up straight and tall to show his lean muscles, he stood crouched on his bent knees and knuckles, like a gorilla would. Next to the beautiful woman was a very short, middle-aged looking person. He had chestnut brown, curly hair covering his ears, wore a fine looking vest over his white, buttoned down shirt and under wine-red sports coat with slacks. Although, he didn’t have any shoes covering his big, hairy feet. And resting under his folded hands, held like a cane, was an unsheathed, beautiful blade perfect for one his size. Across from the smiling Halfling was another odd looking person. He wore a strange set of robes comprised of white, purple and dark-red and was surrounded in some sort of glittering magical dust. His expression was happy, like the others, but it was also a sort of dreamy looking smile as though he had just woken up from a wonderful nap. Finally, between that person and the short fellow stood an excited looking young man. He had short blonde hair, which didn’t seem to go with the clothes he wore. Those clothes seemed to resemble the finer clothes a rich man from a desert would wear along with the jewelry he wore on his fingers, wrists and ears. In his hand, held across his chest, was an odd looking short sword, short enough to be considered a dagger. The blade was black as night, but the hilt was covered in jewels. Oddly enough, that wasn’t what caught the onlookers’ eyes. It was that the sword was wreathed in fire that caught their attention.

Not one of those people looked like they belonged with the others standing next to them, but somehow, anyone looking at that painting could tell that they were all the best of friends; and that when together, no one could stop them.

“Who were these guys?” Regina asked.

“There aren’t any names.” Zelena informed looking at the small plaque on the bottom of the frame, “There’s only a roman numeral for the number one. If I were to guess, I’d say these were the League’s founders.”

“They _really_ don’t have anything in common.” Regina pointed out.

“I think that’s the point, Regina.” Zelena said dryly, “Well, I know what I’m asking Nicholas to answer after today.”

“If we even survive today.” Henry muttered.

“So tell me again, why aren’t you just poofing us to the monastery?” Ariel asked as she, her husband, and the Dark One snuck through the streets.

“Because,” Rumple growled in irritation, “After the incident with my father’s shadow, the fairies built a barrier against dark magic making it difficult for those who use it to enter and possibly kill them.”

“But won’t that effect you, too?” she asked.

“Not anymore, it won’t.” he replied, referring to his new powers, “But even so, it might harm the two of you, which would be in breach of my deal with Flamel. Quite frankly, I’d rather avoid being a further victim to his twisted mind.”

“Coming from you, that’s almost terrifying.” Hook remarked as they stopped at the end of an alley. Around the corner, Rumple could see Nemo and Shan Yu taking on a large group of Amestrians with their swords. As a fellow swordsman himself, Hook was impressed with their skills as he looked over his old foe’s shoulder.

“Alright, it appears there’s only those soldiers to get past.” Rumple whispered, “We’ll need to cut across and make it to the other side.”

“You sure?” Ariel asked.

“No time like the present, love. Let’s go.” Hook whispered.

But just as they were about to hurry across the road, the sound of heavy fire blasted their eardrums. The cause of this was the cannon fire from the tank Sawyer was in as it slowly rolled down the street towards Nemo and Shan Yu. Although, it didn’t hit any buildings. Instead, it hit Sloth square in the chest in a failed attempt to kill him. In fact, the round didn’t even penetrate him, it only hit him and bounced right off his muscles.

“Turn this thing around!” Sawyer ordered the sailors, “We need to get some distance so we’ll get out of the blast range. I’ve got another idea.”

“Aye-aye, sir.” they responded before turning the tank around and taking it back the way they came. Unfortunately, Hyde didn’t catch the conversation and opted for his own plan.

After having been knocked through several buildings, courtesy of Sloth, the raging behemoth was running as fast as he could towards the Homunculus and the tank. Without even so much as slowing down, he grabbed the muzzle of the tank’s cannon with his massive hand and tore the top clean off like a soup can lid which he held aloft and wielded like a big, metal club. As for Sawyer and the sailors accompanying him, they all blinked in disbelief while holding up their hands in the same positions they were in back when they were sitting in a full tank.

“What in Davey Crockett’s sweat stained buckskins just happened?” he asked.

“Agh! My beautiful tank, no!” Nemo cried out in horror.

“EDWARD!” they both shouted in anger at the top of their lungs.

Crying out in rage as he swatted the oversized Homunculus, Hyde panted heavily before looking towards his oldest friends. “What? It’s not like I have a sword or gun of my own.”

“Remind me to ask Nicholas to make one for him after today.” Nemo grumbled as Sawyer jogged over to him.

“Agreed.” he nodded as Sloth started to charge back at them, “Aw, cripes! He’s coming back. Hyde, you better make this next one a homerun!”

“Can we run, now?!” Ariel muttered through her teeth.

“Yes.” the two men nodded as they hurried over and past the rubble.

“Incoming!” someone shouted as mortar fire flew overhead and crashed into the library, blasting out the glass from the windows and several books.

“No doubt Belle will find a way to blame me for that, too.” Rumple bluntly muttered to himself.

“What are you three doing out here?!” Ishmael shouted as he hurried over to them with his weapon.

“W-w-we-we,” Ariel stuttered before being cut off.

“They’re sending another company this way!” Giles shouted from a nearby rooftop.

“Take cover!” Nemo ordered as everyone dove for cover.

“Alright, you lot need to get out of here, now!” Ishmael barked as he pushed them along.

“Mate, maybe we can help.” Hook offered the frantic first mate.

“Here they come.” Sawyer said with his riffle aimed down the street.

“Just go, before it’s too la-”

But Ishmael never got to finish. He was cut off and killed by a single bullet that went clean through his forehead out the back of his skull. Even Rumple looked shocked as the man’s corpse fell to a heap on the ground. He then jerked his head back to see the oncoming company begin to fire directly towards them.

“Move!” he shouted while pushing the Hooks back in the direction they were headed for. Once they were out of the line of fire and, hopefully, safe in the woods, the weight of what just happened finally hit them; well one of them, at least.

“Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Oh, my god.” Ariel repeated in fear.

“It’s alright, love. We’re alright.” Hook comforted.

“I just watched a man die. I just watched a man get his brains blown out of his skull.” she said to herself as she buried her face in her hands.

“What, too used to watching Flamel walk it off?” Rumple dryly taunted.

“For once, why don’t you just shut it, Crocodile?” Hook snapped, “Just because your wife isn’t here doesn’t mean you need to make mine miserable.”

“Careful with your words, pirate. Or else all they’ll find left of you will be your remaining hand.” Rumple threatened.

“Why don’t you just hobble on off to your precious spinning wheel before it rolls away and leaves you, too?” Hook shot back.

“Why you rum soaked, son of a-”

“Stop it!” Ariel yelled, regaining her composure, “I’m fine now. Let’s just keep going.”

“Are you sure, love?” Hook asked in concern.

“I’m fine.” she said flatly, “Let’s just get to the monastery and be done with this. I’ve had enough of this day, as it is.”

“As, have I.” Gold surprisingly agreed before they continued on their way. It didn’t take long for them to reach their destination, but once they did, Mr. Gold took a step back as he drew his hand away from the invisible barrier, almost as if it shocked him.

“Can you get through?” Ariel asked.

“Of course I can.” he rudely replied before tearing open an entry for himself with his bare hands. Back at the loft, Emma was continuing her argument with her ever hypocritical and cynical parents.

“You can’t seriously be thinking of getting rid of Nicholas.” Emma flatly denied.

“Yes, we are and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.” Snow snapped.

“And just how are you going to do that, huh?” her daughter fired back, “You can’t ask Regina or Zelena since he’s their brother. Killian and Ariel won’t ‘cause Nicholas is their closest friend. Not to mention, you’d be getting rid of Henry’s uncle whose been the closest thing he’s had for a father his whole life! This isn’t about protecting our family or Storybrooke. This is because you two are afraid of him.”

“That’s not true.” David defended.

“Oh, it isn’t?” Emma snapped, “Mom’s been scared of him ever since Cora died because he almost killed her! And the only reason he didn’t was, might I point out, because of those friends of his! If it hadn’t been for Sawyer and Quartermain shooting him, he would have done it. And now you’re going to try and banish them after putting their lives on the line to protect everyone here and in the other eight realms? What the hell, guys?!”

“It’s in the town’s best interest, Emma.” Snow defended.

“How? You two are the only ones who want them gone!” she shouted before taking a deep breath, “Look, I get it. You’re both scared and obviously don’t trust these people to do all the fighting on this one. But this can’t be like last time, guys. You can’t let your personal feelings control you and make you do stupid things like that, again. And I’m telling you this now, I won’t side with you if you do.”

“Then what do you suggest we do?” Snow irritably asked.

“I’ve got a better question.” David said while looking out the window into the streets, “What’s Dr. Whale doing out in the open in the middle of all that fighting?”

“What?” Emma asked as they went over to join him in looking. Sure enough, Whale was outside crouched behind some fallen rubble as cover with a brief case in one hand and a crowbar in the other while the fighting continued.

“What have you got in the case, Whale?” Emma whispered to herself. As she did, the doctor hurried over to a nearby manhole cover and cleared off the covering debris.

“Now he’s headed for the sewers.” Snow pointed out after he went in, “Why would he be going down into the sewers at a time like this? There’s nothing down there.”

“…Nothing except the tunnel system Nicholas created that links to his laboratories!” Emma shouted in realization and panic before rushing over to grab her coat.

“Where are you going?” Snow asked.

“I have to get down there and find out what that perv’s doing.” she said, fumbling with the buttons on her coat, “Curse or no curse, that guy’s always been a sketchy one and I’m certainly not going to let him mess around with my boyfriend’s stuff.”

“But you can’t go down there alone.” David argued.

“And you can’t leave Mom and the baby alone, either.” Emma reminded before slamming the door shut and hurrying down the stairs.

“Go after her.” Snow said to her husband knowing he wanted to, “I’ll call the dwarves and Granny over, they’re over at the inn so they’ll be out of the way as they get here.”

“Okay, just be careful.” David nodded bringing her in for a tight hug and a kiss, and another kiss for his little boy before chasing after his little girl. 

Unfortunately for them, the situation in town wasn’t getting any better. If anything, it just got worse when another player entered the field. Dressed in a black muscle shirt with combat pants and boots and two cavalry swords in his hands stood the Homunculus, Wrath glaring down the street where half of the LXG agents were fighting the company he brought with him. While everyone else was going about their separate businesses, Nicholas was continuing his fight with the avaricious Homunculus.

Even though he had far more abilities than his opponent did, Nicholas was forced to acknowledge Greed’s skill in both offense and defense. The fact that he kept easily dodging Nicholas’ deconstruction attacks which would have broken through his shield made things even more interesting, and difficult. For some reason, though, Nicholas didn’t completely cover his face with his own shield like Greed did. Knowing him, he probably did that to keep the fight from becoming boring or too easy, somehow.

“So, where’s all that talk about me dying you had earlier, huh?” Greed asked as he slashed through Nicholas’ left cheek, “I thought you were in a hurry?”

“If you’re so eager to die, I can speed things up for you.” Nicholas offered as his face healed, “You know, your sister did the exact same thing before I incinerated her the first time.”

“Whoa, hey.” Greed said holding up his hands with a cocky grin, “Who said anything about speeding things up? In fact, why don’t we just keep up this little dance of hours until the eclipse, how does that sound?”

“I’ll pass. I wanna have a little chat with your old man.” Nicholas denied before charging at him with red lightning covered fist. Unlike the other punches he dodged, Greed didn’t have his guard up and took the next one head on.

“You Homunculi are all the same.” Nicholas spat while Greed clutched his bloody face, “Your arrogance and superiority complex will always bring you down.”

“Well, that just makes you wonder, doesn’t it?” Greed laughed as his face healed.

“What?” Nicholas asked, narrowing his eyes.

“You know, how long until _your_ arrogance brings _you_ down? I mean, after all… _we_ are _you_.”

Having heard enough, Nicholas readied his claws and rushed the creature that filled him with rage. Sparks flew as the metal coating their bodies crashed into each other. It was almost as if two large cars were slamming into each other with the amount of force and speed they were using. It may not have broken through the skin beneath, but Nicholas was able to tear through the metal coating on Greed every time he landed a blow. Seeing that he was on the edge, Greed jumped back, with a flip, and readied what could have been his last attack.

With a great leap, the two immortals slammed their hands together trying to pin the other to the ground. For a moment, it was Greed who had Nicholas pushed back. But Nicholas quickly rectified this and pushed back to where he was towering over the Homunculus and breaking his hands in the process. As an added measure for victory, he used his shadows to coil over two of their arms and bind Greed in a tight grip. He then proceeded to fling Greed over his head and slam him into ground, creating a crater. He repeated the process and then slammed him against the wall, roughly twenty feet off the ground. Finally, to inflict some real pain, Nicholas covered his free hand in a large, swirling drill of his shadows and impaled Greed’s abdomen with it before slamming him to the ground at his feet. Once freed, Greed cowered in fear at the alchemist looming over him with his arms crossed and a look that could kill.

“Have mercy.” he begged in fear, too weak to crawl away, “Please. Please!”

“I don’t believe in mercy.” Nicholas replied. After he did, he raked his lightning alchemy claws over their gauntlets and electrocuted the fallen man. It was only for a few seconds, but Greed screamed in agony as every cell in his body was surging with pain. “Oh, don’t worry. I’m not gonna kill you. No, you’re something I’ve been looking for a long time. I’ll keep you alive, but you will wish I hadn’t.”

Just to truly show how cruel he could be, the Immortal Alchemist electrocuted the Homunculus again, this time for a longer period of time with his own dark laughter. All so he could instill fear in his newest test subject.


	77. Adios

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

The battles raged on in the once quiet little town. Shan Yu and Nemo continued to cut down soldiers with their swords. Quartermain, Sawyer and Bluebeard fired their weapons from their respective points of cover. Skinner continued to break the bones and bodies of every soldier he set his eyes on with Quixote providing him cover with his spear. Hyde was still locked in combat with Sloth. Both sets of large fists slamming into one another, the makeshift club Hyde made from Nemo’s tank was long gone; Sloth tore through it after having enough of being hit with it. As for Mina, she was able to regain her strength after having drunk enough blood in the shadows, courtesy of the company Wrath sent their way earlier. Unfortunately, there was a slight set back to this regain of strength.

The company Wrath sent was nearly eliminated, save for a few more that the group of agents were in the process of finishing off. One of them was killed by Shan Yu’s sword, another by Quixote’s spear, but the third was given a more gruesome death; drained of blood by Mina. Her fangs were sunk deep into the flesh of his neck while he struggled, in both pain and fear, and tried to summon the strength to pull her off so that he may live. But, he just grew paler and paler until the life in his eyes dimmed and faded, completely. Having her fill, Mina tossed the body away and savored the liquid of life. That being said, she reacted differently than how she did to all the other men she had drained in the hours before.

Her back became arched as she took deep breaths and the rest of her body tensed. She almost looked as though she was in shock. Nevertheless, her longtime friends and family members, in all but blood, grew concerned.

“Mina?” Sawyer hesitantly asked, “You okay?”

“We need to do something about that big one back there.” Shan Yu said to Quartermain off to the side, “Hyde’s not getting anywhere with him.”

“Agreed.” the older agent nodded, “Nemo and I will back him up. That other Homunculus will be a nuisance, as well. You, Sawyer and Quixote will take the fight to him.”

“Understood.” he nodded before jerking his head to the other two, “You heard the man, let’s move. Sawyer! You’re with Quixote and me.”

“Uh, I think we might have another issue on our hands, boys.” Sawyer said in concern, “Mina? Say something, ‘darlin.”

Rather than give the gunslinger a verbal response, as a dark cloud covered the sky providing an eerie looking shade, Mina slowly turned her head, eyes glowing red, and gave out a monstrous roar with her mouth stretching out far more than usual, like it was dislocated.

“Oh, shit.” Sawyer whispered in his head knowing what was happening.

“FRENZY!” Skinner shouted at the top of his lungs in fear.

For those who don’t remember, there have been times in previous chapters of this story where it has been pointed out that Dr. Wilhelmina Harker, formally Murray, is not the usual sort of vampire one might come across. She can withstand sunlight for a certain period of time, close wounds with her saliva, and is not affected by silver as other vampires are. But those are not the only things that make her so unique. For one thing, she can’t turn other human beings into vampires. If she could, a large number of the Amestrians she drained would have turned already at this point in the day. Another detail, and probably the most dangerous of all, is what the other members of Branch Quartermain have dubbed as her “Frenzies.” While drinking blood does replenish her strength, drinking too much blood awakens a more unstable side of her condition. She will grow to nearly ten feet tall, become shrouded in her bats and darkness, her lower canines will grow even longer with her upper fangs, her claws will grow and become even deadlier, her eyes will continuously shine red, her skin will turn the shade of a cold corpse, and she will become so consumed by her thirst for blood that she will attack and kill anything nearby with a heartbeat. In total, it has happened four times, now. One before she was imprisoned by the LXG, two since joining Branch Quartermain, and now the fourth time in Storybrooke.

“Scatter!” Quartermain ordered. Naturally, in the face of a bloodthirsty vampire, pun very much intended, all of them broke apart and ran. Sawyer, Shan Yu and Quixote went to go find and, hopefully, kill Wrath. Nemo went on his own to give Hyde back up while Quartermain stayed to keep control of Mina with Skinner and Bluebeard.

Given his skills as an exorcist, and being a holy man, Gilles was the first to take on Mina, but not with any weapon of man. Instead, he thrust his left hand out in front of him towards Mina, clutching his rosary while he gave the sign of the cross and said a prayer in Latin. Thankfully, this still affected Mina, so the holy words of God caused her to scream in agony due to her being cursed by a demon. To further keep her under control, Gilles brought out and lit his incense swinger in hope that the smoke would choke her. As he did these things, he tossed his pistol armed with rounds made of squid ink and holy water over to Quartermain. It may have looked like over kill, but it was necessary when dealing with one of Mina’s vampire frenzies.

“Ah, so that was his plan.” Quartermain said in realization.

“What?” Skinner asked.

“This whole situation is exactly why Flamel wanted Bluebeard to join us, today. He anticipated that Harker might go into a frenzy and asked him to come here because his background makes him better suited in handling her.” he explained.

“Huh.” Skinner remarked as he made the connections, “Well, you gotta admit, the man does, just about, think of everything.”

While the usually cheerful exorcist continued to recite his prayers, he pulled a pen out of his pocket, pulled back his left sleeve to reveal a note pad attached to his leather cuff, and began to write something down which he held up for his two friends to read.

“How long does it normally take for Dr. Harker to go through her frenzies?” Skinner read aloud, “Uh, it-it varies, Bluey. It doesn’t have a set time limit. But we’re gonna have to make sure she doesn’t drink anymore blood, or that will make it last longer. Do you have any tricks that could keep her down without killing her?”

Still praying and swinging, Gilles managed to write another message with his answer. “Just one.” Skinner read, “But I will need the two of you to cover for me while I set it up. Whatever happens, do not break the circle.”

“Just make it fast.” Quartermain ordered. While he and his invisible associate kept Mina busy, Bluebeard proceeded to set up whatever it was he had planned. As this went on, three of the other agents ran down the street in their pursuit of Wrath. Unfortunately, when they found him, he was cutting down Nemo’s sailors left and right. In order to stop this, Quixote used all his strength to hurl his spear at the eyepatch wearing Homunculus. Of course, since things were never easy for LXG agents, Wrath managed to dodge the attack and didn’t even bat an eye as it impaled the ground next to his foot. 

“Well, if it isn’t the extraordinary gentlemen.” Wrath commented as his sword dripped with blood. Seeing the blood and the lifeless bodies of the sailors on the ground sent the agents into a rage.

“Alright, listen up, mustache bastard.” Sawyer spat, raising his pistol, “You are and your forces are in direct violation of the Realm-Crossing & Transportation Charter of the LXG. So, before we kill you and shave off that clear sign of compensation you have on your lip, we’ll give you the chance to send the Amestrians back home; before we kill them all, too.”

“…Nice negotiation skills you have there, Tom.” Shan Yu dryly muttered.

“Ah, shut up, Yu.” Sawyer grumbled.

“By all means, go ahead.” Wrath offered, “Kill them. It’ll just be less humans for me to deal with.”

“You Homunculi really are sick, you know that?” Sawyer asked as he reached for a weapon he hadn’t used in years, “And that’s why I’m going to take real pleasure in finishing you off.”

Unfurling and cracking it in one quick motion, Sawyer tightly held a bull whip in his hand. Ironically, he was almost as skilled with that particular weapon as he was with his revolvers, but thanks to Nicholas’ panic attacks, he couldn’t use it around him. But on this day, and because Nicholas had gone on his own, he decided to get rid of the dust on it and use it on the enemy. Unfortunately, he didn’t exactly think it through when he decided to use it against the living embodiment of the clone of his friend’s wrath. In other words, Wrath’s anger skyrocketed at the sight of leather weapon. That being said, it was Shan Yu who made the first move.

Shouting his battle cry at the top of his lungs, the hulking Hun was ready to strike down Wrath with his sword. But the Homunculus was much faster and was able to swiftly pass Shan Yu while leaving a multitude of deep cuts all over his body. Much to the sailors’ surprise, it was enough to bring the mighty general to his knees as he bled.

“Yu!” Sawyer shouted.

Wrath was just about to take on the other gentlemen in front of him but quickly changed targets once he heard Shan Yu yell again as he tried charging at him with a downward strike. But just like before, faster than anyone could see, Wrath beat Shan Yu to it and landed his own attack, this time completely severing Shan Yu’s right arm causing both it and his sword to fly in opposite directions from the force he put into his strike.

“No, Shan Yu!” Quixote cried out as his friend dropped to the ground in his own blood.

“You humans were fools to try and stop us.” Wrath chided in disappointment and boredom, “You can kill as many Amestrian soldiers as you like. But without that alchemist of yours, you can never defeat the Homunculi.”

Somehow, in some way, Sawyer was able to save himself from the sudden attack Wrath unleashed on him. It was meant to be just a quick slash down his left shoulder, but Wrath’s sword was caught in the crook of Sawyer’s kukri knife, a gift he received from Nemo long ago. However, he was struggling to keep himself from getting cut in two.

“Bastardo!” Quixote cried in fury as he charged the artificial human with his spear. Once again, Wrath proved to be the superior fighter by quickly kicking away Sawyer, dodging the spear, breaking its shaft with his knee and arm, and then knocking Quixote to the ground with a laterite.

The old Hispanic struggled to breath after that attack. Even though he knew fully well someone perfectly capable, and willing to kill him was looming over him, he couldn’t help but clutch his throat while trying to breathe. He finally managed to do it, but fear clutched his rapid heart as Wrath was about to plunge his sword into his chest. He would have done it, too if it hadn’t been for Sawyer’s whip wrapping around his wrist and pulling on him. Sadly, though, that little game of tug of war went to Wrath as he pulled the whip out of Sawyer’s hands and tossed it aside. In desperation, the cowboy reached for his revolvers and fired them only hear the clicks of his empty weapons. Taking a big gulp of the lump in his throat, he pulled back out his kukri knife and took what could have been his last stance.

“Please forgive me, my friends.” he said thinking of his team, “But it looks like I’m dying here.”

“Shut up, Sawyer!” Shan Yu shouted off to the side. Everyone, even Wrath looked over to the fallen agent and watched as he picked himself up. His clothes were soaked in his blood, but he managed to stop most of the bleeding, somehow, by tightly tying some of his pelts over the socket.

“Don’t you dare talk about dying on today of all days! I’m not gonna let those friends of yours lecture me because I let you give up.” he panted with a fierce expression.

“How are you not dead, man?” Sawyer asked.

“As if any attack from this piece of filth could kill the great General Shan Yu.” the Hun declared, “I’ve got plenty of fight left in me!”

“Ridiculous.” Wrath sighed, “Humans always make a point out of being foolishly stubborn.”

“Si, that is very true.” Quixote wheezed while rubbing his throat, “But it’s that stubborn attitude of ours that makes it impossible for you to defeat us.”

“Is that so? Well, then,” Wrath said as he took off his eye patch to reveal his Ultimate Eye, “In that case, I should take you men a little more seriously. Let’s put your so-called ‘undying will’ to the test.”

The sailors on the side were speechless as they watched the three agents fight the Homunculus. Unfortunately, they could tell the Wrath still had the upper hand. Even though he was skilled in fighting with his knife, Sawyer hardly ever used it so his skills weren’t nearly what he needed them to be. Not only that, but it was painfully obvious that Shan Yu’s blood loss was slowing him down and making his attacks weaker and despite not receiving any heavy damages, himself, Quixote’s age wasn’t letting him act as spry as he once was. So, having enough of just standing on the sidelines, four of Nemo’s crew decided to take the initiative.

“Fire!” one of them ordered before they fired their riffles.

“Stay out of this, dammit!” Sawyer ordered, but it was too late. Wrath easily dodged the bullets and killed the sailors who dared to attack him.

“No!” Shan Yu shouted as he charged again, “Son of bitch!”

He tried strike him with his sword, again, but Wrath quickly ducked and impaled Shan Yu’s abdomen with his own sword. As this happened, Shan Yu lost the grip on his sword which caused it to slide across the cement. Thankfully, Sawyer quickly picked it up and was ready to use it. But Shan Yu was not done, not by a long shot. While Wrath was still crouched down from his attack, Shan Yu raised his remaining gauntlet covered hand above his head and with another mighty battle cry, he used all his strength to try and crush the Homunculus with a powerful blow. However, Wrath was still too quick and managed to dodge it before it crushed him like the cement where it struck. Even though he despised humans, Wrath couldn’t help but be a little impressed by the one he was fighting. Especially since he was still alive even after losing an arm, receiving multiple cuts and had a sword through his torso.

“You’ve got some rather impressive abs, huh?” Wrath asked almost giving praise.

“Heh, so what are you gonna do now without your fancy swordplay?” Shan Yu chuckled through the blood in his mouth.

“Are you trying to get yourself killed, dumbass?!” Sawyer shouted before charging at Wrath, “But then again, thanks for the sword!”

“Now, let’s see.” Wrath said as he took a pair of hunting knives off the corpse of one of the sailors he killed. In a powerful attack, Wrath pushed Sawyer back while making a single cut on his left cheek.

“These aren’t exactly my weapons of choice, but one must make do with what one has, as they say.” he sighed in disappointment while skillfully flipping the knives in his hands.

“You’ve pissed me off now, old man.” Sawyer spat as his cheek bled before charging the arrogant monstrosity.

While that blood riddled battle was going on, Nemo was running through the streets and hurdling over the debris by himself as he searched for Hyde and Sloth. Most would think it would be easy to find two great, big behemoths like them, but not in his case. He couldn’t even hear them, for some strange reason.

“Hyde?!” Nemo hollered, “Hyde, where are you?!”

In almost a funny way, Mr. Hyde showed up after being thrown into the clock tower, thus destroying it, completely. Shaking the splinters and granite out of his hair, Hyde picked himself up before thinking up another clever idea. He trudged over and picked up both hands of the clock and wielded them like swords.

“Nemo, get ready.” Hyde warned, “That big bugger isn’t staying down.”

“Not enjoying your little bit of sport, are you?” Nemo teased as he drew his sword, “Where is he?”

“Give him a moment.” Hyde replied. Sure enough, Sloth, using his incredible speed, came charging at the duo like a bulldozer.

“Oh, he’s a big one, isn’t he?” Nemo dryly joked, “Brace yourself.”

“I should be saying that to you, tiny captain.” Hyde retorted with a smirk as they braced for impact.

The moment Sloth slammed into them, he was impaled by both clock hands and Nemo’s sword, just as they planned. Of course, it didn’t feel too great as their bodies locked on impact from Sloth’s massive frame. Nemo tried to cut through his stomach and, literally, spill his guts but his muscles were so big and tough that it was proving to be overly difficult. In Nemo’s desperate attempt to help himself, he pulled out his own kukri knife from his belt and stabbed Sloth right above where his sword was imbedded. Thankfully, that did the trick and he was able to slice open Sloth’s stomach, causing him to lose power and his powerful stance.

“Hyde, now!” Nemo shouted as he got out of the way. Taking the chance, Hyde let go of one of his makeshift blades and delivered a powerful uppercut to Sloth’s jaw which shattered it and knocked him on his back. From there it was an onslaught. Hyde mercilessly slammed his fists on him while Nemo stabbed Sloth in the head, face and neck.

“Ow. Hurt.” Sloth slurred while they attacked him.

“Die! Die, die! Kali Ma take you! Die!” Nemo cried as he repeatedly drove his knife into Sloth’s skull.

“Nemo, move!” Hyde shouted as he was about to drive the big clock hand into Sloth’s stomach. Thankfully, Sloth was too injured and slow to stop him and was helpless to stop him as it drove through his body and deep into the ground beneath. Red sparks surged around all his wounds as he struggled to pull out the piece of metal impaling him.

“Will that monster never stay down?” Nemo thought while raising his sword again. But this time, instead of getting back up, Sloth’s hand burst into ashes as he failed to free himself making it clear what was happening; he was finally dying for good.

“Am I dying now?” he grunted in pain as he continued to fade, “For real? What is dying like? Such a pain to think about it. But it’s such a pain living, too.”

Living and dying as his name, Sloth the Indolent passed from his existence finding what came next to be nothing more than a bother. And with that, there was one less Homunculus terrorizing the town of Storybrooke.

“Finally, he’s dead.” Hyde groaned as he fell to his knees and panted in pain.

“Are you alright?” Nemo asked in concern.

“I’ll be fine.” Hyde assured, “I just need a moment to catch my breath. Where are the others?”

“Mina has gone into a frenzy.” he informed, “Quartermain, Skinner and Bluebeard are trying to keep her under control. In the meantime, Sawyer, Shan Yu and Quixote have gone off to fight the Homunculus, Wrath.”

“Perfect.” Hyde sarcastically spat, along with a little blood, “What now?”

“Now, we move onto phase two.” Nemo replied, “My crew is more than capable of handling the Amestrians, but we still have two or three Homunculi left, counting the main one. So, now, we go down below, hunt them down and find Nicholas.”

“How do we get down there?”

“Well, Nicholas said we can get there via sewers to the tunnels underground, but you’re far too big to go that way. So, I was thinking that we take the way through the mines.” Nemo explained while Hyde rolled his massive arms and popped his neck, “Now, I know it will be a bit of a detour, but unless you think Jekyll is better suited for this, then maybe-”

But the good captain was interrupted by his friend’s roar before he slammed his giant fists onto the ground which was directly over the sewer tunnels Nemo mentioned before. Sure enough, it had plenty of force to make the ground crumble and collapse underneath their feet.

“Of course, there is always that option, as well.” Nemo dryly chuckled before the ground gave in and they fell.

Back with the three men and the rampaging vampire, Bluebeard was putting the final touches on his plan to contain Mina. While Skinner and Quartermain kept her at bay, Gilles surrounded them in a large circle made from holy ashes and placed six candles along the rim like the points of a hexagon.

“There, that should do nicely.” the priest said with a smile that certainly did not belong at a time like that.

“Are you done, yet or should we just keep on doing all the work, here?!” Quartermain shouted while dodging Mina’s claws.

“Okay, okay, Mr. Grumpy Hunter-Man. It’s ready.” Gilles replied, rolling his eyes, “Come out of the circle before you hurt yourselves.”

“You mean before YOU hurt us!” Skinner corrected hotly as they jumped out. 

As they did, Gilles began to gently sing a hymn in Latin as he made the sign of the cross and pulled out a small vial of holy water. It wasn’t a very long hymn, but it was like nails on a chalkboard to Mina who, ironically screeched like a banshee, herself. When he was finished, he made the sign of the cross again and poured a single drop of holy water on the ashes, activating the circle. Once it soaked into the ashes, the entire circle shined a golden light while the flames on the candles turned blue and erupted into six fiery columns. Somehow, in some way, it worked and Mina was gradually returning to her previous form. Although, as soon as the fires and glowing diminished, it was clear that Mina was very weakened from both the ritual and frenzy.

“Harker, can you hear me?” Quartermain asked as he shook her unconscious body.

“Oh, she doesn’t look so good, Allan.” Skinner pointed out, “I know! You there, sailor! Come here. Stand back, lads.”

“Yes, sir?” the young sailor asked as he came over to them only have his nose broken, which woke Mina with the smell of his blood before he was shoved on top of her.

“Chow time, Mina.” Skinner said over the sailor’s screams and Mina’s snarling as she devoured his blood.

“Dear God.” Gilles muttered as he made the sign of the cross and prayed.

“That was pretty sick, Skinner.” Quartermain remarked.

“It worked, didn’t it?” he asked nonchalantly.

“I’ll say.” Mina panted before wiping the blood on her sleeve, “Sorry about that. I didn’t kill any of ours, did I?”

“No, no.” Skinner waved off before pointing at the corpse she just made, “Well, except that one there. But that was partially my fault.”

“Uh-huh.” she nodded with a glare, “Where’s everyone else?”

“Off fighting Homunculi.” Quartermain replied, “If Flamel hasn’t already taken care of one, himself then there should be one other left before the dwarf.”

“Then we better get down there and help.” Mina suggested.

“Then by all means, please.” Skinner joked as he opened the nearest manhole to the sewers, “Ladies first.”

“How chivalrous of you.” Mina dryly quipped.

“Hold on.” Quartermain intervened, “Bluebeard, you’re staying up here to give the remaining sailors a hand.”

“Fine by me. Whoo! Ew!” he exclaimed after taking a whiff of the sewers and covering his face with a handkerchief, “Oh! Please, by all means, do go on without me, and never open another manhole around me again!”

Each of them gave him a dry look before hoping down the hole and into the tunnels. Oh, but not before the crudest one out of the three gave Gilles a piece of their mind.

“Pussy.” Mina insulted with a shake of her head before jumping in.

“At least I’m not some she-demon walking through piss and shit.” Gilles retorted before covering the hole. Back with the others and Wrath, Shan Yu was trying to make out what was happening through his blurry vision.

“Keep resting, sir, please.” one of the few remaining sailors said next to him.

“Ugh, what stupid time to go passing out.” Shan Yu muttered, weakly before noticing the sword still impaling him, “I probably ought to leave this here or just bleed to death. They’re still going at it, huh?”

Indeed, they were. Sawyer was still using Shan Yu’s sword against Wrath along with Quixote using his own sword and shield. Wrath was still using the two knives he stole so it wasn’t as difficult as when he had his preferred weapon. Still, things were difficult, nonetheless especially when Wrath locked Quixote’s sword arm and swung his body so his shield would hit Sawyer across the face.

“Ow!” he shouted, “What the hell, man?!”

“It’s not like I meant-incoming!” Quixote shouted as Wrath came at them again. The Hispanic agent was able to get out of the way, but Sawyer wasn’t so lucky. He wasn’t extremely hurt, but the boot to the face he received didn’t exactly tickle as it knocked him to the ground. He tried to get up to help Quixote, but he was pinned down thanks to the knife sent through his pants leg and into the ground.

“Cheap son of a bitch.” Sawyer cursed as he tried to get free.

Quixote managed to hold his own, but Wrath was keeping him on the defensive. That is until he knocked his sword out of his hand and into the air. Without his remaining weapon, the crazy knight backed away as fast as he could as he watched his sword fall right into Wrath’s free hand. At that moment, he threw his last knife at Quixote’s head, which he skillfully caught with a quick clap.

“Certainly makes a difference when you have a weapon you’re more comfortable with.” Wrath grunted while attack Quixote with his own sword. The knife he had was taking so many hits that it eventually shattered just before Wrath knocked off his strange helm with his sword. But as he backed away, again, he was blinded by his own blood as the delayed cut Wrath just gave him opened on his brow. The moment he could see again was the moment he saw Wrath swing his arm what looked like the final blow.

“It’s impressive how quickly you move. You’re even older than I am!” Wrath praised, “However, this is as old as you’re going to get.”

In that single strike, Quixote’s armor broke apart and the tunic he wore underneath was beginning to soak up the fresh blood from his newest wounds. While the older man was lying on the ground, the Homunculus was just about to finish him off. Thankfully, Sawyer was able to slide in at the last second and save his fallen comrade.

“And so the youngster swoops in to save the day, huh?” Wrath mockingly asked in his bored tone, “Can’t you see how pointless it is to risk your life for something that isn’t even worth dying for? Especially, in this situation?”

“Thomas, forgive me.” Quixote choked as he coughed up blood, “My life isn’t worth dying for.”

“Don’t give me that crap!” Sawyer shouted with his friend draped over his shoulder, “Do you really think I’d just let this bastard kill my friends so easily?! I’ve seen that look in his eyes before, he looks down on people like us. He thinks he can kill us with that look in his eyes? I refuse to die or let anyone I care about die with that look being the last thing they see. I swore on my life that I would never let such a thing happen to my friends ever again, and I intend to keep that promise!”

“If you truly wish to beat people like him, then you must be willing to lose comrades along the way.” Quixote reminded as he spat up more blood.

“You need to rest, please!” Sawyer begged. But Quixote felt and saw the blood leave him quickly. He knew what he had to do.

“Heh. You’re right, chico. I need rest. Time for this old man to find some rest.” Quixote chuckled before using his remaining strength to strike Sawyer’s back with his elbow and charge at the Homunculus, one last time.

“Today, Nicholas,” Quixote thought with a smile while running, “I repay my debt to you, my friend.”

“But first things, first.” he said aloud while tearing open his tunic to reveal explosives tied to his belt, “This old gentleman has no choice but to offer his last act!”

“You crazy fool!” Sawyer shouted as Quixote jumped and grabbed Wrath’s head in a, literal, death grip.

“I’m taking you straight to hell with me, Homunculus, tu bastardo!” the proud knight cried out ready for his fiery death. But it never came.

In a quick instant and slash, Wrath cut off the fuses and caps of the explosives, perfectly holding them on his blade. At the same time, Quixote’s abdomen erupted with blood from the slice that disabled his final attack. Sawyer was completely frozen as he gasped at the sight of his brother-in-arms fall to the ground.

“Even while sacrificing my life, I still couldn’t lay a single scratch on him.” Quixote miserable thought in despair, “Mis amigos, please forgive my shameful death.”

Even as the man was falling into the clutches of death, Wrath the Furious had a look on his face that entirely lacked any small amount of empathy. However, just before Quixote hit the ground, his eyes widened with pain. The distinct sound of steel piercing flesh rang through the air as another sword ran the two men through.

“That Philosopher’s Stone may have given you the eyes of a god, but even you can’t dodge an attack if you can’t see it coming!” Shan Yu grunted in victory from behind Quixote, bleeding just as much as he was.

“Grgh!” Wrath grunted in pain and shock.

“Alright, old man.” Shan Yu said to Quixote, “You may be going to hell, but you aren’t going alone. I’ll make sure to keep you and this bastard company on the ride down.”

“Oh,” Quixote wheezed with a faint smile as death took him, “You have my gratitude, gracias.”

“Grah!” Wrath snarled as he kicked them away. He was about to finish them off, himself before the sound of Sawyer’s battle cry caught his attention. With the broken spear that once belonged to Don Quixote, Sawyer jammed it into Wrath’s Ultimate eye, utterly destroying it and making him cry out it pain. But while he did this, he struggled to hold back the tears he did not want to shed for his comrades.

The two had fallen to the ground thanks to the force behind Sawyer’s attack and despite the wound he received to his torso and eye, Wrath still managed to find the strength to kick Sawyer off and away several feet. Strangely enough, not that Sawyer was thinking clearly enough to notice, but Wrath’s wounds were not healing like his brethren. In his anger, Wrath ripped out the spear without hesitation and prepared himself to continue the fight. However, the ground began to collapse beneath his feet, most likely from Hyde’s previous attempt at making a Hyde-sized entrance for himself. Too dazed from his wounds, he did not have the chance to save himself from falling into the darkest pit of Storybrooke there currently was. Sawyer did not even bother to check if he survived the fall or not, not that he would be able to see, he was more concerned with the state of his friends.

“Don!” he cried as he slid over to them, “Don! Yu! Come on, guys, stay with me!”

But it was too late for proud knight, he could feel his life slip away with each passing second. Shan Yu, on the other hand, was still finding a way to stay alive with the strength and stubbornness he had.

“Did we do it?” Quixote whispered, “Is he dead?”

“Yes, he’s dead, Don, you got him.” Sawyer nodded at his side.

“Heh, muy bien.” he chuckled, “I am glad. I am glad I was able to help Nicholas in his hour of need. Such as good man, he is. My friend.”

“No, don’t go talking like that, Don.” Sawyer pleaded, “You can’t kick the bucket, yet. The eclipse hasn’t started yet; we still need you! Nicholas still needs you!”

“Sorry, Tom.” he softly apologized, “But it looks like I won’t be able to see it. My journey has come to an end. Do not despair. We will meet again. One day, we will all be together someplace beautiful. Some place even grander than the Land of Purity we call home.”

“Someday.” Shan Yu nodded, lying next to his dying comrade, “Just be sure to wait for us when you get there.”

“…Giants.” Quixote whispered with a smile and glassy eyes, “Can you see the giants, my children? They’re smiling at us. They want to play.”

With a whimsical smile, Don Quixote de la Mancha, El Caballero Loco, Solo-Field Agent to the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen passed on from this life, happy that he was able to serve, fight and die alongside his friends.

Shan Yu gritted his teeth in anger and sadness at the loss of his comrade, but he wouldn’t allow himself to shed a single tear. He had lost friends and comrades before so he knew when the appropriate time would be for when he could properly mourn. Sawyer, on the other hand, was unable to stop the tears from falling off his face. Sure, he had lost friends on the battlefield during his time in the LXG, and even before in another life, but it never made it easier. Brief flashes of distant memories came to mind. Instead of Quixote, he saw a beautiful dark-skinned woman in a blood-soaked wedding dress in his arms and then a glimpse of himself screaming as he shot people left and right which ended with him hopelessly slumped against a wooden building with bullet shells covering every inch of the ground of the town he was in, all of them his. His anger found itself replacing his sorrow after shaking his head of those images. After collecting himself and steeling his anger, he pulled out his shell and contacted the Nautilus.

“This is Special Agent Sawyer to the Nautilus. Come in, Nautilus, do you read me?”

“Aye, Special Agent Sawyer.” a sailor replied, “The Nautilus reads you. What is your situation?”

“I need a medical evac team to pick up Agent Shan Yu and Agent Quixote’s remains, immediately.” he replied.

“His rema-oh.” the sailor realized somberly, “Roger that, sir. What is your location?”

“We’re on what’s left of the road southeast of main street. You won’t find me here when you show up, I’ll be killing Amestrians.”

“Roger that, sir. The medics are on their way.”

“Roger, over and out.” Sawyer nodded. He then walked over and took a riffle and a pair of pistols off the fallen sailors for himself before addressing those remaining. “You here remaining are going to keep an eye on Agents Shan Yu and Quixote until the medics arrive. If I find out something happened to either of them on your watch, I’ll kill you all, myself. Remember that ‘cause it’s the only warning you’ll get.”

“That dwarf Homunculus is gonna regret ever picking a fight with us. I’ll make sure of it.” he thought in anger as he trudged off in search of people to kill.

Beneath the surface of Storybrooke, each party wandering through the sewers continued in their search for who or what they were looking for. Emma and David for Whale and the LXG agents for any Homunculi or Nicholas. Speaking of Nicholas, after taking the walk he had been waiting nearly half a century for, he finally made it to his destination; the dwarf’s throne room.

The head Homunculus did not have the appearance Nicholas was expecting. Rather than looking identical to himself, his doppelganger was sickly pale with sullen brown hair, eyes and enough wrinkles to let Nicholas come up with an idea of what he will look like when he gets old. Not even bothering to look up from the book he was reading, his first friend acknowledged his presence.

“You’ve come alone.” Father said before shutting the book and looking his creator in his glaring eyes, “I expected you to bring those sisters of yours.”

“What help do I need from witches when I am dealing with something as lowly as you?” Nicholas asked calmly, but with anger, “To me, you’re still nothing but a dwarf in a flask, Homunculus.”

“And you’re still Slave #23, aren’t you?” Father asked rising from his seat, “You gave me part of your body. And now, today, all these many years later, you will become a part of mine.”


	78. Sacrifices

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

The fighting continued to wage on above on the surface, but the two identical immortals were so far down below that they couldn’t hear any of it. Not that they would have paid attention to it, they were too busy staring each other down. Finally breaking the silence, Nicholas spoke to the creature who forever changed his life once again.

“This is quite the reunion, and yet you’re stone-faced.” he observed while thinking back to when his clone was a more emotional spec in a flask, “That’s too bad. You’re so much less fun than you used to be. A long time ago, you were so full of life, a vibrant being full of spirit. Lust, greed, sloth, gluttony, envy, wrath, pride. Those are the seven deadly sins of mankind. Any one of those sins will ruin a person and bring about their downfall. But still, you must understand all of them in order to understand humanity. Otherwise, your knowledge remains incomplete. Why did you separate them from yourself and make them living beings?”

But Father did not give a verbal response. Instead, he sent a surge of red, alchemic lighting from his feet to launch Nicholas on a platform made from the ground on which he stood. It caught him by surprise and made him yelp, but the Immortal Alchemist quickly caught himself and transmuted the platform into a staircase which he walked down.

“Careful, you nearly killed me!” he joked. But Father did not laugh, or even twich even as he turned a large metal pipe by his feet into a massive fist and hurled it at Nicholas, destroying the stairs he was on. Because of this, Nicholas found himself helpless as he was falling several stories to the ground.

“For once, listen to me!” Nicholas pleaded as the ground turned into two, large slabs ready to smash him, “Stop this!”

But Father just continued to ignore him, even as he had the slabs smash Nicholas with a loud clap. However, Nicholas countered the transmutation, once again, with his own by making a ladder on the inside and a door allowing him to come out unscathed.

“Please, be more careful. We haven’t seen each other in a long time and I’m trying to have a civil conversation with you.” he scolded. Father’s response was another attack in the form of large spikes being launched at Nicholas. Thankfully, he missed and only destroyed the wall he created behind Nicholas.

Having enough of being attacked, Nicholas took the initiative to create a large, stone snake, barring its fangs, from the floor and send it at his old friend. In response, Father did the same, but with a roaring dragon’s head. Both attacks hit each other head on and crumbled from the impact, but Nicholas kept sending more while Father created stone shields.

“Answer me this, why do you create the Homunculi? Treat them as children, have them call you father?” Nicholas asked over the loud noises, “Back when you were an arrogant spec in a flask, you used to scoff at the very notion of community and family. But in reality, a family was what you wanted more than anything. You wanted what the humans have.”

Father’s eyes widened at that accusation. Nicholas noticed this and ceased his attacks, waiting for his counterpart to finally say something. Instead, he slithered away by transmuting the floor into a liquid, which he sank into.

“Where did he go?” Nicholas thought as he looked around, “Is he holding back until the transmutation circle is activated?”

But his thoughts were interrupted by the sharp pain in his lower back. From behind, Father rose from the floor with an insulted look of anger on his pale face after shoving his hand into Nicholas’ back with red alchemic sparks surging from both of them.

“There is no part of me that wishes to lower myself to their level. Instead, I will become a far more perfect being.” he spat as a glowing liquid flowed from Nicolas and into his veins, “The Philosopher’s Stone I created for myself is within you. I intend to claim it as I was meant to, so long ago.”

As he tried to do just that, Nicholas was rendered helpless as his life source was slowly being drained away. But just when the former dwarf thought victory was his, he felt something strange within him, causing him to retract his hand and clutch it like it was injured after backing away.

“So I finally elicited a reaction from you, huh?” Nicholas asked as he straightened himself up, “I was wondering if that would push your buttons enough to get you to talk to me. Not only that, but I finally have the answer to a question I’ve been asking myself for a long time. If you made that little mistake back then, I wonder what else you’ve done wrong over the years?”

“What have you done?” Father snarled as the veins on his hand pulsed.

“You might say I’ve done what you wouldn’t.” Nicholas replied, “You don’t realize, but you have cast aside something every bit as important as your emotions.”

“And what could be so important?”

“Don’t expect to win this battle easily. Not when you’re fighting us.” he replied.

“Us? You mean those friends of yours who dare to call themselves ‘extraordinary’?” Father scoffed.

“Not just them.” Nicholas denied, “You see, I did not come down here alone. Thanks to you, we are never alone.”

“Hmm?” Father asked before feeling a large pulse inside him.

“There was Sergence, the renowned master carpenter. He was often called to the palace for repairs. Do you remember him?” Nicholas asked, “His son, Dzur, had a deep admiration for his father. He worked hard to follow in his footsteps, and then there’s the florist, Kaya. I’ve rarely met such a compassionate woman. Sari, the stable hand, could never get his fill of liquor. Trust me, I’ve had to drink for him. Tommy’s boyhood dream was to become a respected scholar. Gidarouche worked as a cook. He was fired one time for feeding a starving vagrant without charging him. Cordrun was a fellow slave of mine and the brother of Andal, another slave who bitterly considered me his rival. He always lived in fear of his brother because of the quenching thirst for power Andal had. Suhl was somewhat of a remorseless reprobate. He was awaiting execution on the night you had the king perform the transmutation. He, of course, was probably the most determined to get one last shot at you.”

“And how would he go about that?” Father asked.

“Every single one of these tortured souls has invaded your being.” Nicholas answered, “You’re contaminated. Each of those souls are working with me. Working to see your destruction.”

“I’m supposed to believe that your Philosopher’s Stone has individual wills?” Father sneered, “Those souls were reduced to mere energy.”

“At one point, yes, they were. But before that, I took the time to speak with all of them and help them retain their individuality. And after my death, with the return of my stone, we picked up right where we left off in our plans against you.” Nicholas replied.

“You actually spoke with them?” Father asked, genuinely surprised.

“I did. It nearly drove me over the edge as I tried to soothe the massive ocean of screaming voices in my head. I’ll even admit, it did drive me a little insane and I am still suffering from that insanity to this day. But unlike you, I listened to what they had to say. It took time, but I managed to learn the names and lives of every last person. Five hundred thirty-six thousand three hundred twenty-nine; all the people you trapped inside of me. And like me, they are all angry at you, Dwarf. You ruined our lives…and we will have our revenge!”

At the word revenge, the Homunculus felt something within him take form and thrust out of his forehead in the form of a black spear. If Nicholas had been in the mood to joke, he would have called him a unicorn for how he looked.

“Why you!” Father grunted as he crushed the spear, leaving a hole in his head.

“Return to the nothingness you were born of. Your flask is broken, Dwarf. We will destroy you. And that container of yours is the first thing to go.” Nicholas declared as more spikes erupted throughout Father’s body, leaving puddles of blood, “All we have to do is tear through that leather bag you designed to look like me and you’ll be reduced to dust. You will suffer the pain of the thousands of lives you have ruined.”

But Nicholas’ confidence quickly took a turn at what he saw next. Changing on their own, the spikes protruding from Father bubbled and moved as they took on the shape of a man crawling out of the container, ironically, like a snake’s skin. As it opened its mouth, the Homunculus drooled in hunger before devouring the skin and clothes.

“You’ve picked up the bad habit of condescension in your many years, haven’t you, Nicholas Flamel?” he asked tauntingly.

“How is it possible that you can live without your skin?!” Nicholas asked in shock.

“Did you honestly think you were the only one capable of evolving?” he asked before opening the dozens of eyes over his body and the massive one above, on the ceiling. “I told you, I intend on becoming the perfect being!”

“Then let’s see how far you’ve come.” Nicholas challenged as he readied his lightning claws and raised his shadows. Raking the claws on the pads on his palms, Nicholas unleashed a blast of lightning at the mass of black in front of him that just barely dodged it.

“Ah,” Father smirked with intrigue, “I see you’ve become rather inventive in our time apart. How reassuring. And here I was almost worried that my lessons were wasted on you.”

“You used alchemy to create an entire country and seven living embodiments of your inner desires, I used it to make killing scum like you much more dramatic.” Nicholas replied before snapping his fingers to unleash fire. Father managed to dodge it, again, by turning into a puddle of black sludge and eyes before reforming and a large whip of himself at his creator. However, Nicholas did not even budge when he blocked it with just one arm.

“I’ve been waiting a long time for this day, Homunculus.” he growled, “I have spent every moment planning it all. Training and honing my skills and strength to where it would be child’s play to kill you. Eliminating every variable that could benefit you. You’ve had your fun long enough. Now, today, on the day that was promised, you will die.”

Snap after snap. Lightning blast after lightning blast. Nicholas showed no mercy in his onslaught. That being said, it was not as easy to hit an ever sloshing blob of unknown substance. Not to mention the smirk he made sure Nicholas saw at every moment, and his taunting laugh was getting on his nerves.

“Is that so? And was all that monologue nonsense you’ve done part of the planning you dedicated your life to?” Father asked mockingly while dodging, “You say that you have eliminated every variable that could be in my benefit? Tell me, _Immortal Alchemist_ , were you expecting me to have _her_ here?”

Seeing the smiling monster point up, Nicholas followed his finger and gasped in horror at what he saw. To him, it was Regina bound in chains to a large spike made of granite, clearly unconscious. But what he did not know was that it was actually her own doppelganger, and the final sacrifice, the Evil Queen.

“Regina?” he whispered before grunting in pain. Now looking down, he saw the Homunculus impaling his abdomen with a spear made from his strange body. Panic quickly consumed him as his head snapped up to see the former dwarf engulf him, entirely. Back in the tunnels, David and Emma were still in pursuit of Whale. They had no idea where they were going, or what might have been down there, but they pressed on.

“Any idea why Whale came down here?” David asked his daughter.

“Nope.” she replied, “Despite the fact Nicholas told me about these laboratories of his, I’ve never been down here. Apparently, they run throughout the entire town between the sewer system and the caverns Regina made for Maleficent when she was trapped in her dragon form. I have absolutely no idea what he has down here.”

“Hold on a sec.” David whispered, coming to a stop. In a nearby tunnel, he could hear voices, “Do you hear that?”

“Yeah. Do you think it’s a Homunculus or some Amestrians?” Emma whispered back.

“Only one way to find out.” he shrugged as he drew his gun. Coming around the corner of the tunnel, the duo aimed their weapons at the people in front of them only to be engulfed in a swarm of bats. Trying not to get bitten, they accidently dropped their guns just before the bats disappeared and they each found a silver dagger against their throats.

“I thought I heard you two dunderheads down here.” Mina flatly insulted before sheathing her daggers. Looking ahead, the Savior and her father saw Quartermain and Skinner along with her.

“What are you two doing here? You should both be someplace secure up above.” Quartermain barked.

“We were until we saw Dr. Whale sneak down here while the rest of you were fighting.” Emma informed.

“Oh? And, pray tell, what do you think would make Dr. Frankenstein come down here?” Skinner asked skeptically.

“You tell me.” she retorted, “You guys lived down here, for a while. What does Nicholas keep down here in his secrets labs?”

“Nothing that letch could understand.” Mina quipped before extending her senses to try and find the doctor.

“What are you guys doing down here?” David asked.

“All the Homunculi up top have been eliminated, so we’ve come down here to find Flamel and give him back up.” Quartermain replied, “You, on the other hand, are still a sacrifice and have no reason to be down here. The eclipse is going to begin soon and we can’t be hindered by babysitting either of you.”

“Man, this guy’s a grouch!” Emma and David thought irritably.

“Yeah, and we don’t take orders from you, _boss_.” David sneered.

“Watch it, boy.” Quartermain growled.

“Can we get a move on, please?” Skinner interrupted, “We’ve already wasted enough time bickering with these two when we could be heading to wherever it is Nicholas is at.”

“I think we’re about to hit another deterrence, Skinner.” Mina commented, “I found Frankenstein.”

“Wait, he’s actually down here?” Skinner asked in disbelief.

“Told ya.” Emma muttered, “Where is he? What’s he doing?”

“He’s standing in the center of the five-way intersection that connects all the tunnels to each other.” Mina replied, “But there’s something else. There are multiple people around him. Whatever the hell he’s doing, he isn’t alone.”

“Well, let’s go find out.” David suggested pushing past the three agents with his daughter.

“We’re seriously going to let them do this?” Mina asked Quartermain.

“Better to let them think they’re getting their way than waste time arguing.” the old man sighed, “Besides, I would like to know what that pervert is up to, myself.”

“I’m just so happy that, for once, I’m not the pervert you’re talking badly about.” Skinner remarked as they walked through the tunnel.

“Shut up, Skinner.” his friends dryly ordered.

“See, and that’s another thing.” he complained as they hustled along, “Why do you lot always tell me to shut up? Nicholas and Sawyer make just as many snide comments as I do. Granted, I’m aware of the head slaps they receive, but just once in a while, I would like to be treated with a little more respect.”

“…Okay, Skinner. You want some respect?” Quartermain softly asked with a smile as he stopped them.

“I would like some, yes.” Skinner nodded.

“Well, you will get some after you SHUT YOUR GOB!!!” Quartermain bellowed before catching up with the two in front.

“Rodney, we respect you.” Mina reassured gently with her hand on his shoulder, “We do, and we love you. But telling you to shut up and making jokes at your self-esteem’s expense is just how we show we care.”

“Really?” he asked feeling touched, “Oh, you and those old blokes are the best!”

“Aw, thank you!” Mina said back with a smile before dropping it, “Now, shut up and let’s go.”

Once everyone was together again, they came to a stop once they saw Dr. Whale crouched down with a piece of chalk in his hand while scribbling on the floor. At first, they did not understand, but after taking a closer look, they noticed he was squatting in the middle of an incomplete transmutation circle.

“You all can come out, now. I know you’re there.” Whale said with the same accent he had before the first curse. Emerging from the shadows, with their guard up, the small group came into view.

“Greetings, everyone. I am so glad that you’ve come to join me on this momentous day.” he greeted.

“Do you mind telling us what it is you’re doing down here, Whale?” Emma asked with a glare.

“Of course, Savior.” he chuckled arrogantly before continuing to draw, “I came down here to fulfill my end of the bargain.”

“What bargain?” David asked.

“Why the one I made with the Homunculi, of course.” Whale replied, glancing up at them. As soon as he said this, the either raised their hands or their weapons in anger.

“You sided with them?!” Emma shouted.

“That I did.” he said with a bit of nostalgia, “Quite frankly, I find it odd that you sound surprised, Emma. I am a scientist, after all. I was approached by one of my esteemed benefactors during one of your little wars with the villains, not long ago. They gave me an offer: I come work for them and they make me even more powerful than Flamel.”

“So that’s why you’re doing this.” Skinner stated, “You became envious of Nicholas.”

“Envious?” Whale asked before bursting with laughter, “Quite the contrary, good sir. I felt embarrassed for the man.”

“Embarrassed, why?” Emma asked.

“Because he limits himself on a daily basis. I can’t even begin to understand how he hasn’t just remade the worlds in his own image with all the power he has.” Whale sighed in disappointment, “I mean, I could have done so much with that power. But Nicholas? All he uses it for is to fight and make weapons for more fighting. He has the same amount of knowledge and power as the good gentleman who recruited me, but he limits himself because of his so-called morality. Even when this entire town turned against him, he did nothing to the people who wronged him. He knew all along that it was the Homunculus they called Envy who impersonated him and killed that girl, but still did nothing.”

“What did you say?” Emma whispered. Both she and her father found themselves in shock at that revelation.

“I can’t help myself but feel embarrassed for him and pity the man. Oh, it must be horrible to hold one’s self back so much as he does.” Whale groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose, “But luckily, that will all end today. Once the good gentleman has accomplished his goal, he will finally free Nicholas from the chains he has bound himself with, and-”

“And then he’ll give you a stone of your own?” Emma interrupted, accusingly.

“Well, one can hope.” he said humorously with a flutter of his hand, “I couldn’t care less about the immortality that comes with it. I just want the knowledge and powers it brings. Once I have it, I can return to my realm and resume my work. Things should move along a lot smoother this time after everyone there is dead. But first, I must honor my end of the bargain, and to do that, I need to gather the sacrifices.”

“That circle must be how he’ll do it, then.” Mina whispered to Quartermain.

“Looks like it.” he nodded, “Which means we’re at the center.”

“Oh, yes, we are.” Skinner nodded, “I’m sensing a large mass of rancid chi beneath us.”

“Rancid chi?” David asked.

“What?” Skinner asked, “With as many martial arts as I’ve mastered, you don’t think I can sense people’s chi?”

“This town has gotten so weird.” David remarked under his breath, “Well, even if you are working with the Homunculi, Whale, do you honestly think you can take us all on, yourself?”

“Oh, no. I don’t think that, at all. Unlike bedding your wife, I think that would be much too difficult.” Whale taunted. It was a poor choice of words on his part. Especially since he said that right to Snow’s armed husband and magic wielding daughter.

“…I’m going to enjoy killing you, Whale.” David said with a dark smile, “And when I’m done with you, you’ll look even worse than your brother did after you butchered him.”

Without a warning, David raised his handgun and was about to fire a few rounds but suddenly, Whale let out a sharp whistle just before he could. As soon as he did, multiple middle-aged men wielding swords came rushing from the other four tunnels. Despite the difference in physical appearances, they were all dressed in tank-tops, Amestrian uniforms pants, combat boots and identical, menacing scowls.

“Why don’t you boys keep them out of my hair for just a moment?” Whale wickedly smirked as the men began to attack.

“Who are these guys?” Emma asked after summoning a sword to fight with.

“More Amestrians?” David asked as he defended himself.

“No, they move too skillfully.” Skinner denied as he kicked and punched, “The ones outside are much more green.”

“These men were, at one point, the other candidates to become the Homunculus called Wrath.” Whale replied as he continued completing his circle.

“What?” Emma asked after shrugging a man off.

“The good gentleman created Amestris to be an unstoppable militaristic nation, so he needed its leader to be the same. Of course, it would have aroused suspicion if any wounds he received on the battlefield suddenly healed themselves. With that in mind, he created Wrath by taking the men the government secretly raised and trained and inserted a Philosopher’s Stone in each of them until one finally survived the procedure. It took eleven attempts and deaths, but they managed to do it. You can call these men the ‘leftovers’, the ones who would have followed their brother if he hadn’t survived. After years of training, they are warriors in their own right who have been ordered to serve me for this day. They may not be as strong as Wrath, himself. But they are strong!”

“So what?” Quartermain barked as he killed one of the silent attackers, “They bleed and die like any ordinary man. What’s there to fear?”

“You’ll see that soon enough once the lights go out, old man.” Whale said in his twisted excitement.

Back on the surface outside, Gold had finally managed to tear open the barrier to the monastery so he could get in. They had to climb a bit of a hill first, but they finally reached the entrance to their last hope. Just before they went in, however, Ariel caught her husband staring out at the view of Storybrooke, or at least, what was left of it.

“Killian, what’s wrong?” she asked in concern.

“When I first came to this town, I only thought of revenge and I didn’t give a damn about anyone here. But now, I see this place as my home, the place where I found my second chance and where I redeemed myself. Now look at it. There’s barely anything but rubble and a few buildings left standing.” he said sounding heartbroken.

“Killian, listen.” Ariel said making him look at her and not the town, “When I was living in the sea, I felt the waves and waters change, every day. But no matter how many times it did change, I knew where my home was. It was wherever my friends and loved ones were and that is exactly the same here, too. You didn’t redeem yourself in a place, you redeemed yourself in your heart with all of us. We can fix everything they break, and make it stronger. And we will.”

“…What did I do to deserve such a treasure like you?” he asked fondly he cupped her cheek and pulled her in for a kiss, “Let’s go find that fairy dust.”

“Aye-aye, Captain.” she giggled cutely. Once they were inside, Gold led the way as he sensed for the magic they were looking for. Sure enough, they found it conveniently stored in an urn in Mother Superior’s office.

“Is that it?” Ariel asked in hope.

“Oh, yes.” Gold nodded, “This is it. This is more than enough for the remaining Homunculi. We could kill them all with this much dust.”

“Grand,” Hook nodded curtly, “Now, let’s get it out of here.”

With the urn tucked in his arm, Gold nodded and followed the Hooks out the office and into the cathedral. Unfortunately, they were abruptly stopped when they found all the fairies pointing their wands at them.

“Nobody move’s unless I say so.” Mother Superior threatened as she glared at the intruding trio.

“Mother Superior, there’s been a terrible mistake. Let me explain.” Ariel pleaded gently.

“I said, nobody moves, mermaid.” the Blue Fairy warned, pointing her wand at the fish out of water.

“May we blink?” Ariel asked sarcastically. Over at the mansion, the three Millses were practically tearing the place apart in search of the pen.

“Okay, I think we ought to just admit defeat and agree that wherever Nicholas hid that pen, he put it in another bloody dimension!” Zelena shrieked in frustration by the fireplace.

“He put the damn thing in a pencil box, look there!” Regina snapped back from the floor above.

“I told you, I already looked in it!” Zelena shouted.

“Then look again!”

“Mom, I know you want to find it, but I don’t think Uncle Nicholas hid it someplace easy to find.” Henry pointed out.

“But if we don’t find it soon, the eclipse will begin and we’ll all be turned into Philosopher’s Stones, Henry.” Regina argued, albeit more gently than with her sister, “Zelena, check the pencil box, again.”

“No!” she shouted in frustrated anger. She was so angry, in fact, she was about to through a big, red book at her sister but stopped as soon as she saw the name of the author who was none other than her baby brother.

“What’s that?” Henry asked as his aunt began to read.

“It’s some sort of alchemy book Nicholas, apparently, wrote.” she said while turning the pages, “It looks like he tried to record what he knew about this stuff in case anyone wanted to learn it.”

“That’s impossible.” Regina denied, “Nicholas always hated the other alchemists ever since the Tucker incident. He hates other alchemists.”

“Well, he wrote it for someone.” Zelena retorted, “Listen to this, he mentions something called ‘The Portal of Truth.’”

“What’s that?” Henry asked.

“The Portal of Truth,” Zelena read aloud, “As mentioned many times throughout this guide, there are two paths of power humans are capable of taking; magic or alchemy. However, no one is capable of walking down both paths for they are natural enemies which contradict each other. That being said, the two are so much alike the differences are almost unseen except in advanced uses. When it comes to magic, there is a central plane of existence where the source of all magic originates. Humans are able to draw out this power through emotions that connect to the specific magic they are wanting to use. In contrast, the source of alchemy comes what is known as tectonic energy, a natural energy which flows throughout the ground. Alchemists are able to harness this energy and control the elements which the alchemist is aware of its composition and change its form through transmutation. However, the way alchemists are able to understand this process comes from an omnipotent plane of existence that exists both everywhere and only within a person who has not chosen magic. This plane has no name, but it is where an alchemist’s Portal of Truth resides. The portal is an inner part of one’s soul that allows a person to perform alchemy. But should a person choose magic, they abandon their portal and are forever severed from it. In a manner of speaking, the portal is a representation of doorway or gateway leading to the knowledge locked away in their mind. Alchemists are capable of opening their own gateways, but it comes at a price. If another person is not offered as payment, the portal will seek its own from the alchemist by claiming a part of their body, and by extension their soul, and receive the amount of knowledge the portal believes is worth for the price paid. Human souls are the most valuable thing in alchemy. The more souls offered to a gateway, the more knowledge and power one may receive.”

“So that’s how Nicholas became so powerful.” Regina realized, “When the Homunculus opened that gateway in Xerxes, the souls offered as payment. He received over half a million souls in knowledge and power that night.”

“No, they both did.” Zelena corrected as she shut the book, “And now that little dust mite is planning on using the people of the realms to give himself even more. I’d bet my broomstick he doesn’t plan on sharing it with Nicholas this time around.”

“Okay, now we really need to find that pen.” Henry exhaled now that he fully understood the severity of the present day. Back beneath the tunnels, Whale finally finished his treacherous artwork while the party was fighting.

“That should do fine. I think it’s about time we get things started.” he grinned as he stood up and addressed the men he commanded, “Now, #16, #17, #21, #23 and #26, come join me.”

Obeying the doctor’s orders, the five men that were called assembled to five designated spots on the circle while those that remained provided them cover. With a raise of his right hand, Whale’s palm sparked with blue alchemic lightning.

“Now then, here it goes!” he exclaimed in excitement before slamming his hand on the inner circle he had stood over. In an instant, the circle lit up and surged with lightning as the entire town began to tremble and shake.

“What have you done?!” Emma shouted as they all shielded their eyes.

“This? This right here is just the beginning.” Whale replied, “You’re a smart woman, Savior. Do you know just how many laboratories there are underneath Storybrooke?”

“Nicholas always said he had five between the sewers and underground caverns.” she replied.

“Ah, yes. But he was not the one who added them to the town’s design, nor was it his sister.” Whale informed, “You see, they were all a gift to him from the good gentleman to use however he wanted before their true purpose was used for today.”

“What true purpose?” Quartermain asked.

“Why assembling the five sacrifices, of course.” Whale replied wickedly. Mina gasped in realization when she heard those words and looked at the circle.

“It’s a transmutation circle!” she exclaimed, “They connected the labs to make a circle!”

“Oh, shit!” Skinner cursed before the room was engulfed in a strange, red light. From the lines of the circle, multiple black hands slithered up and pawed at the five men before deconstructing them. Whale simply chuckled like an excited T.V. villain. Before anyone could do anything, they were all frozen in shock at what happened next.

From beneath Emma’s feet, a giant eye, with a light silver iris, opened on the ground staring right at her. At the same time in two very different areas, Rumplestiltskin and Zelena had their own versions doing the same. For Rumple, his eye was red like wine, similar to the smoke he made when he disappeared. Zelena’s eye was, of course, green. These three instances all happened simultaneously, and so did the same question the three sacrifices asked.

“What?!” they cried in shock and fear.

The same black hands that deconstructed the men before rose from each eyes’ pupil and began to deconstruct the sacrifices. The people around them did not know whether the screams they each let out were from pain, fear or both. Even Rumple, at the monastery, yelled out as he watched his body be broken away. When the hands were done and he was gone, the hands retreated and the eye closed, leaving nothing behind.

“Crocodile!” Hook shouted when he was gone.

At the mansion, Henry watched in horror at what was happening to his aunt. Regina shouted in protest, but there wasn’t anything she could do.

“Zelena!” she cried before she was gone and the eye closed, “Zelena, no!”

Finally, in the tunnels, David and the three Gentlemen watched helplessly as Emma was being deconstructed. It was not a pretty sight, but David was the most broken at what he was watching.

“No,” he breathed, “Emma!”

In her anger, the blonde savior reached out to Whale, in hopes of strangling him, before she watched her hand be broken down. But rather than scream like someone helpless, Emma wanted to prove she was still a fighter in what she thought was the end.

“You bastard!” Emma shouted before being completely deconstructed, leaving nothing behind.


	79. Eye of Heaven, Gateways of the Realms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, or LXG. Just my own original ideas woven into this.

Light; the only thing Emma could see as the strange, black hands wrapped around her like snakes. The void they were hurling her through was difficult to describe aside from the two colors of black and white making it up. It was a strange experience, but it was not completely new. Even though it was in someplace new, Emma felt this before when she became the Dark One. It felt like hours before she was finished with her strange experience. In the Homunculi’s throne room, the sound of her screaming built up as she was reconstructed and, literally, dropped onto the floor.

“Ow! That hurt.” she groaned while rubbing her neck. Right after she landed, Zelena dropped in with Gold following her a few seconds later. “Zelena?”

“Emma?” the witch asked.

“Are you alright?” Emma asked.

“Yeah, more or less.” Zelena grunted, “What the hell happened to us? Do you know where we are?”

“No. All I know is that Dr. Whale’s sided with the Homunculi and he used some weird alchemy to gather up the sacrifices. He’s probably still dealing with David and the three agents that were with us.” Emma replied while Gold came over to them.

“Well, if Victor manages to survive his little ordeal, I’ll be sure to kill him, myself.” Gold spat in anger, however, that anger was quickly replaced when they all heard a loud stomp behind them. Turning around, the three sacrifices gasped as they looked at the creature before them. With Nicholas’ head, arm and leg sticking out of him, the Dwarf in the Flask looked like an obese blob, grinning at his newest guests.

“One, two, three, four, five.” he counted with a happy grin, “Finally, after all these years of waiting, the five sacrifices have been gathered.”

“What is that thing?” Zelena asked as they all went on the defensive, “It’s a monster!”

“Nicholas!” Emma exclaimed gaining his attention.

“Heh. Hey, Emma. Hey, sis. Hey, midget.” Nicholas grunted, “Sorry, guys. I messed up. I got cocky.”

“What is going on here, Flamel?” Gold asked.

“It’s not complicated.” Nicholas began only to be interrupted.

“Be careful to mind your place. I plan to take your Philosopher’s Stone at my leisure, but I can speed up the process if you prefer.” Father warned.

“Nicholas, what is that hideous thing?” Emma asked.

“It’s a copy of me.” he weakly replied, “You might know him better as the Dwarf in the Flask I’ve been telling you about.”

“You mean this is that thing from your memories?” she asked in horror.

“Yes, he is.” Nicholas nodded.

“Why aren’t you using your alchemy? Get out of that thing!” his lover shouted.

“I can’t.” he replied, “He’s cut me off from the tectonic energy that powers my alchemy. I can’t transmute. I destroyed the leather bag he was in, but-”

“Enough.” Father said as his body swallowed the rest of his creator, making look almost pregnant, “I warned you to keep your mouth closed, Flamel. And now, greetings to the three of you, my pretty sacrifices. Welcome to my castle. Please, everyone. Make yourselves at home, the eclipse will begin shortly.”

“Do you think we can take him?” Emma asked her fellow sacrifices.

“As much as I hate to admit it, if Flamel had a hard time, I don’t see much hope for us.” Rumple reluctantly admitted.

“No, I don’t think there’s much hope for you humans, at all.” a seductive voice said from behind them. Turning swiftly around, they all saw Lust smirking at them with her arms under her impressive breasts. 

“It’s been a while, Savior.” Lust said with a slight, sinister giggle at the end.

“How the hell are you here?!” Emma shouted in shock, “I thought Nicholas killed you, again!”

“Oh, trust me, he nearly did.” Lust spat in distaste as her smile dropped, “But fortunately for me, I had just enough life left in my stone to survive the fires before they dragged me down. I literally had to drag myself from that pit and feast on many of the Underworld’s souls before Gluttony found me and brought me back.”

“Nicholas was right, nothing can ever be easy for us.” Emma flatly remarked.

Back on the level above the sacrifices, David was feeling more anger course through him than he ever felt in his life. Not only did the doctor in front of him insult his wife and spit on his marriage, but he just made the former shepherd watch his daughter be deconstructed, before his very eyes. Right now, he wanted nothing more than to run his sword through the arrogant bastard and be done with him. Unfortunately, he would have to get through the super humans in front of him, first. He was about to charge in blindly with his anger controlling him before Quartermain tightly grabbed his shoulder.

“Calm down.” he ordered.

“You expect me to be calm?!” David snarled, “He just-”

“Your daughter is still alive.” Quartermain evenly promised, “You heard what he said, he was gathering the sacrifices together. They won’t be sacrificed until the eclipse. So, that means we still have time.”

“Yeah, just not a lot.” David reminded, “And we still have these guys to deal with.”

“Then let’s kill them quickly and be done with them.” Quartermain said curtly. Without another word, or change in facial expression, the old hunter raised his pistol and shot one of the men’s blades which ricocheted into the head of another.

Even the two agents who had worked with the man for decades were impressed at the display of skill. While the fighting continued, Whale tried to keep up his confident disposition even though he was starting to grow nervous. In no way at all was he a fighter and he certainly had not been practicing alchemy long enough to use it in a fight like Nicholas could. Quite frankly, he was not very sure how much longer his bodyguards would last. He really became nervous when he saw the quick kills the gentlemen were dealing. Including Quartermain’s ricocheted killing, Mina had killed two men by stabbing the first one in the neck with her dagger, rolling over his torso in the process and stabbing the man behind him in the heart with her free hand once she finished rolling. As for Skinner, he managed to completely break a man’s neck by kicking him in the chin hard enough with a roundhouse kick to where his neck turned like an owl’s and broke. It did not take much time before it was only Dr. Whale left standing, legs shaking, over the transmutation circle.

“I’m curious, doctor.” Quartermain remarked, “Did you neglect to think this far ahead? Or did you simply underestimate us like a fool?”

“Let’s kill him and be done with it, already. Nicholas needs us.” Mina stressed.

“Wait.” Quartermain halted, raising his hand, “There’s something coming behind him. Can you not sense it?”

“I feel it, too.” Skinner nodded, “Be on your guard. It’s one of them.”

Before David could ask for clarification, he started to here footsteps coming from the tunnel directly behind Whale. From the shadows, covered in blood and still bleeding, Wrath emerged, glaring at the humans with his one good eye and his sword hanging loosely in his right hand.

“Ah! So the cavalry arrives!” Whale cheered thinking he was saved.

“Looks like you people have been making quite the mess down here.” Wrath observed, completely unfazed by the corpses of the men who he was raised alongside.

“We haven’t come across you before. Which sin are you supposed to be?” Mina asked.

“I am Wrath the Furious.” Wrath replied, “I take it you people are more members of the infamous League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.”

“We are. He’s not.” Skinner corrected as he indicated to his teammates then to David.

“Forgive me if I fail to recognize the differences. Quite frankly, after disposing of that last one, I fail to understand Father’s concern in all of you.” Wrath insulted.

“What ‘last one’ you disposed of?” David asked.

“I never got his name, but the younger agent shouting at him called him crazy before he tried blowing himself up to kill me.” Wrath replied lacking all empathy. The moment he said the word crazy, the three gentlemen knew exactly who he was talking about. The bastard in front of them just admitted he killed Quixote, one of their own. One of their brothers. 

“Ha! You see?!” Whale cried out, “That’s what you people get for thinking you can take us on!”

“Who in the hell are you?” Wrath asked as if he was just then noticing the doctor.

“Huh?” Whale asked nervously, “Did-didn’t the good gentleman tell you about me? I-I-I’m Dr. Victor Frankenstein. I was the one who gathered the sacrifices together for you.”

While Whale tried to explain, Wrath noticed a discarded sword near his foot and picked it up while limping over to the stuttering, sweaty doctor.

“I’m on your side. One of you. I’m-”

But Whale never got to finish. Wrath stopped him from further annoying him with his stuttering with a quick flick of his sword, lopping off the local doctor’s head from his neck. The three agents did not think anything of the death they saw, but David was slightly shocked to see the man he knew and held a grudge against die so suddenly.

“How naïve. Like all you humans are. As if we’d ever consider one of you miserable creatures one of us.” Wrath spat before turning to meet the glares of the people he knew he would have to kill.

“Take a good look.” he said, indicating to his wounded body as he bled and raised his swords, “See the kind of shape I’m in, right now. Who among you would care for the illustrious honor of taking down the Fuhrer of Amestris? The vampire? The invisible one? The princely shepherd? Or perhaps you’d all like to come at me at once?”

The earlier confession was more than enough to send an unyielding rage at the wounded Homunculus before them. Just as Mina and Skinner were about to step forward, Quartermain gently stopped them with his hands. It was gentle, but they could tell that he was seething in anger, just like they were.

“You two stay with the prince. This one is mine.” Quartermain ordered as he took off his duster coat.

“You can’t seriously expect us to stand here and do nothing.” David argued, “He may know how to get to Emma, or-”

“Mr. Nolan.” Quartermain interrupted with his back turned. When he turned his torso to stare at the man behind him, David could see his eyes had changed their color to purple and they were glowing. Instead of lecturing him or insulting him, Quartermain said one word that sent chills down everyone but Wrath’s spines.

“Hush.” he said softly with a finger to his lips. Despite the chill sent through him, David was about to protest again only to be stopped by Mina and Skinner.

“David, as much as we understand that you want to find your daughter, when Allan Quartermain tells you to hush, you hush.” Mina warned looking almost afraid.

“But he’s-” David tried to argue.

“An old man?” Skinner chuckled without humor while Quartermain popped his neck and knuckles, “Maybe in appearance. But that man is quite arguably one of the most powerful members of the League. If anyone can hold his own against this sod, it’s him.”

With his riffle loaded and topped with his knife, the renowned hunter held it as a spear and prepared himself for the upcoming fight. Taking the chance, Mina and Skinner led David away into the tunnels, hopefully finding the right way to Emma.

“You plan to interfere with Father’s plans?” Wrath asked before rushing towards Quartermain faster than anyone could see. However, instead of wounding the old man, Wrath found that both his blades had been blocked by the riffle before its owner spun them off and shrugged the Homunculus away. As Wrath skidded back, Quartermain was able to take a shot at him and intentionally gave him a small flesh wound on his arm. Not only that, but Wrath could briefly see small purple flames dance on the man’s fingertips before fading away.

“I sense there’s a power inside of you. How did you acquire it?” Wrath demanded.

“I didn’t.” Quartermain replied stoically as he opened and closed the bolt of his riffle to release the shell, “It was forced upon me.”

“Heh. You don’t say? What a coincidence. I didn’t have a say in getting my power, either.” Wrath chuckled with a genuine smirk as he raised his swords again, “It’s almost poetic. Two men with unbelievable powers forced on them fighting to the death.”

Meeting the Homunculus’ gaze, Quartermain transitioned his hold on the riffle back to the previous grip. Both warriors let the tension rise as they waited for the other to make the first move. Having enough of waiting, they both snarled as their eyes glowed red and purple before landing their powerful blows.

The shock wave from their fight was strong enough to shake the entire underground structure. Since they were directly over the sacrifices, the three left standing looked up at the ceiling and watched the giant eye blink at them.

“It sounds like Wrath’s having fun up there.” Lust quipped, “I hope he doesn’t plan on bringing the house down. I’d hate to get this dress dirty again because Flamel decided to interfere with our plans, again.”

“Emma, listen.” Zelena whispered, “Earlier, before he swallowed up Nicholas, that blob creature said he had all five sacrifices, right? I’m only counting four.”

“You’re right.” Emma nodded before raising her voice at Father, “You said you have all five sacrifices? Well, where’s this fifth one you claim to have, huh?”

“Oh, she’s here. Just look above you.” Father smiled maliciously as he pointed up at the ceiling. In a similar way to Nicholas before them, the three sacrifices looked up and gasped when they saw their fellow sacrifice.

“Regina!” Emma shouted in concern.

“No, not quite.” Lust chuckled, “Rise and shine, Your Majesty. The fun’s about to begin.”

As if hearing her name somehow awoke her, the Evil Queen stirred awake as she realized her current predicament.

“How dare you imprison me like this?!” she shouted as she struggled in her chains, “When I get down from here I will rip all of you to pieces and feed you to ravenous dogs!”

Upon taking a closer look, Emma noticed what the woman was wearing. It was the same dress she saw the Evil Queen wear when Regina separated herself from her each other. At that moment, she realized the mistake she allowed her friend to make.

“The Evil Queen?” Emma exhaled, “How?”

“You humans think you can rid yourselves of your problems if you just dispose of them like trash. If you were as evolved as you claimed to be, you’d know that nothing can ever, truly be destroyed. And now, your carelessness has unleashed more horrors than you ever thought possible. I think it’s fair to say you had this coming.”

“Emma?” Zelena asked in shock before becoming angry, “You let her use it? That formula the other Jekyll boasted about?”

“We didn’t know this would happen, okay?” Emma snapped, “Do you really think we’d have let Regina do it if we knew her other half would survive?”

“Don’t think I forgot about you, Swan!” the Evil Queen shouted above them, “After I deal with these freaks, I’ll kill you and your pixie-cut bitch of a mother!”

“It all worked out in the end. Thanks to you, Savior.” Lust taunted, “Now, with all three children of Cora serving as sacrifices, we’ll have more than enough power to succeed. All because you believed that it was possible for Storybrooke’s mayor to be at peace.”

“The truth can be such a cruel thing.” Father grinned, “The two sisters who wanted nothing more than to know happiness and love. The youngest tried to rid herself of the war raging within her only to unleash her darkness upon the people she loves most. The elder sister tried to change her fate by changing history only to fail and suffer at the hands of the man she most adored, and then killed the only man who ever loved her and she loved in return. The man who was willing to throw his humanity away to save his child instead chose his power which he used for centuries to see his boy again, only to have him die in his arms and now continues to descend down the same spiral as he loses his second chance. The woman who sacrificed her soul to save her loved ones and allowed the darkness to control her which led to the man she loved dying and suffering at the hands of a deranged deity.

“And my personal favorite,” Father laughed as he patted his swollen stomach that contained Nicholas, “The boy born a noble who was made a slave and desired nothing more than freedom had his mortality taken from him, and now he can never be free from the life that has caused him nothing but pain. Humans who would dare to play God must pay a steep price for their arrogance. That is the way of the universe, the natural order imposed by the very thing you claim to worship and cling to. That is Truth.”

“You shut your mouth!” Emma shouted at the top of her lungs. Her whole body was tense with anger, her fists were clenched so hard her knuckles turned white. Though she didn’t know it, she was beginning to feel the same anger Nicholas had for the Homunculus for so many years.

“If Nicholas had done it of his own volition like we did, it would be one thing. But to force someone to take on half the population of an entire kingdom’s souls and then take away his humanity and then use him as a pawn years later?! You think that was a gift? You think that’s justified?! That isn’t truth, at all! That’s just you taking advantage of peoples’ lives. Humans are not your pawns. We are not just batteries to power your Philosopher’s Stones. And get this straight, we aren’t going to just let you sacrifice us; not without a fight.”

“Your words will do nothing to alter your fate.” Father smiled as he shook his head wistfully, “You have no chance at defeating me. My power and knowledge is even greater than your precious alchemist’s, and not even he was capable of lasting long against me. Escape is also futile; you are already deep within my stomach.”

“Any ideas?” Zelena asked the two next to her.

“One.” Gold nodded as he summoned a ball of fire in his hands, “We take a page from Flamel’s book.”

Without another word, the Dark One hurled his attack at his captor. Still smiling, Father did nothing a Lust jumped in front of the attack and smacked it away with her claws. That action alone told the trio they would have to get through her before they could get to her father. Back in town, Snow looked outside her window once she heard less fighting. It was slowly becoming darker with each passing second as the eclipse began. While she looked down at the remains of her home, she heard the door open behind her.

“Your Highness!” Leroy alerted as he, his brothers and Granny came in, “We got one! We got one of those Amestrians. He looks like an officer, too.”

“Let go of me, you runt!” the officer demanded. Although they did not know, the officer they captured was Colonel Mustang, the young officer Jekyll greeted that morning before tearing apart his fellow soldiers.

“That’s _dwarf_ to you, bub.” Leroy ordered after bashing Mustang’s head with his pickaxe’s handle.

“Um, guys?” Snow cautiously asked, “Why did you bring him here?”

“Told you she was gonna ask that.” Granny bluntly pointed out from behind the kitchen island.

“Well, we figured you would want to question one of these guys in case they had anything else planned for us.” Leroy replied.

“…Okay.” Snow nodded once she realized it was not a bad idea, “So, you’re one of those Amestrians, huh? What’s your name, soldier?”

Mustang refused to reply. He did his best not to show any emotion at all to his captors. He could tell that at one point the woman in front of him had seen plenty of battle, but the look most warriors have had faded from her. When she realized that she would have to bring back the hardened bandit and rogue princess she once was, Snow gave in and tightly grabbed Mustang’s face.

“I said, what is your name, soldier?” she asked more threateningly, “If you refuse to answer me, then I shall have to force you.”

Mustang still said nothing. He was a seasoned soldier with the ambition to one day soon become the leader of his country. There was no way he was going to cave in and confess to a house wife, an old woman and seven short men with pickaxes. Snow knew this as soon as he refused to answer her the second time she asked. She had been around men like him more times than she could count when she and her husband were waging war against their respective step-parent. With that in mind, she knew exactly how to get him to talk, even if it was a little morbid for her taste.

Reaching into the first pocket in his jacket she found, she found exactly what she was looking for. It was a silver pocket watch and chain that held the picture of Mustang with a beautiful, sandy-blonde haired pregnant woman. To Mustang, it was an important reminder of what he had to live for. For Snow White, it was leverage.

“I take it this is your wife?” she asked already knowing the answer, “She’s beautiful. I’d imagine your baby will grow up to be just as beautiful as her mother. Oh, yeah. She definitely has the glow of a mother expecting a daughter. I should know, I once had that glow, myself.”

“Is this the part where you threaten my family?” Mustang finally asked proving that Snow had broken through, “You don’t strike me as the sort of person who would kill an innocent woman and baby.”

“You’re right, I’m not.” Snow nodded, looking down her nose at the kneeling man, “But I do know people who would kill them. They’re the people you and your men have been fighting since this morning. You know, the professional killers who know how and have the means to easily travel to your country and viciously murder your loved ones.”

Mustang could not help but gasp in realization at the truth in Snow’s words. He knew right there that she had broken him.

“You Amestrians have done a pretty good job at pissing them off, today. I haven’t known all of them as long as I have a certain member of their organization, but I believe the number of your men they’ve killed so far act as enough proof of their skills. Their skills in death. So, unless you want me to give them this picture, which is all they’ll need, start talking.”

“…What do you want to know?” Mustang asked in defeat.

“Everything.” Snow replied flatly.

Beneath the town, but over the sacrifices, Quartermain was doing the best he could to finally kill probably the deadliest Homunculus. He was a skilled and experienced man with no equal, however, he was still old and had a strange way of fighting that was not above any other style of fighting. Not to mention, Wrath was wielding two swords with the same strength and skill he would have if both his hands were his dominate choice. Quartermain, on the other hand, was trying to use a riffle as both a sword and spear at the same time. He could hold his own, but his fighting style was not meant to be used in close combat for as long as he had been. He managed to kick Wrath back, a little, but the Homunculus quickly came back and head-butted the old man so hard, the skin on their foreheads broke.

“What’s wrong? Don’t tell me that’s all you’ve got, is it?! Because it’s nowhere near good enough!” Wrath shouted as he kicked Quartermain away, “The only chance you have is to destroy me! Now fight, vile human!”

Gritting his teeth in anger, Quartermain charged at his enemy with a swing of his weapon, hoping the knife would cut something. But Wrath dodged it and proceeded to punch Quartermain in the kidney with the guard of his sword covering his fist. The punch may have landed, but Quartermain instantly retaliated with quick spin and kick to Wrath’s throat. The Homunculus couldn’t help himself from staggering long enough for the Gentleman to stab him in the stomach, fire a round into his torso and then break his nose with a strong punch. Unfortunately, Wrath eventually found his strength again and slashed open two long cuts down Quartermain’s shoulders to his chest. They weren’t deep, but they were enough to make fighting all the harder.

In what looked like a charge to impale Quartermain with both swords, Wrath’s injured body stopped himself as he spat out a large amount of blood. Taking the chance, Quartermain swung his bayonet hard enough to break Wrath’s left sword. However, in that instant, Wrath regained his composure and grabbed the broken blade which he used to stab Quartermain’s right arm as he knocked him to the ground. With a mighty bellow, Wrath put all his strength into bringing the other sword through Quartermain’s head. But just before he did, Quartermain did something he wanted to avoid using more than anything.

Before the sword could finish him off, Quartermain opened his left palm and used whatever strange power he had to make something form over it. The sound it made sounded like bones cracking as it took its shape. Once it was finished, it sent a blast of purple energy into the Homunculus’ right arm. The pain he felt was intense, as well as the surprise and fear he felt when he saw what harmed him.

As Quartermain rose to his feet, he had his left hand open with the strange weapon he made hovering above his palm. It was not of some sort of ball of energy, or normal looking weapon. Instead, it was a mask. A white masquerade mask with designs made for a woman to wear to a ball. Rather than just a small mask that covered the cheek bones of the wearer, it was a full face with its eyes and mouth wide open and glowing with a light purple energy.

“You look surprised. I’d even say shocked.” Quartermain grunted in pain, “To be honest, I’m a little surprised, myself. It goes against my beliefs and I had hoped to avoid using this power. But when I considered the enormity at stake and what I could and couldn’t do, I relented and accepted my only choice. Behold, Homunculus, the power I wield. Tremble in fear before I, Macumazana, and the power of voodoo.”

“Heh. You miserable humans never give up. I’ll give you that much.” Wrath admitted with a smirk as he clutched his newest wound.

Beneath the two bloody fighters, the three sacrifices were giving everything they had as they fought Lust and her father. At one point in their struggle, Emma decided to take the voluptuous Homunculus on by herself while the other two tried to harm the Dwarf in the Flask. Unfortunately, the former student and master pair were not making any difference since their opponent either deflected their attacks with his alchemy, or simply dodged them with his semi-liquid form. As he did this, Emma did her best to fight Lust with the sword she summoned.

“What’s the matter, Lust?” she asked panting, “Your attacks are a little more half-assed than last time.”

“Try not to get too confident.” Lust warned, “You haven’t fulfilled your purpose yet so I don’t-”

“That means you can’t kill me, right?” Emma challenged as she charged, “So that means, I still have time to beat you into a lifeless pile of dust!”

“Really, is that your plan?” Lust asked as she dodged the attack, “You being the Savior has proven you to be the kind of person who fights with honor. So then, you don’t exactly have the advantage against someone who does fight dirty.”

Drawing a bit of blood, Lust managed to cut Emma as she trapped her between the spears she sent towards the ground which shot up at the blonde. Nearby with the other two, Zelena readied possibly the largest ball of green fire she ever made.

“Well, Nicholas, sorry if I hit you, little brother!” she apologized as hurled the massive flame at her brother’s captor. But by using some sort of invisible barrier, the head Homunculus sent the green flames in every other direction. As this happened, Emma managed to get free and ready her next attack.

“You damn bitch!” she cursed as she grabbed Lust by the dress, “You overlook the fact that since I was raised around people who fought dirty, and always fought them, I know exactly how a tramp like you is gonna try to win!”

With a punch that would make anyone proud, Emma sucker punched Lust right in the face with her magic to break through the Homunculus’ pretty little face. Back with Zelena, she watched in amazement as her former teacher created and hurled a massive stone spear at the creature they were fighting.

“Getting pretty creative, are we, dearie?” Zelena teased.

“Well, I guess you pick up a thing or two when you’ve fought your brother as many times as I have.” Rumple admitted with a faint smirk before sending another spear which they watched miss as the blob’s head turned into four tendrils. As soon as it did, the giant eye above them widened and alerted Father to what it meant.

“It would appear the time is upon us.” Father declared. After he did, he used his alchemy to free the Evil Queen from her chains and grab her with one of his tendrils along with the other three. As payback for causing him so much trouble, Father slammed all four of them on the ground as he stood in the middle and reformed his head while they struggled to get free.

“I’m done with indulging your frivolity. It’s time to put you to work, my sacrifices.”

On surface outside, the sun was nearly completely covered by the moon. As this happened, though no one could see it, all nine original realms were coming into a straight and perfect alignment with one another. Each realm being covered by the shadow of the moon along with Storybrooke. The Enchanted Forest, Wonderland, Oz, The Land Without Color, The Wildlands, The Land of Lost Time, Arendelle, and Amestris. Each of these realms were finally aligned and ready to be put to use.

“It’s finally time!” Father said in excitement as the last bit of light faded away. At that very moment, every realm pulsed with energy and began to tremble, as though they were afraid for what was about to happen. With his hands stretched out, the Dwarf in the Flask began to explain his plans to his guests.

“These realms of ours, have you ever considered the possibility that they may, in fact, each be a life form?” he asked, “Actually, it would be more accurate to refer to them as vast nervous systems. Systems that have retained their every memory since their inceptions and have witnessed their own universes unfold. Just think of the massive quantity of information such systems would hold. But an even better question: how much power could one gain if they opened those systems’ gateways? Have you ever considered that? Think about it.”

Since she was the only to have read Nicholas book on the subject, Zelena gasped in horror at what the Homunculus was saying.

“And now that I have you gathered, I shall use you as sacrifices to open the realms’ gateways!”

Not wanting to waste another moment, Father completely turned himself into a puddle of his own, strange mass and dragged all five of his sacrifices away. Nicholas tried to stop him once he was free, so he sent a surge of deconstructive energy. Unfortunately, the black sludge negated the attack. As the smoke from the explosion cleared, they all craned their necks to see Father in his humanoid form again, laughing like an evil madman by his throne. Looming over the table next to his throne, he stared down at the final key to his plan; the activation transmutation circle he drew so many years ago.

“The very center of the realms is right here!” he shouted as he slammed his hand on the paper and activated its power. In a blast of red, alchemic lightning, the Homunculus laughed madly giddy as delight and victory surged through him.

“Vile bastard!” Nicholas shouted in hatred. Despite his anger fueling him, he felt and saw a large, silver eye open over his stomach. As it did, a lighter silver eye opened over Emma’s, a green one over Zelena’s, a dark red one over Rumple’s, and a violet one over the Evil Queen’s.

The Dwarf’s laughter only grew more insane as the lightning grew bigger and stronger. Above the ceiling where the tunnels were, more strange, black sludge filled the underground level.

“What hell is going on?!” Skinner shouted before it swallowed him, Mina and David. With Wrath and Quartermain, Wrath simply sighed in assurance before being swallowed.

“What is this?!” Quartermain asked before it swallowed him, too. Directly in the town square, a large circle of the sludge formed and stopped before it could reach anyone else. 

In the monster’s lair, black hands began to fly from the abyss behind each eye while some of the sacrifices screamed in either fear, pain, or both. Father, on the other hand, looked at them in happiness as he continued to laugh insanely. As much as they wanted to stop him, all five were powerless to do so.

“Fight for me. Let your gateways fight for my soul! Shed your energy for me!” he demanded before laughing even more, “What truly magnificent energy! Its immensity is indescribable; I can barely contain it! Now that I have enough power, I shall open up the realms’ gateways!”

Shinning red on every realm in the alignment, matching the appropriate size, nine human transmutation circles, identical to the one created for Xerxes many years ago, lit up the dark skies and made everyone witnessing this see nothing but red light and streams of little, black hands rise from the ground. Fear consumed them all before they, literally, felt their lives being pulled from their bodies. Every last one of them choked on their last breaths before collapsing on ground with terror stricken expressions.

Sawyer, Bluebeard, the Hooks and everyone else in Storybrooke had it. The citizens of every realm had it, many strangers, and many old friends our heroes had made along the way to this terrible day. In the loft, no one was standing as their souls were being taken.

“Snow.” Granny croaked, “Snow!”

“Why can’t…I move?” Snow asked herself in fear and confusion.

“Your Highness! What’s happening?!” Leroy shouted before he fell dead with his brothers.

“Next time I see you, Flamel, I’m gonna slug you!” Granny spat before going limp.

“Save us.” Snow begged softly, “Someone, please save us!”

With the last soul taken from each realm, the next part of the procedure began. Appearing out of nothing, a massive black door appeared above Storybrooke and opened with a loud rumble. In the realms above Storybrooke, more doors opened leading a path directly towards the black moon. Crawling out of the first door, in the form of a giant, obsidian cyclops, the Dwarf in the Flask let out a mighty roar that shook all nine realms. With his hand reaching out towards the moon, he shouted at the top of the lungs what he had been dreaming to say since his birth.

“Oh, hear me, God! I demand you answer the cry of my soul! Come to me!”

In answer to his call, the black moon opened its own gateway and revealed the massive gray eye Nicholas had once seen on the night he became immortal. As it opened, the Dwarf in the Flask climbed up each of the realms’ gateways and summoned an army of black hands to grab the eye’s hands and drag it down.

“Join me. Yes! I will no longer be bound to you or your consequences!” he cried as he pulled the hands and hopped down each gate, pulling the eye closer and closer to him until they reached Storybrooke. As he did, the eye was taking on different colors around its original gray color with each gate it passed through.

“I’ll force you down through these realms and into my bones! You have no choice but to be absorbed!”

With a cry louder than any he gave before, the Dwarf in the Flask succeeded in his plan and dragged the being he captured into himself. As soon as he did, a geyser of energy erupted from them and shined through each realm. It may have seemed over, but it was only the beginning of what was to come.


	80. He Who Would Swallow A God

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the phrase, “deathly quiet”, if you were to have gone in either Storybrooke or any of the other places that had been caught in the transmutation, you would quickly understand. Just like in Xerxes, bodies were lying everywhere in all the realms. The only sound that could be heard was the wind gently blowing. No soul was spared except the five sacrifices lying in the depths of the Homunculi’s home. It took them a moment, but they eventually regained consciousness and tried to gain their bearings.

“Is everyone alright?” Emma asked, “What happened?”

“You have done well, my faithful sacrifices.” the voice of Father said. Immediately turning to the source in anger, Nicholas’ glare quickly vanished at who he saw sitting on the stone chair.

Wearing white robes covering only his calves, the Homunculus had taken on a new human looking container. However, instead of looking identical to Nicholas, or even a younger version of himself, the dwarf made himself look like a handsome man with a square jaw, impressive muscles which he showed off since they were uncovered, and long, flowing brown hair.

“You mean you actually did it?” Nicholas asked his old friend in horror.

“Yes.” Father replied with the same monotone voice he had with his last container, “I have done what I have set out to do. Acquire the god of alchemy.”

“Acquire the god of alchemy? That isn’t possible!” Emma refused.

“Unfortunately, it is.” Nicholas corrected as he glared at the monster he created, “Given a great enough amount of energy.”

“Wait, what energy?” Emma asked before gasping in realization, “The Philosopher’s Stone?!”

“It can’t be.” Zelena said hoping it wasn’t true, “Does this mean everyone was turned into a Philosopher’s Stone?”

“How many lives were sacrificed for this?” Rumple asked his rival.

“He took the entire population of Amestris along with eight other realms’ kingdoms and communities.” Nicholas said through his gritting teeth, “We’re talking, at least, one billion people.”

Everyone gasped at this, but Emma was the only one who acted. “Bastard!” she cried as she created a ball of light magic in her hand. But with a single tap of his finger, Father sent a shockwave that prevented Emma, or any of the other magic users from using their craft against him.

“Your magic will do you no good. Ladies and gentlemen, I bid you farewell.” Father bid before creating a small ball of intense fire and heat in his hand.

“What are you doing? What is that?!” Nicholas demanded.

“The power of Alchemy’s god is now in my control. With that, I can do anything.” Father answered looking bored, “For instance, I can create a sun right in the palm of my hand.”

“That’s it. I’m getting out of here!” The Evil Queen thought in fear as she slipped away from certain death.

“Shall I turn it’s flame loose in here? What do you think?” Father asked before he felt a strange surge pulse through him. Even with the miniature sun in his hand, he did not look imposing with the nervous expression he had.

“Your plan for binding Alchemy’s god to this world was a flawed one. We’ve plotted against you since the moment you set it in motion.” Nicholas declared as the Homunculus felt another surge pulse through him, “Over the many long years, I have performed calculation after calculation. I have arranged my own Philosopher’s Stones, the friends who long resided within me, in preparation of this very day!”

After another pulse surged through Father, he and everyone else suddenly heard the voices of strangers echo throughout the lair.

“The time has come.” a man’s voice said as all but Nicholas looked around for the source.

“He is guilty of committing the ultimate transgression.” an old man agreed.

“We no longer have bodies to return to, but the people of the realms still have the chance to resume their physical forms.” a younger man’s voice said.

“Yes. We know what we must do.” a woman’s voice agreed, “Let us return their souls back to their bodies.”

“It is what Nicholas asks of us.” a little girl’s voice said as Father felt that strange feeling again.

“So you’ve planted your Philosopher’s Stones, what of it?!” Father snarled, “They are merely points. They cannot activate without a circle; that’s a basic rule of alchemy. And they certainly don’t have the strength to break past the barriers of all nine realms.”

“We _do_ have a circle.” Nicholas corrected, “It’s one of enormous power and it can be self-activated, even if something were to happen to incapacitate me. The moon’s shadow cast on the realms by the eclipse! And as for breaking past the realms’ barriers, I took care of that, too. It took a lot of time, effort, and failures, but I invented the only tools we would need to accomplish this. Each of the Philosopher’s Stones I placed throughout this town have been inserted into transmitter rods capable of amplifying their power to easily break through all nine realms. I told you we would have our revenge, and it starts now!”

In five separate spots in Storybrooke, five red lights shined from the ground in a brilliant shade of red.

“We’re starting now, Nicholas!” the little girl shouted bravely. As the lights shined even brighter, a metal rod, made from pieces of scrap metal Nicholas had used over the years, in each of the five spots sprang from the ground at five feet in length and fired bolts of red, alchemic lightning into the sky and through the nine barriers overhead.

“Even now, you still think you can stop me? You’re a fool, Nicholas Flamel!” Father shouted in anger.

“That’s the very reason I did all this. It’s time you remembered your place, Dwarf in the Flask!” Nicholas shouted back.

Reaching above all the realms and diving down to the Homunculus, the five streams of lightning created a transmutation circle with a woven star design over all the realms before crashing down on the enemy. The blast caused him excruciating pain. So much that Father had no choice but to get rid of the sun in his hand before he lost control of it. Once the blast was finished, Father’s entire body became covered in bulging veins before he cried out in agony and unwillingly released the billions of souls he acquired.

Every last soul was a ghostly, red face wailing in sorrow and agony as they erupted from Father. In what looked like a swirling vortex, the souls dispersed from each other to their respective realms and bodies in a nine layered looking fountain of red. As they flew through the air, they each slammed into their rightful bodies the moment they found them. It only took moments, but not a single soul could be seen when the first sign of life was shown.

In the crib she shared with little baby Neal, little baby Robin began to cry along with her crib-mate in the loft. Following the babies, the other people in the loft began to cough as they picked themselves up, as everyone else did in town and the other realms. They were all in a daze, but they were alive and freed from the prison they were briefly in.

“Snow, are you alright?” Granny weakly asked over the coughing.

“What was that?” Snow asked through her coughs.

“Was it just me, or did we all lose consciousness?” Happy asked.

“Did you all black out, too?” Doc asked.

“So it would seem.” Mustang nodded, “What in the world just happened to us?”

“I don’t know how to describe it.” Sneezy as he sniffled, “It was almost like…”

“Yeah.” Snow nodded looking afraid, “It was like being trapped. Imprisoned inside a vortex of anguish.”

“But who could have freed us?” Mustang asked.

“I think we all know who.” Leroy stated with a proud grin.

“Yeah.” his brothers nodded.

“Nicholas.” Snow said feeling guilty.

“Did you just?” Emma asked beneath the town.

“Yes.” Nicholas replied with the biggest shit-eating grin he ever had as his former doppelganger grunted in pain, “The people of the realms have had their souls returned to their rightful bodies. And with nothing more than the souls of the Xerxsians he had left, I doubt he can continue to control that which he calls the power of alchemy’s god.”

“I can always create another stone.” Father panted as he crushed the arm of his chair, “I’m not through. There are more! A trillion more humans I can draw energy from!”

In his rage, and with his new powers, Father created a ball of dark matter from his head and sent it flying at the humans who dared to defy him. However, before it could kill them, Nicholas got in the way.

“Bump!” he joked as he bumped it upwards like a volleyball. It slightly damaged his hands, however, and it managed to tear through everything it hit as it was sent through the roof and past Wrath and Quartermain. In a desperate attempt to kill them all, Father unleash another attack of pure destructive energy. Nicholas was able to keep it from harming the others, but he was struggling to stop it.

“Damn! I don’t have what it takes to fight this energy.” he cursed as the energy pushed him back and tore away the skin on his hands, “It’s no use!”

Hoping it would be enough, Emma and Zelena pushed the alchemist they loved forward in support.

“Come on, Nicholas. Hang on!” Emma pleaded.

“Who says you can’t do this?” Zelena asked as they pushed, “Just stay focused!”

“Heh, I can only do so much, girls. I’m just a stubborn, old bastard who looks younger than he should.” he chuckled before looking like a madman as he pushed the energy back, “But I’ll give it everything these old bones can do!”

“This has to end soon; Nicholas can’t keep this up forever.” Zelena thought.

“I’ve only got one trick up my sleeve. Here’s hoping it works.” Nicholas thought before he created an appendage from his neck which dug into the ground.

While the Dwarf was too busy wasting his energy, the appendage Nicholas created sprung from the ground behind him, expanded and transformed into another Nicholas whose right hand was in the form of a large, spiked flail. Without any warning, Nicholas’ extension jumped into the air and knocked Father in the head with his weaponized fist. After knocking him off, Nicholas stood on the throne before quickly sending his Ultimate Spear into Lust and sending shockwaves of deconstruction into her. It wasn’t enough to kill her permanently, but it did greatly harm her and scare her enough to make her back away in terror.

As this happened, Quartermain was doing his best to finally eliminate Wrath. The mask he summoned managed to keep Wrath moving around and way from the old man. In addition to firing blasts of energy, it also flew around at incredible speeds and repeatedly slammed against him. That being said, the Homunculus was still able to deflect some of the attacks and charge at the old man. With the time he had given himself, Quartermain was able to recover a bit more strength, but it still couldn’t stop the Homunculus from knocking the riffle out his hand and tackling him to the ground.

With the sword raised in front of his face, Quartermain knew Wrath was going to try the same move twice. He was about to call back the mask, but something truly lucky happened, instead. With the sword right next to his remaining, Wrath was blinded as soon as the first ray of sunlight snuck past the moon. When this happened, Quartermain took the chance to grab the broken blade from earlier. But instead of just swinging it, he used his power to engulf it in purple fire which severed both of Wrath’s arm and his weapon.

Even though Wrath knew he would die from the wounds, he refused to die without, at least, mortally wounding his enemy. So, in a last ditch effort, Wrath caught the broken blade with his mouth and rammed it into Quartermain’s abdomen. Despite his bizarre powers, Quartermain was still human, so, naturally having a sword pierce through his organs was enough to make him spit up blood and collapse after the pulling out the blade.

Both elderly warriors bled profusely as they laid on the ground. Quartermain may not have had as serious a wound as Wrath’s, but it was enough to make his victory bitter-sweet. Wrath, on the other hand, was actually smiling as his blood pooled around him.

“Is this the poetic ending you wanted?” Quartermain grunted as he tried to pick himself up, “Is it?! I hope it isn’t, after everything your kind has done.”

“What my kind has done? As opposed to what you humans have done?” Wrath weakly asked, “Your entire species has spent its entire existence fighting amongst yourselves. All you’ve ever done is kill each other, bring the one next to you down so you can rise. Compared to that, the Homunculi have done nothing.”

“Nothing?” Quartermain spat as he clutched his wound, “Your father sacrificed an entire kingdom, filled with innocents, just to do it all over again to the other realms. You call that nothing?”

“Call it a pond compared to an ocean, then.” Wrath retorted as he grew pale from the blood loss, “Your organization prides itself in killing others. Who are you people to judge us?”

“We don’t kill innocents.” Quartermain corrected as he rose to his feet, “That is a fact. We have always defended the innocent people and creatures of the realms. We always will.”

“Innocent?” the Homunculus chuckled as wrinkles began to rapidly form and his haired steadily turned from black to gray to white, “I wonder when that definition will change? Or how many times it has, already?”

“For someone bleeding to death, you’re certainly capable of dragging out your last words.” Quartermain quipped as he pulled out his pistol and cocked it, “Either wrap it up or I will end it, now.”

“What difference does it make?” Wrath asked, his hair completely white like an old man’s, “You killed me, either way. I don’t have any regrets. I lived my life forever following the path that had been set for me. Thanks to the idiosyncrasies of humanity, it was, at least, a life worth living for, and maybe, even a life worth dying for.”

With his last breath, the last remaining son of the Homunculus passed on from this life. Ironically, it was only seconds later that Mina, David and Skinner returned.

“Allan!” Skinner hollered as they rushed over to him.

“Impeccable timing.” the old man grunted in annoyance.

“Is he…?” David asked hesitantly as he looked down at Wrath’s corpse.

“Took long enough and a lot of spilled blood, but yes.” Quartermain nodded, “That leaves, maybe, one or two left.”

“Hmph!” Mina huffed, “Bastard dies with that peaceful look on his face pisses me off.”

“Where the hell is Sawyer and the others?”

“Sawyer and Bluey are wrapping things up with the Amestrians. Shan Yu’s been taken to the mansion’s medic team. But we don’t know where Nemo and Hyde are.” Skinner replied.

“Find them, Skinner.” Quartermain ordered, “Harker, shoot me.”

“What?” Mina asked.

“I’m too damn injured to fight right now. I need you to kill me, take me to the mansion and revive me.” he explained.

“The hell is he talking about?” David asked Skinner while Mina took Quartermain’s pistol and pressed it to his temple.

“Agh, fine.” she cringed while looking away before squeezing the trigger. After the bang and the blood splattering on her face, Mina grabbed her superior’s riffle and crushed a transport rock that took them to the mansion in a black cloud of magic smoke.

“Don’t ask.” Skinner said to David as he was about to ask what just happened, “It’s a story that even we don’t know. Just roll with it and expect to see the old tiger soon after the sudden/brief lighting storm.”

“…You guys are so weird.” David deadpanned. Beneath their feet, the former sacrifices were continuing their fight against their captor.

In the oddest form of teamwork, Nicholas and Rumple were throwing their own special blasts of fire at Father. Unfortunately for them, he continued to use his dome of alchemy as a barrier. Zelena tried to land her own attacks on him by controlling the metal pipes on the floor as oversized whips to strike the enemy. Thankfully, Nicholas did not notice this, so he hadn’t gone into another panic attack, but it still did nothing to the glaring Homunculus.

“You have any new ideas, Flamel?” Rumple asked as they tossed and snapped.

“One.” Nicholas nodded as he snapped, “But it still won’t kill him. We need to make him burn through his stone’s energy, first.”

“How will we know?” Zelena asked over the blasts.

“When he stops using that annoying barrier of his.” her brother replied, “Just keep hitting the bastard while I do my thing!”

Off to the side, Emma was doing her best to put an end to the last of the dwarf’s children. Thanks to Nicholas’ previous attack, Lust had lost the right portion of her face and parts of her exposed skin in other places showed signs of alchemic deconstruction. Not wanting to take any risks of further deconstruction, the lady Homunculus covered her face with her right hand and only used her left to try and fight. Thanks to that, Emma, using her magic to increase her reflexes, used her sword to deflect the spears sent at her.

“Now!” Nicholas shouted to his sister and rival. After they jumped back, Nicholas transmuted the upper walls and floor into molten hot lava, which Father had poured on him as he sank into it.

For a brief moment, the others thought they won, but Nicholas knew better. He knew it wasn’t enough to keep his copy down. After the moment of believed victory passed, the pool of lava opened and closed as Father transmuted it into a rising pillar that took him through the hole that led to the surface at an incredible speed.

Instead of leading to the town square, like most would have expected, Father rose to where the Nautilus had been docked at the beach. Or to be more precise, it was the area of the beach between the cliffs in the woods and the bow of the massive sub. As soon as he jumped off his now solid column, the sailors that had been investigating the massive hole he created fell victim to his power. With a raise of his hand, Father used his powers to absorb their souls to create a pebble-sized Philosopher’s Stone in the palm of his hand. Having sensed this, Nicholas rushed to action.

“That bastard.” the alchemist cursed, “He’s going to try to make another Philosopher’s Stone.”

Not waiting for the others, he tried transmuting himself to the surface. However, he suddenly appeared only several feet ahead of where he previously stood looking shocked. But after feeling a brief jolt of enteral pain, he noticed a few transmutation marks on his arms. Despite knowing what that meant, he pushed through and created a platform to take him above.

“Go after them, guys!” Emma shouted to Rumple and Zelena.

“What about you?” Zelena asked in concern as the Savior continued to fight.

“Seems like are friend here wants to finish this.” she said, not taking her eyes off the injured Homunculus.

“But-” Zelena argued only to be stopped by Rumple’s hand on her shoulder.

“She can take care of herself.” he assured, oddly gentle, “Otherwise, I don’t think your brother would be so interested in her.”

Albeit against her better judgement, and personal feelings for her brother’s sake, Zelena relented with a nod and joined her teacher as he created a platform with his magic to follow the alchemist.

“You damn human, don’t you underestimate me!” Lust screeched as she hurled five of her spears. Despite being able to deflect the attacks, Emma was unable to get in close enough to land a blow.

“Well, excuse me, but I don’t really feel like you should overestimate yourself in your state.” Emma mocked before a spear grazed and cut her cheek before cutting her arm, “Explain it to me. Why are you guys so eager to be his willing lapdog?”

“What?” Lust asked with a glare.

“He left without so much as a glance towards you.” Emma pointed out, “He’s worn you and your siblings ragged, broken you down. He doesn’t even care how many of you he’s lost these past few days. He doesn’t care about you, at all.”

“Why should I care if Father doesn’t?” Lust asked, angry at the truth as she realized her father hadn’t even looked at her since the transmutation, “I am not a puny weakling like you. I am one of the Homunculi! WHAT DO YOU KNOW, HUMAN?!”

In a fit of rage, Lust uncovered her face and revealed the ocean of red faced souls inside of her. It reminded Emma of when she first saw Nicholas look exactly like that after getting hit with fairy dust. But as soon as the hole was shown, a jagged, black spear sprang from it and created a crystal-like eye in place of the one Lust had lost. To further show that the beauty no longer cared about her appearance, only winning, she even turned her lovely hair strands into smaller Ultimate Spears, all of which were aimed at the Savior.

“Die!” Lust shouted as the spears rained down on her enemy. Thanks to her quick thinking, and watching Father defend himself, Emma created a barrier of light magic which protected her and destroyed the spears that repeatedly tried to strike her.

“Die! Die! Die! Die!” the Homunculus shouted, completely ignoring the wounds she was giving herself. Emma said nothing. As she kneeled inside her shining barrier, she only glared at Lust before rising to stand. With what looked like a simple push, Emma released the magic surrounding her onto Lust. For anyone else, Emma knew it would have felt like a warm breeze. But for Lust, it was the most painful thing she had felt since being tossed into the fires of the Underworld; maybe even more. Because of the intense pain, Lust fell to the ground as her wounds failed to heal and ash began to rise off her skin. To Emma, she looked lifeless so she turned her back and left to join the others. She had never seen a Homunculus die before, so she had no idea she had just left the job undone.

While this was happening, more Sailors came from the Nautilus and surrounded Father as he glared at them. The sight of a man covered in bulging veins glaring at them was enough to intimidate most of them, but they still managed to find their courage and raise their weapons at him.

“Let’s get him!” one of the younger men shouted. But with a raise of his hand, Father proceeded to take their souls from them, as he did to their crewmates before. Each of them clutched their throats as if they were struggling to get air as they screamed in agony. Just before their souls left their bodies for the second time that day, Father was forced to stop as he raised his barrier to stop an incoming projectile from behind. Turning to see who would dare oppose him, he saw his blood brother kneeling on his platform, glaring at him.

“I won’t let you devour any more people!” Nicholas declared in defiance as Rumple and Zelena joined him.

“Nicholas, what’s happening now?” Zelena asked.

“He was hoping to use them to create another Philosopher’s Stone.” her brother replied causing the two arrivals to practically hiss and glare at the Homunculus.

“What else are all these pitiful, powerless humans good for?” Father asked not seeing anything wrong in his actions. Hearing this caused Nicholas to sigh in disappointment at his old friend.

“You insist on treating humans as a lower life form, but don’t you see? Only through them can a Philosopher’s Stone be created, and only through a stone can a Homunculus arise. But what does a Homunculus produce? What do you create?” Nicholas challenged, “Creation is all and you have done nothing but destroy. You may think you have reached a perfect state of being, but in truth, all you have reached is a dead end!”

“I can create.” Father countered with a blank stare as he raised his arms, “Shall I produce some humans for you?”

What happened next was, without a doubt, the most gruesome thing Gold and Zelena had ever seen in their entire lives. Unleashing a surge of red lightning and light that covered everyone, Father made numerous limbs and faces erupt from his torso, like Envy’s monstrous form. However, instead of staying in place, these faces and limps continued to grow into full human bodies, all of which were pale, naked, covered in either sweat or some form of mucus, and had the iconic golden hair and eyes of the citizens of a long forgotten kingdom. All who saw this were horrified at the sight, but Nicholas was more than any other since he actually recognized many of their faces. The faces of the people of Xerxes who powered Father’s Philosopher’s Stone.

“At last I’ve found immortality. Don’t you see? I am still alive!” an old man with a beard weakly exclaimed as he and the others trudged through the sand.

“King Xerxes, is that you?!” Nicholas asked in horror.

All the sailors and sacrifices were frozen in fear at what they were seeing. Even Rumplestiltskin, the Dark One, was afraid at the darker side of alchemy he was witnessing. The only movement he could bring himself to make was a single step back. As soon as he did, he felt a small hand touch his ankle. To add even more to his horror and disgust, he saw a naked baby with a tuft of gold hair sadly cry at him with waving hands, as if he wanted the stranger to pick him up. Despite all the horrible things he had seen and done, Rumple felt like he was going to vomit after he saw the child. Zelena wasn’t fairing any better as a ground of Xerxsian children crowded her with happy tears.

“A body!” a girl cried happily.

“I have a body, again!” a little boy cheered.

“Finally!” another girl said, “We’re human, again. We’ve suffered so long!”

“No.” Zelena whispered as the children tried to hug her, “No, stop this. It isn’t-it isn’t right!”

“Look, bodies!” a man said as he and three others trudged directly over to Nicholas.

“Flamel.” an old man moaned.

“This is wrong.” Nicholas whispered before angry veins covered his forehead and temples as he shouted at his smirking counterpart, “Damn you!”

At the exact moment Emma rose from the hole to join them, Father, facing the ship and sea, gave them one last faint smirk before unleashing a terrible energy blast at them all. Because of their weakened state, every Xerxsian he had unleashed was destroyed in an instant as the blast engulfed them.

“No!” Nicholas weakly denied as the light engulfed him, as well. Out of the blast range underground, Skinner looked up at the hole above him in anger.

“Dammit!” he cursed loudly before he found a pair of familiar faces.

“Skinner!” the gruff voice of Mr. Hyde shouted.

“Hyde!” Skinner said back as the behemoth and Nemo joined him.

“Are you alright?” Hyde asked.

“Grand. Now how about you join in? You two could use someone who knows what’s going on.”

“That’s true. What the hell is happening?” Hyde asked.

“Oh, not much. The Father of the Homunculi is going berserk up there!” the Invisible Man shouted, “So let’s go. They need anyone up there who can still fight. Nemo, you and I are gonna have to be tossed by Hyde in order to get up there. Eddy, I hope you can jump high, or else you’re taking the long way up.”

“Wait a moment.” Nemo interjected as he answered a call on his shell, “Operations, it’s me. What’s happening?”

“Captain,” a sailor said with a shaken voice, “It’s the Nautilus, sir. Half of its been blown up!”

“Blown up?!” Hyde exclaimed.

“We can’t reach anyone who was stationed at the bow of the ship.” the sailor added as he looked at what was left of the mighty ship.

“You see the power we’re dealing with?” Skinner asked.

“What sort of monster is this thing?” Hyde asked.

“Despite Nicholas returning everyone’s souls back to their bodies, it appears the Dwarf in the Flask is still hanging onto the power which he stole.” Skinner replied, “While you and Jekyll were gone, Nicholas discovered his little friend was planning to claim the powers of alchemy’s god for himself. As scientists, and ones who have spent their time around an alchemist like him, you know as well as I the kind of trouble we’re in.”

“All too well.” Nemo nodded, “Where is Quartermain and Mina?”

“The old tiger had Batty kill him so he could be revived wound free. His battle with _Wrathy_ took a lot out of him. Shan Yu’s been gravely injured and is back at the mansion while Sawyer and Bluebeard are up top fighting the last of the Amestrians.”

“And Quixote?” Hyde asked.

“…He didn’t make it.” Skinner informed causing his friends to gasp, “He inflicted a mortal wound on Wrath with Shan Yu and Sawyer’s help before the eclipse started. Your men said he died smiling, Nemo.”

“I see.” the bearded captain sighed bowing his head before jerking it up with determination, “Well, if he did indeed die smiling then he wouldn’t want us to stand around here doing nothing. Edward, you heard what Rodney said, get ready to give us a boost.”

“Right.” Hyde nodded as he pounded his fist in his hand, “We will win this, no matter the cost.”

Taking a knee with his massive palms open, Hyde let his two friends step on them as he readied his strength.

“Brace yourselves!” he said as tossed his friends in the air to the surface, “Now we continue our rise to glory!”

Through the ash and smoke on the surface, Emma managed to wake herself up. Aside from feeling sore from landing where she fell after the blast, she wasn’t as wounded as she should have been. Hearing the groans of the witch feet away from her, the blonde crawled through the sand over to her lover’s sister.

“Zelena!” she tried to call past her smoke filled throat, “Zelena, say something.”

“I’m alive.” the ginger groaned as her friend helped her up, “Because of Nicholas. He got to me at the last second.”

Taking notice, Emma finally saw her boyfriend. However, instead of being sprawled on the ground as they were, he was on his knees with his arms stretched out and his back facing them. His shirt had been torn and burned away so they were able to see his signature tattoo. Not being quick enough to use his shield, he used his body in order to protect his sister and his lover from the blast; there was a clear sign of how far the attack reached before the alchemist stopped it.

“Nicholas!” Emma cried out. The alchemist grunted as he opened his eyes as he tried to find his true love through his blurry vision. 

“Hey, snap out of it! Let’s get…” Emma began to say only to stop in fear as she saw Father standing behind her love. Staring down at them, with one eye glowing red, he swatted Nicholas away several feet.

“Nicholas!” Emma and Zelena shouted.

“You’re first.” Father simply said as he raised his hand. With a surge of red lightning, he began to tack the women’s souls from them.

“Stop it. Leave them alone!” Nicholas protested as he tried to find his strength. As the women Nicholas loved cried out and clutched their throats, Father left his guard down. Thanks to this, what happened next happened in succession. A single bullet fired into his temple brought him to the ground, thus preventing the women’s souls from being taken. On the other side of the beach, Sawyer emptied the chamber of his riffle and readied the next shot as he shouted his orders.

“Your target is the man with the long brown hair! Make sure you don’t shoot Agent Flamel by mistake!” he shouted the herd of sailors he brought along with Bluebeard.

“Right!” the men shouted as the hustled into position. Armed with every weapon they had, riffles, machine guns, grenades, even mortars, the sailors surrounded the Homunculus with fury in their eyes.

“Blue Squad, hurry!” Sawyer ordered, “White Squad, you cover the west shore side!”

“Roger!” the squads shouted. As they took position, Emma helped Zelena to her feet while another sailor grabbed Nicholas before running for cover.

“Fire!” Gilles shouted. Without mercy, roughly a dozen mortar grenades were shot into the air and fell directly on top of Father.

“Hey, Savior! Are you okay?” the sailor carrying Nicholas asked.

“It’s bad! He didn’t even flinch!” Emma said referring to Father.

“Seriously?!” he asked. Sure enough, Father protected himself from the mortars with his barrier and sent a shockwave at them all with a swing of his arm.

“Don’t give the bastard a chance to hit back!” Gilles shouted.

“Yes, sir!” a soldier armed with a machine gun acknowledged as he and his crewmates continued to fire. None of them waited for orders, they all just kept firing until they needed to reload their weapons.

“Damn! That bastard’s not even breaking a sweat.” Sawyer cursed as he fired his weapon.

“Right.” the sailor closest to him said to his enchanted shell, “If you’re sure, sir. Take cover, men! Now!”

Much to everyone’s surprise, a long streak of purple fire flew towards Father and hit his barrier, head on. Looking to see where it came from, they all saw the remaining five members of Branch Quartermain stand behind their leader as his hand was engulfed in the strange flame. The looks each of them had on their faces made no one want to even think about daring them to a fight.

“Okay, that’s new.” Nicholas quipped as he stared in surprise at Quartermain.

“Allan, you old tiger, I gotta admit, it’s good to be on your side!” Skinner laughed in amazement. Not saying anything, the old man threw a ball of fire at the Homunculus again, but made it rapidly grow in size as it hurdled towards him.

“Fire now! Keep firing!” Gilles shouted to the sailors.

“Don’t give him any opportunity to fight back!” Hyde shouted as he charged at Father, “Make him use his Philosopher’s Stone!”

Grabbing a piece of nearby scrap metal from the Nautilus, Hyde did a quick spin as he threw it like a discus before the barrier destroyed it. Jumping into the air, as though they had done it before, Sawyer and Quartermain fired their riffles down at Father with explosives rounds, hoping to drain more of his power. In a similar attack, Mina used her power to control all the bats in Storybrooke to slam down on the barrier in the form of a giant fist. To add to this, Skinner used his unbelievable strength to pick up a large boulder and hurl it at the arrogant Homunculus; all attacks by the agents were backed up by more bullets, grenades and mortars, as well.

“Now he’s toast!” Nicholas shouted as he joined in. After turning his hand into the fabric he used for his gloves, he snapped his fingers and unleashed a powerful inferno after creating a funnel to guard the others around Father. Unfortunately, even that was not enough to take away the barrier.

“We have to find a way through his defenses!” Hyde shouted over the gunfire.

“Come in!” a sailor shouted over the radio, “We need more ammo!”

“What a futile battle.” Father said in a bored tone, “You poor, helpless humans can’t hope to lay so much as a finger on me.”

“Maybe humans aren’t able, but what about a Philosopher’s Stone?!” Nicholas shouted as he rushed up to punch his copy in the face. Even though he was able to, Father still managed to turn this to his advantage. Trapping Nicholas fist in his face, like it was solidified cement, the Homunculus grinned at his creator with a fake smile.

“Wonderful, you’re just in time, Flamel. What a dutiful brother you are. As it happens, I could use another Philosopher’s Stone. I’ll be taking yours.” he said as veins erupted on Nicholas’ arm as his stone was being absorbed.

“Grgh! Agh!” Nicholas cried out in fear and pain as his life force was being stolen. That is until his face quickly gained a triumphant, wicked smirk, “Good acting, right?”

“Huh?” Father asked in confusion.

“You can’t take my stone without dropping your own barrier.” Nicholas lectured as he took the souls back, “Stupid fool. After what happened last time, you’d think you’d have learned!”

Taking the chance, all seven other agents closed in on Father while Nicholas kept him in place. Sawyer tried to clock him in the face, but Father stopped him with a stone wall that sprung from the ground. Hyde tried to do the same only to face the same results. Mina jumped over the walls being made and struck the barrier with her silver daggers. Roaring as they charged, Hyde and Quartermain readied their fists before Father sent them back with a roar of his own and another shockwave. As this happened, Nicholas was released at the cost of his arm disintegrating.

“Don’t give up now!” he shouted to his comrades as he grew another arm to replace the other. Going completely wild, the eight agents mercilessly punched the barrier, not caring that their hands were becoming bloody, as they tried to burn the enemy’s stone. Feeling the same strange sensation as before, Father dropped the barrier and blocked Skinner’s flying kick with his arm, instead.

“His arm. Not alchemy.” Nicholas gasped as black smoke came from Father’s mouth as he clutched his head in agony, “He’s losing control! He can’t keep the power of alchemy’s god he claims to have in check, anymore!”

Crying out in agony as red, alchemic lighting surged over his body, Father’s jaw was wide open which allowed everyone to see the eye of god he swallowed in his mouth, as though it was trying to escape. With a cry that echoed throughout the entire town, Father slammed himself into the ground, causing an eruption of red energy that shook the very earth and sent everyone flying.

After the dust cleared, Father was on his knees in pain in the crater he just created. Looking around in desperation, he saw the despicable humans who were trying to kill him sprawled about everywhere in sight.

“A stone. A stone. A PHILOSOPHER’S STONE!” he demanded before laying eyes on what he was looking for.

With a metal beam from the foundation of the tunnels beneath them all imbedded in his stomach, Nicholas Flamel was helpless as his powers failed to free him. Seeing the last source of energy that could save him, the Dwarf in the Flask slowly and weakly trudge through the sand over to his creator, ready to take what was his.

“Nicholas! Get out, now!” Gilles shouted as he and the others, all too injured and weak to pick themselves up, watched their enemy head towards their friend.

“Nicholas, get out of there!” Emma shouted.

“Brother!” Zelena cried as tears of frustration formed in their eyes, “Stop, dammit!”

“Stop!” Emma shouted as she tried and failed to pick herself up.

“Mate, get out of there!” Skinner cried out in desperation.

“Stop it!” Zelena sobbed feeling helpless, “My brother! That’s my brother! Get away from him!”

“A stone.” Father moaned and panted as he continued to trudge to his creator.

“Come on!” Nicholas grunted as he kept failing to deconstruct the beam impaling him, “Work, dammit!”

“Lord!” Gilles shouted as he fell after getting to his knees, “Dear Lord, please give me strength to save my friend!”

“Run, Nicholas!” Hyde shouted before his formula’s effects wore off and he turned back into an even weaker Jekyll, “Run away!”

“Gods dammit!” Nemo shouted as he tried to weakly crawl to his friend, “Get away from him!”

“Not again!” Sawyer denied as he rose only to fall because of his injured and bloody knee, “I won’t lose another loved one, again!”

“Get away from him, you bastard! Take me!” Mina practically begged as the sun began to slowly burn her.

“A stone.” Father moaned as he struggled to walk, almost reaching his creator. 

Out of everyone there, the only person left who carried about Nicholas and hadn’t said anything was Quartermain. But unlike the others who were shouting and practically weeping, the old hunter remained calm and whispered instead.

“Do not run.” he whispered, somehow managing to reach Nicholas’ ears, “Fight. Fight.”

“A stone. You vile human! Give it to me!” Father snarled.

“No, Nicholas!” Emma wailed, reaching out for her true love.

“Fight!” Quartermain shouted.

“Your energy!” Father shouted.

Just as the former dwarf was about to shove his hand into his chest and steal his stone, Nicholas grabbed it in the tightest grip he, possibly, ever had. Even in his weakened state, the Immortal Alchemist was able to raise his head and give his copy a deadly stare before breaking his wrist in his grip, causing the fake to cry out in pain. 

Instead of breaking the beam away, Nicholas simply transmuted it into an iron fist which knocked Father into the air and several feet away. With a mighty, painful roar, Nicholas proceeded to tear himself free of the beam before launching a dozen stone fists at Father, each one sending him to a world of pain. To add to his vicious onslaught, Nicholas created a spear out of nearby scrap metal and threw it as though he was King Leonidas, himself. Father could only cry out in fear before the spear hit his face like a rocket and tore off half his head while screaming in agony. Not giving the enemy any chance, Nicholas picked himself up and charged into a fist fight with the bastard.

“It’s working.” the sailors began to say as everyone watched the fight.

“Nice, Nicholas. Just keep going.” Nemo softly encouraged as Nicholas kept throwing his punches and kicks.

“Go, kid!” Skinner shouted.

“Flamel!” another sailor cheered.

“Let him have it, Flamel!” more sailors cried.

“Kick his ass, Nicholas!” Emma shouted.

“Go, Nicholas!” Mina cheered on.

“Fight, Nicholas Flamel!” Nemo shouted.

“GO!” all the sailors bellowed, “Go on! Get him! Kill him!”

“Send him to Hell, Nicholas!” Zelena shouted

“Fight on!” Gilles cheered.

“Go, Nicholas!” Sawyer joined in.

“Flamel!” Quartermain shouted, louder than any of them.

Having enough of each other, the two immortal beings, born through alchemy, roared at each other like raging animals. Ready to put an end to it, once and for all, both jumped into the air and threw their punches. But with more speed, and far more strength, Nicholas landed his powerful punch directly into Father’s face, sending him to the ground in a heap.

“Get up, you novice!” he demanded, “I’m about to show you how outclassed you really are. This fight you lose!”


	81. The Promised Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, LXG or The Prince of Egypt

_“Don’t you even want freedom? Nicholas? Are you going to live out the rest of your life as a slave, without the rights of a real man? In that case, you’re no different than me, trapped inside this stuffy flask.”_

**OUaT**

Trying to push back the memory of when it all began, Nicholas yelled out in fury as he continued to punch the face of the creature he created who also managed to create him.

“I don’t understand!” Father shouted in his head as he was punched.

“Alright! Clobber that bastard!” Sawyer cheered from the sidelines.

“How can this happen when I’ve absorbed the god of alchemy?!” Father thought over the punches, “How can a mere human, a meager alchemist, _Nicholas Flamel_ of all people beat me with nothing but his bare hands?!”

With one last uppercut, Nicholas knocked his old friend to the ground, panting in triumph when he saw his copy stay down.

“He did it!” the sailors cheered.

“He saved us! The alchemist saved us!” another sailor cried.

Emma was about to rush over to her true love, but was stopped by Quartermain placing his arm in front of her. Somehow, in some way, he knew the fight still was not over. Sure enough, Father’s body surged with energy as they eye he swallowed tried to escape through his mouth again. In an effort to keep his power, the Homunculus literally swallowed it like it was vomit before the ground began to shake, again. As the shockwaves and wind caused several sailors to go flying, Nicholas managed to catch one.

“Pull yourself together, dammit! Stay on your feet, moron!” he lectured.

“Sorry, sir.” the young sailor said sheepishly.

“A stone. Philosopher’s Stone!” Father moaned as he rose to his feet and lunged his hand into Nicholas’ stomach, “Give me your stone, Flamel! Be a good brother!”

“Nicholas!” Emma shrieked as Quartermain held her back, “Let me go!”

“He’ll be fine. He knows what to do.” Quartermain calmly assured.

“Grgh! This. Ends. Now!” Nicholas shouted in pain as he grabbed Father’s head with his deconstructive powered hand. As Father cried out in pain, he retaliated with the same attack. Even though Nicholas was preventing his souls from being stolen, he wanted to put an end to the fist in his gut, so he destroyed it. As soon as it was, Father recoiled in pain and backed away. Taking what seemed like the best chance, Nicholas drove his deconstructing fist into the Homunculus’ stomach and created a massive hole where it once was.

In a brief moment, everyone could see the hole before an eruption of the remaining, screaming souls within Father were let loose. No one knew where they went, only that they were free and they could go to wherever it was they belonged. After the last red faced soul flew into the air, everyone let loose the breath they were holding. It was finally over.

“My stone. You destroyed my stone!” the Dwarf in the Flask said as the voice from his current body was laced over the high-pitched voice he had during his days in the flask. Instead of anger, he was filled with fear, especially with what happened next. Slowly appearing from the hole in his torso, the strange, little, black hands returned and began to dance around him like snakes at their prey.

“What?! This can’t-what is this?!” he asked in fear.

“Go back to where you were born.” Nicholas said hardening his heart, “Go back to nothing, Homunculus!”

As Father looked at his creator in fear, he felt the hands wrap around him and pull his body into the hole they came from. Even though he knew it was pointless, Father was struggling as he fell to the ground.

“But why? I just wanted to understand the worlds’ knowledge!” he shouted sadly. Hearing this caused Nicholas to look at his old friend, not in anger as he was a moment ago, but in confusion growing into sadness.

“I wanted to experience it! Free! I just wanted to be free!” Homunculus cried causing Nicholas’ heart to break, “Free to know!”

When the hands had finally managed to stuff the abomination away, both they and the Homunculus vanished in a spark of red light leaving no trace of his existence behind. In another plane of existence, immediately after this happened, in the form he was born to, the Dwarf in the Flask floated in front of his blank portal of truth.

“Tell me,” he said in his high voice as he looked at his portal, “Why did you refuse to join me? Why, god of alchemy? How did I disappoint you?!”

“ _You were incapable of believing in yourself._ ” a voice said from behind him. Turning around, the black spec saw what looked like a smiling, outline of his body with a wide, arrogant smile. “ _You stole your power from others, you rejected your human origins, and you chose to covet the power of what you call ‘the god of alchemy.’ You never grew beyond your days in the flask. Did you honestly think you had grown superior to humans by removing your seven desires? Don’t make me laugh!_ ”

“What’s wrong with that?” Homunculus asked, “I only wanted to obtain perfection. I wanted the realms’ knowledge for my own! Why should I be punished for that? What’s wrong with craving knowledge? What’s wrong with seeking perfection?! Well, speak! What are you anyway? Do you even have name? Who the hell do you think you are?!”

“ _Who am I_?” the being asked the angry spec, “ _One name you might have for me is ‘the world’. Or you might call me ‘the universe.’ Or perhaps ‘God.’ Or perhaps ‘the god of alchemy.’ Or perhaps ‘the truth.’ I am All and I am One. So, of course, this also means that I am you. I’m the truth of your despair. The inescapable price of your boastfulness_.”

Hearing that last part made the Homunculus go from angry to afraid as he thought back to how he lectured his sacrifices not long before his death that day. Once he thought of his own words and the words of the being he realized was the god he tried to control, terror consumed him.

“ _And now, I shall bestow upon you the despair you deserve_.” the Truth declared. While the Homunculus whimpered in fear, he slowly turned to see his gateway open up and reveal the massive eye staring at him as its hands reached out for him, again.

“Don’t do this to me.” he fearfully begged, “I can’t. I can’t go back! Please stop! I can’t bear to be bound any longer!”

As the hands grabbed him and slowly pulled him in, the little spec shed tears of fear as he screamed as his fate had literally and finally caught him.

“No! No, no, no, no, no!” he protested in fear.

“ _This despair is reserved for the boastful_.” Truth explained darkly.

“Just tell me what I was supposed to do!” Homunculus pleaded.

“ _You brought this outcome upon yourself_.”

“What’d I do wrong?! What should I have done?!” he asked before screaming as the doors slammed in his face, sealing him away to his fate, whatever it may be.

“ _You simply must have seen the answer with your own eyes_.” the Truth said knowing fully well the spec could not hear him. 

Back in Storybrooke, everyone looked to the victorious alchemist. It had only been moments, to all of them, since the Homunculus vanished. But to him, it seemed like an eternity, for some reason. He had not said a word since the hands took his friend away. The only thing he had done was stare at the spot where it happened. Before any of the people around him even began to go near him, Nicholas took a deep breath, taking in the smell of the sea and the warmth of the sun, and did something completely unexpected; he began to sing in the long forgotten tongue of Xerxes.

“A-shir-ra l’a-do-nai ki ga-oh ga-ah.” he gently sang before another voice joined in. As he only saw them throughout his life, a soul powering his stone was always dressed in red robes with a hood covering their entire face. The soul of the child next to him was no different. But this time, Nicholas was not the only who could see the child. The others only saw the little one appear after they blinked and watched as they gently held Nicholas’ hand as they joined in the song.

“A-shir-ra l’a-do-nai ki ga-oh ga-ah.” the child sang softly, yet happily. As he sang, the soul of the boy lifted his hood to reveal a Xerxsian boy with short gold hair smiling warmly at the alchemist. As Nicholas gently smiled back, more souls began to appear from behind the onlookers, debris and everywhere else throughout the town. As the sun shined on Storybrooke, every soul could be seen as they lifted their hoods to show who they once were. As this happened, Nicholas became surrounded by happy, singing children.

“Mi-cha-mo-cha ba-e-lim Adonai

Mi-cha-mo-cha ne-dar-bo-ko-desh

Na-chi-tah v’-chas-d’-cha am zu ga-al-ta

Na-chi-tah v’-chas-d’-cha am zu ga-al-ta

A-shir-ra, A-shir-ra, A-shir-ra!”

As the children sang loudly in joy, they danced around Nicholas or pulled him down while others jumped on him and gave him hugs. All the other souls joined in to the song, as well. Some dancing and hugging their fellow souls, others raising their hands in thanks and praise for what had been done, and others going over to pat Nicholas on the back or hug him after freeing him from the children. Despite being the Savior, herself, Emma felt like she was looking at a whole new savior. One who had finally freed his people, and himself.

“A-shir-ra l’a-do-nai ki ga-oh ga-ah

A-shir-ra l’a-do-nai ki ga-oh ga-ah

Mi-cha-mo-cha ba-e-lim Adonai

Mi-cha-mo-cha ne-dar-bo-ko-desh

Na-chi-tah v’-chas-d’-cha am zu ga-al-ta

Na-chi-tah v’-chas-d’-cha am zu ga-al-ta

A-shir-ra, A-shir-ra, A-shir-ra!”

It was a beautiful song, though only Nicholas could understand its meaning. Closing his eyes, once again feeling the wind on his face and the warmth of the sun. The moment he opened his eye again, all the joyous souls vanished, but they were not gone. They would always be with him, and he with them.

Not wanting to waste another moment, Emma rushed over to Nicholas as fast as her tired body would let her. However, there was a brief moment that caused her to slow down before moving even faster. That moment was when she saw Nicholas suddenly spit up more blood than she had ever seen before collapsing in the sand.

Everything began to grow cold and dark to the alchemist. He knew his lover, sister and all his friends were shouting out to him, but he could not clearly hear him. He had never felt so tired in all his immortal life. There was not enough strength left in him to keep his eyes from shutting. He felt like he was sinking into the darkest depths of the ocean before opening his eyes again. When he did, he instantly realized where he was; the exact same void he was forced to visit on the night his now departed friend made him immortal.

“Am I dead again?” he bluntly asked the smirking specter sitting in front of him.

“ _No, not this time._ ” the Truth replied in amusement, “ _I brought you here to chat_.”

“Chat?” Nicholas scoffed, “You don’t exactly strike me as someone who gets lonely for conversation. You know, because you’re the omnipotent being that supposedly is everyone and everything.”

“ _Hmm, you’ve gotten a lot sassier since last we met. Are you that unhappy to see me_?” it asked.

“Considering that this little stunt of yours has probably led to my friends freaking out in concern for me, I’m not exactly eager to trade banter with you.” Nicholas snapped as he crossed his arms, “Besides, every time we see each other, you end up doing something that makes me hate you.”

“ _Oh_?” the Truth asked tauntingly.

“Yeah, like the first time. I ended up getting at least 75% of the knowledge this damn thing keeps crammed into my head.” Nicholas snarled as he jerked his thumb to his own portal floating behind him, “Then I had over half-a-million souls assimilated to my own thus making me immortal. And then the second time, you randomly plucked me back here and practically begging me to find and eliminate the Homunculi. So, what, pray tell, have you brought me here for this time?”

“ _I’ve brought you here to pay you back_.” it honestly replied.

“What?” he asked skeptically.

“ _You’re right, I did ask for you to kill those infernal creatures. And you know the first law of alchemy. Don’t you?_ ”

“Equivalent exchange.” Nicholas dryly nodded, “So what exactly is the equivalent payment for doing your dirty work? I honestly doubt you’ll give me more knowledge from the gate; not after what he just put everyone through. So tell me, what have I earned from you?”

“ _When you wake up, you’ll know. Consider it a token of my gratitude. Do what you will with my gift to you. It is entirely up to you whether or not you use it. Just be careful on who you use it for_.”

The next thing Nicholas knew he was jolting awake with a gasp in a bed at Storybrooke’s hospital. His entire body was aching in pain from the battle, which he hoped only happened hours before regaining consciousness. Despite gaining his bearings, he was still breathing heavily from the fatigue. He also noticed that there were transmutation marks on his hands and arms. That alone told him a lot about his condition. Not all of his wounds had healed, but the ones that had were also covered in transmutation marks. It took him a few moments, but the alchemist finally realized that he was not alone in his room. Sitting across from his bed, hunched over and still wearing the bloody and torn clothes from the battle was Allan Quartermain.

“Who did we lose?” Nicholas asked in a strained voice.

“About three quarters of Nemo’s crew.” Quartermain sighed, “Shan Yu lost his right arm and…”

“And what?” Nicholas asked.

“Agent Quixote.” the old man sadly replied.

“No.” Nicholas denied looking like he was trying his best not to cry, “Not Donnie.”

“He gave his life for the sake of us all. He inflicted a mortal wound on Wrath with Shan Yu as his last act. If it hadn’t been for that, I might have lost. Just to let you know, Sawyer says he died smiling and that you were part of his final words.”

“I sentenced him to his death when I gave him that coin.” the younger man croaked.

“Nicholas, you gave that man a far better life than he could have ever wanted had he not met you.” Quartermain gently comforted, “You were the first person to see that he wasn’t mad, like everyone said. You were the only one who recognized that he, too, was extraordinary. He was a good man who stuck to his beliefs and did what he felt in his heart was the right thing.”

“…What about Emma? My sisters? Henry?” he asked.

“Fine.” Quartermain assured, “They’re all fine. The town’s a mess, obviously, but we’ll rebuild.”

“Take care of the small stuff first. But I want in on the reconstruction; I have plans for further fortifying this place’s defenses.” Nicholas informed weakly, “And have headquarters send us a shipment of black mithril, we’re gonna need it.”

“I’ll have Nemo place the order. But until then, you need to rest.” Quartermain ordered as he got up from his seat, “I’m off to send my report to headquarters. Your phone and shell are on the nightstand if you need to contact someone. But until then, rest. That’s an order, Agent Flamel.”

“Copy that, boss.” Nicholas weakly saluted before flopping his arm to the bed.

“Ugh. Well, this is a first.” he muttered to himself. Naturally, since he was immortal, he was not hooked up to any tubes or machines. Although, he would not have said no to morphine at that moment.

“Agh, I feel like hell.” he groaned in pain as he tried to move.

“Yeah, you kinda look like hell, too.” a soft and familiar voice said off to the side. Perking up to it, Nicholas ignored the pain and turned his head to see his lovely, and bandaged, savior looking at him from the doorframe. Instead of the playful smirk he loved, his beloved Emma looked like she was about to burst into tears.

“Emma.” he whispered.

“Hey, Nicky.” she choked coming over to him.

“You’re hurt.” he noticed with guilt in his voice.

“Look who’s talking.” she joked, letting a couple of tears slip.

“Emma, I swear to you, I did not want any of this to happen.” Nicholas swore as the emotions he had been burying within him began let loose, “Everything I did, I did for this town, the people in it, the people I care about and most of all, you. You got to believe me.”

“Dumbass.” she laughed before laying with him and holding him close, “Of course I believe you. What? Did you think I was gonna dump you after all that?”

“Well, you know me. I’m paranoid as hell.” he admitted, blushing in embarrassment when he realized how ridiculous it sounded. Outside the room, Sawyer was giving the biggest smile he had in years at the sight of his friend awake and happy with his lover.

“He’s awake.” Sawyer said to the people waiting. Those people included the Hooks, Charmings, Mills sisters and Henry; the other agents were outside handling other matters.

“What’s wrong with him?” Ariel asked, “Besides those weird marks, he doesn’t look injured.”

“My guess is that he’s exhausted his stone’s energy and finally found his limit. Not surprised, though. He’s pretty much been using it constantly since the whole Lost Boys incident.”

“But he’ll be alright?” Hook asked in concern.

“One thing I’ve learned about Nicholas Flamel in the time I’ve known him, is that he’s so damn stubborn that pretty much nothing will keep him down. He’ll bounce back, he always does.” Sawyer assured, “It’s probably best to just let the Savior be with him for a while. Might wanna go and check and see if there’s anybody who needs help out there.”

Not in the mood to argue, everyone got up from their seats and proceeded to exit the waiting room. That is, until, Sawyer stopped one couple, in particular.

“Not you two.” he said firmly to Snow and Charming, “Sit down.”

They did without any hesitation.

“Your daughter told me and my friends something interesting on our way over here. She said that you two are thinking about pulling another stupid stunt of betrayal on Nicholas; again.”

“Sawyer, listen, we-”

“Shut. Up.” Sawyer spat through gritted teeth pointing at Snow, “And that’s Agent Sawyer to you, you little princess bitch.”

Angry at the man calling his wife a bitch, David began to rise from his chair, only to sit back down when he saw Sawyer quickly draw his revolver and aim it at his stomach.

“Now, I don’t know what made you two knuckleheads think that attempting to banish Nicholas and the rest of us was a good idea. But I’ll just tell you now, it’s not. Mostly because we’re all capable of coming back here from either another realm or just crossing the town line. We have our ways. You two seem to be under the misconception that this is YOUR town, and that you make all the rules. Newsflash, this ain’t your kingdom, and you don’t have authority here. You guys are just a school teacher who failed as mayor, and the real sheriff’s understudy who thinks he has the same position as his daughter. I know what a sheriff is, Nolan, and you ain’t one. Nicholas Flamel has done a hell of a lot more for this town, and its people, than either of you have. From the moment the first curse broke, you two have been trying to seize control and have been using the members of your little group to do it. The Hooks and Regina since Neverland, Belle since she first ditched Rumple, Zelena since Camelot, and ever since that purple fog first cleared, your daughter. But the one person you’ve been using the longest, ever since he first helped you out of the goodness of his heart, was Nicholas. That’s all over now.

“You two want peace for this town. I understand that and can respect it. But your actions, now that’s something nobody can respect. Aside from fighting that wraith, soothing the giant, and going to Neverland, the most you’ve done is just make speeches. You don’t act like you used to. You don’t fight the way you did before. You’re weak and you know it. It’s understandable, being stuck in a coma and being a teacher for almost thirty years will do that to a person. And that, right there, is the biggest flaw in your little plan to get rid of us. Last time you turned everyone against Nicholas, the curse had just broken and everyone remembered the deeds you two did back in the Enchanted Forest. _Did_. But time has passed since then, and everyone knows now that Nicholas was innocent, and that you accused him and deemed him guilty without any proof at all. And since then, he’s fought tooth and nail for this place and everyone in it, and he did it a hell of a lot harder than you have. So the point I’m trying to make here is that last time, the people were on your side. But imagine what might happen if you were to banish Storybrooke’s greatest hero. A man who has made so many sacrifices, permanently ended so many threats to the town, and literally died for the sake of protecting everyone. What do you think might happen?

“I think, just going off my own experience, that they’ll all turn on you. Everyone. Including your precious daughter and grandson. The two of you are the only ones in Storybrooke who want Nicholas and the rest of us gone, and it’s because of your fear towards us. Your fear towards Nicholas. Is he capable of destroying realms and recreating them in his own image with ease? Yes, there’s no denying that. He is completely capable of that. But your excuse for him being a threat is null and void. He can do all those things, but he hasn’t. He’s had all that power in him for over half a century and not once has he even considered doing anything that you’ve accused him of. Even before the league, he had no desire to do this. Why? Because he’s not like the other people you’ve fought. Those people were obsessed with gaining power and it drove them to do terrible things. Nicholas, on the other hand, has more power, skills and resources than he knows what to do with. All of which he uses for others. He doesn’t care about taking control of everyone like Regina or Rumple did. That sort of thing is pointless to him. If it weren’t, then we’d already be living in his world. You guys are just afraid of him because you know you can’t control him, and you know that he fully capable of killing you easily because he almost did. Which brings me to something else I wanted to clarify.

“Just because Skinner, Quartermain and I kept Nicholas from killing you that time when Cora died, does not mean we’re on your side. The only reason we did that was because our director ordered us to keep you alive because he thought you’d be useful. Not because of your misguided sense of morality, but because he thought, with how stupid you are, you’d somehow help create another sacrifice for the Promised Day. Which you did. Your actions with Maleficent and her daughter led to the Author choosing Rumple’s side which resulted in Emma becoming the Dark One and a sacrifice. And there’s also the return of the Evil Queen who became a sacrifice, which was also your fault. By all those accounts, we ought to kill you. But we won’t, and not because we’re showing you mercy. We won’t kill you for Nicholas’ sake. I don’t know if he’ll ever want to try and rekindle your ‘friendship’ again, but he wants you alive for Emma’s sake. He loves your daughter more than anything else in this entire multiverse so he’ll try and settle things with you for her. But, if either of you ever even think about getting rid of him, or turning the Savior against him, again, we will kill you. It’s as simple as that. We will kill you. I won’t make some terrifying threat on how we’ll do it. I don’t need to. You both know that any of us are fully capable of killing you with no trouble at all.”

As Sawyer told them his threat, the royal couple each felt a strong grip on their necks as they began to choke. Though they couldn’t see anything, they knew what was happening. Skinner was standing in front of them naked and choking them to further emphasize Sawyer’s threat. After a few seconds, the Invisible Man released them and silently left the room, still unseen.

“I’m not gonna force you to submit to us and treat Nicholas like he can walk on air, but I hope you understand what I am saying. Anything happens to him, and it’s your fault, we will kill you. Emma knows this, and she has accepted it because she knows that no one here, not even her, is capable of stopping us. You may live your lives, but don’t ruin Nicholas’; you owe him too damn much. Don’t forget it. Storybrooke doesn’t belong to you. It belongs to its people; all of them. I will not warn you again. You will not speak of this conversation to anyone. And you will _never_ tell Nicholas.”

Having finished his long winded warning, Sawyer left the royal couple as his words sank in deeply. Fear gripped their shared heart so much that they were completely speechless. It was clear to them now that no matter what they felt towards the League, or Nicholas, they had, absolutely, no chance at doing anything to them.

Not long after, Nicholas had fallen asleep while Emma had gone to get him a wheel chair. His weakened condition would not allow him to stand up on his own, let alone walk out of his room. As he slept, a dark presence filled the halls of the hospital. Trudging along the side of the wall in pain, Lust the Lascivious had a look of pure hatred and fury in her eye. Like Nicholas, she was covered in transmutation marks that would not heal. She was clearly still effected by the last attack Emma used on her before her escape; and she clearly wanted revenge.

Peeking through the partially opened blinds of the room, the last Homunculus could see the man who killed her father and brothers lying helplessly asleep. With her damaged left hand readied with spears, Lust took a step forward to the door, ready to finally kill Nicholas. However, before she could, she took notice of Quartermain standing at the other end of the hall with nothing but his knife held tightly in his grip. The door to Nicholas was directly between them so it was only a matter of who was faster. That being said, Lust knew that the old human in her way was the one who killed her youngest brother, Wrath. He came first.

Charging at the man, Lust reared back her spears, ready to cleave his head off. But just as they crossed paths, Quartermain, as he simply walked towards her, used his knife. As he made an upward, vertical slash from her slender waist to her left breast, he used his mysterious ability and set his blade ablaze with purple fire. After staggering a step or two, Lust’s wound erupted in the purple flames which quickly consumed her. Despite the agony she was in, Lust could not bring herself to make the slightest noise. In a matter of seconds, the last of the Homunculi vanished into nothing with no trace of her life at all.

The flames that made Quartermain’s knife look like a sword quickly vanished before he tucked it away. All that was left of the use of his powers was the color of his eyes changing from purple back to their natural shade of blue, and the faint animal-like growl rumbling in his throat. Both of which he got rid of as soon as Emma came back with the wheel chair.

“Everything alright?” she asked.

“Yes, of course.” he replied as though nothing happened, “He fell back asleep, is all.”

“Oh, okay. Mind helping me get him in this thing? He’s heavier than he looks.” she asked as he opened the door for her.

“Not all, Ms. Swan.” he said politely.

“Nicky, wake up.” the blonde softly cooed in her love’s ear before kissing his cheek.

“Ngh, what?” he asked in a sleepy daze.

“Rise and shine, sleepyhead. We’re going home.” she smiled lovingly.

“Home.” he nodded, still tired from the longest day of his life. Although neither Emma or Quartermain noticed, he looked sad for some reason. After getting the weakened alchemist in his chair, Emma proceeded to wheel him out to the main entrance where the rest of his fellow LXG agents, including Shan Yu, were waiting.

“Well, don’t we all look like hell?” Bluebeard bluntly asked earning some chuckles, though none from Nicholas. When they exited the building, after being partially blinded by the setting sun, the nine agents were greeted with thunderous applause.

Just about every single resident of Storybrooke had come to see the heroes of, not just their little town, but nearly every other realm in existence. Everyone was cheering for the nine gentlemen and praising their names; at the front of the crowd were the Hooks, Zelena, Henry, Regina, the dwarves, Granny, Archie, and even the Charmings.

“Let’s hear it for the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen!” Leroy shouted before laughing happily.

“Thank you all-achoo!” Sneezy cried.

“Free food for a week for you guys!” Granny promised, “You know, after you fix my restaurant.”

“He really did it.” Hook said fondly while looking at his closest friend, “Not that I ever doubted him. Even if we all were a Philosopher’s Stone for a few minutes.”

“I’d expect nothing less from my baby brother.” Zelena said with pride as she crossed her arms.

“You know? I could have really fallen for that guy.” Ariel said fondly at her friend, earning looks from her husband and Zelena.

“Love?” he squeaked.

“This is…” Sawyer trailed as he and the other agents had befuddled looks on their faces.

“Yeah,” Mina agreed as they all looked at the cheering crowd, “This is definitely a first for us.”

“Hmm. I think I like it.” Giles smiled fondly as he embraced the adoration. Hidden amongst the crowd, even Rumplestiltskin was looking towards the alchemist with an impressed look.

“Well, Cora,” he thought with a hint of respect, “Looks like your boy came through, after all.”

“Way to go, Uncle.” Henry thought while he cheered. He then noticed Regina practically stomp over to her wheelchair bound brother.

“Um, Regina?” Emma asked in concern for her lover.

“Oh, this won’t be without pain.” Nicholas muttered.

“You are so reckless. You idiot!” Regina shouted as she punched her brother on the head, followed up by a tight, loving, sisterly hug with tears in her eyes.

“Thank you, Abba.” she whispered.

“You know what this calls for, right?” Emma asked the town’s mayor after she broke the hug, “We gotta parade the conquering hero through town.”

“What?!” Nicholas exclaimed as his girlfriend and sister grew playful/sinister smirks, “Oh, no you don’t! It’s bad enough as it is, already. I won’t let you turn me into some kind of Macy’s Thanksgiving parade float!”

“Hmm, if only you had the strength to stop me.” Emma teased before giving a rare giggle as she pushed the chair forward.

“Agh, you ornery, blonde snot!” he shouted in protest as the chair rolled.

“It’s almost hard to believe he’s that stubborn kid you recruited all those years ago, huh, boss?” Sawyer asked Quartermain with a fond grin.

“He’s certainly come far since then.” Quartermain replied, smiling as he thought back to when his branch first started and Nicholas only a child.

“Nicholas, you’ve done well, lad.” Quartermain thought with fond and proud smile.

As soon as Emma had managed to wheel her beloved alchemist out of the crowd, she continued to push him to their destination. Despite the humorous outbursts he made earlier, Nicholas had returned to his sad demeanor. Although Emma was completely unaware and was simply enjoying the quite stroll with her true love.

As this went on, what was left of Nemo’s crew spent the remainder of the day gathering together the bodies of their fallen shipmates and assisted the remaining Amestrians collect their fallen comrades. It did not take long, and when it was done, the remainder of the invading Amestrians were led by Colonel Mustang back to their home via portal, courtesy of the LXG.

With the help of Regina, Zelena, the fairies, and even Rumple, repairs to the destroyed buildings and streets throughout town were underway. But none of these were going through Nicholas’ mind as Emma pushed him into a suburban area in town, somehow untouched by the recent events. In his mind, all he could think of was the past; his final days in Xerxes with his little friend; especially as the sun had begun to set on this horrible day.

“ _You are the one who gave me blood, right?_ ” the voice of the Dwarf in the Flask rang through his head. As it did, more memories of their time together filled his mind.

“ _Don’t you even want freedom? Nicholas?_ ”

“ _Okay then. What is it that makes you happy?_ ” Nicholas’ younger self asked in his memory.

“ _Well, I’d hate to be guilty of asking too much. But I think I’d be happy if I could just leave this flask._ ” the dwarf replied in their distant conversation.

“You were born of my blood, Dwarf in the Flask Homunculus.” Nicholas sadly thought, “In the end, you and I were still as one. And I’m…”

“Nicky?” Emma softly asked gaining his attention, “We’re here.”

“Hmm? Where?” he asked.

“Home.” the blonde smiled.

Finally aware of where he was, Nicholas noticed they were at the white picket fence of the home Regina had originally given to him when the town was made; and also the house Nimue used when she possessed Emma.

“I don’t understand.” Nicholas muttered.

“Well, you remember when you offered me to move in here with you?” Emma asked fondly as she leaned over and draped her arms over him, “Well, my answer is yes if you still want to. Your sisters and I fixed it up a little while you were unconscious.”

“How long was I out?” he bluntly asked.

“Long enough.” she said pecking his cheek, “So? What do you say?”

“…What do you think I’m gonna say?” he asked with a tired smile as he placed his hand on hers. Needing no other words, the couple went into their new home, happy for the first time in so long.

Later that evening, as the setting sun colored the entire town orange, Emma was putting her new kitchen to good use for her alchemist. As she cooked, Nicholas sat at the table and stared somberly past the bridge of his nose. Once the food was placed in front of him, it seemed as though his was still staring off into space, even as he ate.

“Nicholas? Are you okay?” Emma asked in concern.

“…He said he wanted to be free.” Nicholas said, “Everything he did was just so he could be free. Free to know. And I took that away from him.”

At that moment, Emma finally realized why her true love had looked so depressed since he woke up. It wasn’t because of the friends he lost, at least not entirely. Nicholas was feeling remorse for what he had done to the Homunculus.

“Nicholas, you had no other choice. He had to be stopped.” she gently reminded.

“Did I? Did I have no other choice?” he asked with a dead look in his eyes, “It’s not like I ever asked him to stop what he was doing. To find another way besides killing him and all his children. Before today, I hadn’t seen him in person since I ran screaming out of Xerxes. Maybe if I had taken a page from your book, I could I have prevented all of this. Prevent all that death.”

“Yeah, maybe you could have.” Emma nodded as she took his hand again, “But he was the one who made those choices. You and him came from the same place and wanted the same thing; freedom. You had more reasons to want to wipe out humanity than he did, but you chose to fight for us. You did what you thought was right. In the end, you did save him. You saved him from himself.”

“I know all that, but…” Nicholas choked as the tears finally fell from his eyes and onto his plate. Looking up, Emma could see how broken hearted Nicholas really was.

“He-he was still the first friend I ever had. It was because of him I was able to leave that place, go home, find the League and end up here with you. He was the one who gave me a name and a life worth living and fighting for. He was my friend, and I killed him! I killed my friend, Emma!”

By this point, the man was sobbing over the horrible necessity he had done. From the moment the Dwarf in the Flask had given his final words, Nicholas had realized something. Something he wished he had realized sooner. He never truly hated the Homunculus. He was angry at him for sacrificing so many innocent people to make themselves immortal. But Nicholas did not hate his friend. In truth, what he did hate was that he abandoned and failed his friend. For all the knowledge and gifts the dwarf had given him, Nicholas had done nothing to repay his friend. He allowed his own turmoil to control him and abandon his friend, instead of staying and guiding the dwarf in life as it did for him. It was never hatred. It was guilt and shame. Guilt and shame he internally thought could only be erased by killing the first friend he ever had. In the end, it was too late to see the truth, and his friend was dead.

It was just as the dwarf had said in his lair; the truth can be such a cruel thing.

Now, Emma could not bring herself to fully understand why Nicholas had suddenly began to feel this way, but she knew it didn’t matter. Her true love was in serious need of her to be there and comfort him, and that was what she was going to do.

“You were born of my blood, Dwarf in the Flask Homunculus. In the end, you and I were still as one. And I’m…I’m so sorry it had to be this way, my friend.” Nicholas sadly thought as he continued to sob.

**OUaT**

In another land, more beautiful than any other, a handsome man wearing a black duster coat and black hunter’s hat approached another man dressed in robes and smoking a pipe with at least a dozen beautiful, nearly or completely naked women practically worshiping him.

“Sir?” the newcomer asked hoping to gain the other man’s attention, “S?”

“Hmm? What is it?” S asked.

“We’ve just received word from Agent Quartermain. The Promised Day has ended. Agent Flamel has defeated the Homunculus.”

“Excellent!” S cheered, “Hear that, ladies? The Immortal Alchemist has saved the realms! This calls for a celebration.”

“A celebration, sir?”

“Of course! Nicholas has just saved millions of people from a fate worse than death. He, Branch Quartermain and all the others should be celebrated for their bravery and sacrifice. We must plan something, immediately. Throw something together, would you, Deputy Director?”

“Of course, Director. We shall begin right away.”

**OUaT**

In another land, one where the events of the Promised Day did not reach, fire and smoke filled the air as another figure observed the destruction. Instead of a man, it was a beautiful young lady dressed in robes with a golden scepter clutched in her left hand. As she stared down at the flames from the hill on which she stood, another figure, a man in a dark coat approached her.

“My lady,” he politely greeted with a slight bow, “We have just received word from headquarters.”

“Tell me, what has happened?” she asked as screams of pain and terror filled the air. As she turned to look at the other, a gigantic, hulking figure covered by the smoke and darkness stomped about through the populated area which the screams were coming from.

“It’s the Promised Day, my lady. It has passed.” the man informed as more fires erupted, “Branch Quartermain, or Agent Flamel to be more precise, has defeated the enemy and restored all the souls taken from the realms.”

“Good. Very good.” the girl nodded with a hint of relief in her voice, “Any casualties?”

“None from Branch Quartermain. However, Agent Don Quixote has fallen. Also, and we have only just become aware of this, Agent Robin Hood of Locksley was killed several days prior.”

“…I see.” the girl replied slightly saddened by this news, “It matters not. We must continue to move forward since the dead cannot.”

“Indeed, my lady.” the stranger nodded, “Shall we return to headquarters after we are finished here?”

“Not yet. We have much more work to do.”

“As you wish. But what of this Storybrooke Branch Quartermain is residing in? Are we to make our way there?”

As soon as the man asked this, a frantic, blood covered warrior wielding a bloody sword came charging at the young lady with the intent to brutally murder her. Unfortunately for him, without batting an eyelash, the girl’s scepter shrank to the size of a two-foot mace. Before the man could stop his charge, the girl swung her mace and cleaved the man’s head clear off his body, causing it sail overhead, yards away. With no remorse or regret, the girl stared at the fallen torso with eyes as cold as Quartermain’s. As her scepter returned to its normal size, she gave her reply to the unfazed man behind her.

“Not yet.”


	82. A Glimpse at the Extraordinary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything but the original plot lines and backgrounds I have made for this story.

Despite all the destruction caused to the town during the Promised Day, restoration was going very smoothly. Thanks to Emma, Regina and Zelena’s magic, it was moving along rather quickly, too. Nicholas wanted to help, but his sisters and girlfriend threatened to put him back in the hospital themselves if he did so much as make even a little transmutation. It was strange, that much was certain. After decades of just walking off injuries and wounds that would have been fatal for anyone else, feeling weak and frail was like a distant memory coming back to the surface for him. Then again, he didn’t mind having the free time to smoke his pipe and eat his delicious plums in the house he and Emma were living in. It took several weeks, but Storybrooke eventually returned to the way it once was and everyone was getting back into their old routines. By that time, Nicholas had finally regained his strength and felt better than he had in years. All in all, life was good. In his nice, quiet house he shared with his beloved savior, Nicholas was enjoying his hot cup of coffee at the kitchen table while his girlfriend was gathering her things for work.

“Got everything?” he asked.

“Yep.” Emma nodded.

“Keys?”

“Yep.” she nodded, patting her jacket pocket.

“Phone?”

“Yep.” she nodded, patting her jeans front pocket.

“Wallet?”

“Oh, yeah.” she said with a flirtatious smile before turning a little to show him her ass before smacking it.

“Oh, Em, you keep that up and I’m not gonna be able to control myself.” Nicholas warned with a hungry look.

“As much as I wouldn’t mind that,” she smirked with a blush, “You’re still recuperating. So, it’s gonna have to wait, snake boy.”

“What?!” he exclaimed even though he was still smiling, “I am one-hundred percent better! Come over here to the table and I’ll prove it to ya.”

“Maybe later, Nicky.” she laughed before catching herself, “Um, not on the table, per say. But let’s not completely disregard what we would have done if we did.”

“Whatever you say, Sugar Plum.” he winked using his secret pet name for her before thinking, “I swear, she’s almost as perverted as Ruby, sometimes.”

“Alright, Snakey-kins, I’m out of here.” she playfully sneered as she went over to kiss his cheek, “Love you, baby.”

“Love you, too, hon.” he smiled, kissing her back. After Emma left and the peaceful silence once again filled the air. As he let his coffee warm him up, Nicholas felt that all was right in his cozy little town and that nothing could ruin his day. You’d think he’d have learned by now, right?

Right as he was taking a sip, a small portal opened on the wall above his head and spat something out which hit him right on the head. As his face burned and his nose filled with the hot coffee, the little package rolled to a stop on the table.

“Gah, what the hell?!” he shouted, wiping his face. His eyes then locked onto what hit him and suddenly, as quick as it came, his good day was ruined. Lying on the table, almost staring at him, was a bronze tube engraved with the League’s coat of arms around the center. Nicholas, of course, grabbed the tube and popped off one of the ends so he could remove the letter he knew was inside. His eyes immediately widened after he finished reading and turned as pale as he looked when his stone was removed that night with Nimue and the other Dark Ones.

“Oh, no.” he whispered, fearfully.

“Hey, Dad.” Emma greeted as she entered her office at the station.

“Morning, sweetie.” David greeted back with a smile and a bear claw for his daughter, “I picked you up a little treat this morning.”

“Thanks.” she said giving him a hug before sneaking the pastry out of his hand.

“So, uh…how are things in the new house?” David awkwardly asked.

“I knew you were trying to butter me up with something sugary and delicious.” Emma faked glared before taking a dramatic bite.

“Can’t a father ask how his only daughter is in her new home?” he asked with a sheepish grin.

“Not when he is known to have a disliking for his daughter’s boyfriend.” Emma replied, “All kidding aside, it’s been great. There’s a lot more room, it’s not cramped when Henry comes over, and I get to eat Nicholas’ cooking anytime I want. Not to mention, Nicholas is happy that he’s not living with Regina, anymore.”

“He really makes you happy, doesn’t he?” David asked being serious.

“He does.” she nodded, “Dad, I know you and Mom have your personal issues with him, but, including finding Henry and you guys, he’s been the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

“Well, as long as he makes you happy and treats you right, it doesn’t really matter what me and your mother think.” David admitted sincerely before giving her a tight hug, “I’m glad you’re happy, Emma.”

“Thanks, Dad. Me too.” she said, hugging him back, “Now then, back to work.”

“Right.” he nodded as they broke apart and looked to their large bulletin board with their arms crossed, “Back to the million-dollar question.”

On the board was a picture of Regina with a crown drawn on her head from a sharpie with multiple red lines connecting to different pictures and sketches of the town and sticky notes covering nearly every part of the board. Above the picture were just two words that reminded them who exactly it was they were looking for; the queen.

“Where the hell did she go?” David asked as they glared at the picture.

From the moment Nicholas’ transmutation circle activated and returned everyone’s souls back to their bodies, the Evil Queen took the chance to slip away before the League’s counterattack. Since then, while informing everyone but Nicholas, the town’s forces were in search of Regina’s doppelganger before she could do any harm. Unfortunately, no such luck. Whatever she had planned, because they all knew she had something, she wasn’t ready to start things just yet. The only reason why they kept Nicholas out of the loop was out of concern for him. Mostly Emma and his sisters thought it would be too much for him to immediately start dealing with another malicious doppelganger after just dealing with his own, especially after Emma held him in her arms as he grieved and wailed over the loss of his first friend. Plus, they were still concerned with his Philosopher’s Stone’s condition and whether or not he really was back to full health. In the meantime, Emma, his sisters, the Charmings, the Hooks and dwarves were all in search in addition to rebuilding the town.

“Still no sign of Her Majesty.” Leroy sneered as he, Doc and Happy entered the station. Given the hard times the town was facing, Emma decided to appoint the seven dwarves as both her deputies and her eyes and ears in the town.

“We checked the woods, again.” Happy informed.

“And the mines.” Doc added.

“And Regina’s vault just in case. But there isn’t a trace of her anywhere.” Leroy admitted in frustration, “It’s obvious that she’s laying low, we just don’t know where or why. Yet.”

“Well, at least we’re covering our bases. That’s good work, guys.” Emma commended.

“Listen, sister,” Leroy said politely, “I know you don’t want him involved just yet, but maybe we should ask Nicholas if he saw something before he took on that Homunculus. Or even the others, instead.”

“No, Leroy. They’ve done enough.” Emma refused, “We can’t rely on the League for everything. We’ll handle this, and we’ll do it our way.”

“Whatever you say, sheriff.” he nodded firmly. Speaking of the League, Nicholas had gathered the members of his branch and the two remaining additional agents a few hours later to discuss something very important. Something that he received just hours before which made him very concerned. No longer wearing the bandages and goths they received from the hospital, except for Shan Yu for obvious reasons, all nine members sat in the mansion’s lounge staring at Nicholas’ package.

“And you just received this this morning?” Quartermain finally asked, breaking the silence.

“Yep.” Nicholas stiffly nodded, pursing his lips, “Hit me right on the head, too.”

“This is very unusual.” Mina remarked, “Have we ever done anything like this before?”

“Not in this administration, we haven’t.” Sawyer quipped in distaste, “Nicholas, are you sure she has to come? You didn’t misunderstand anything when you read this?”

“No, it clearly says that Emma has to come.” Nicholas replied while bouncing his leg, “If she doesn’t, we’ll all be in serious trouble. You know how S gets when things don’t go his way.”

“Yes, but bringing the Savior to headquarters?” Skinner asked while pacing in front of the fireplace, “What reason could he have for wanting such a ludicrous thing?”

“You mean besides her being the Savior, a Human Sacrifice and a former Dark One?” Gilles asked with a hint of sarcasm, “Probably just because he wants to intimidate Nicholas.”

“Well, then he’s succeeded.” Nicholas snapped, “I mean, for a gathering like this I have to bring Emma? The only way I’ll be able to be even a little calm is if I chain her to my waist.”

“I’m sure everything will be fine, my friend.” Nemo consoled.

“Ah, I wouldn’t act so calm, Nemo.” Sawyer warned while reading the letter, “Looks to me like you’ll have to bring Ursula, too.”

“What?” the captain snapped, snatching the letter from his friend’s hands, “‘In addition to your fellow branch members, any spouse you or they might have, or even a person you or they are currently courting that is aware of your position in the LXG must also attend as a courtesy to show them the wonders of-’ Courtesy?! Wonder?! That rat bastard!”

“Oh, you know it’s bad when Nemo gets angry and starts cursing.” Sawyer whispered to Jekyll who nodded in agreement.

“That it is surprising, all things considered.” Gilles spoke up.

“And just what is that supposed to mean?” Nemo snapped.

“Well, considering your wife’s reputation and the director’s history regarding the sea, you’d think he’d be opposed to the idea of Ursula joining us for such an event.” he replied.

“Well, he’s not, Bluey, and that’s why Nemo is so angry.” Jekyll pointed out before standing up and straightening his tailcoat, “No matter how much either of you, or any of us for that matter, dislike this, we have no choice. Do not forget, out of everyone here, I know better than anyone what happens when you get on the director’s wrong side. We all must attend and both Emma and Ursula must join us.”

“Yeah, but-” Nicholas began only to be cut off by Mina.

“Nicholas, you have our word that should anything happen we would be there to protect Emma right alongside you in an instant.” she assured.

“I thought you did not care for the Savior?” Shan Yu gruffly asked.

“I do not approve of the Savior having a relationship with Nicholas.” Mina corrected, “That being said, I would defend anyone Nicholas cares for, only because of him, without hesitation.”

“As would we all. As we all have done!” Skinner added.

“You better go tell her, Flamel.” Quartermain advised, “We’ll be waiting here when you are ready to depart.”

Once he was outside, Nicholas reluctantly reached for his phone and called Emma. “Emma.” he said curtly.

“Nicholas, hey. What’s up?” she asked.

“I need you to come home early. There’s something I need to talk about with you. Something important.”

“Babe, can’t it wait? We’re in the middle of something pretty important here, too.” Emma informed.

“It involves the League.” he replied sounding dead serious.

“…Okay. I’ll be there soon.” she said before hanging up. It wasn’t more than five minutes after transmuting himself back home that Nicholas had to wait for his lover to come home. The moment she entered through the front door, she looked around for him with a worried expression. “Nicholas, where you at?”

“I’m in the den.” he said from his arm chair.

“You sounded like someone died when you spoke on the phone. What’s wrong?” she asked as she took a seat on the couch.

“Emma, I’ve got something to tell you.” he gently began, no less worried while holding the letter, “After you left for work, I got this from a portal sent by the League.”

“What is it?” she asked.

“It’s an invitation to a celebratory ball in my honor for defeating the Homunculi and saving the realms on the Promised Day.” he replied.

“Really?” Emma asked, “Wow, Nicky, that’s great!”

“No, no it’s not.” Nicholas shot down, “It’s being held tonight at the LXG’s headquarters…and I’m required to bring you along with the other agents who helped me.”

“Wait, just me? Why, and why does it sound like I’m the last person you want to bring?” she asked.

“No, it-it’s not that.” he assured while taking her hand in his, “Emma, there was a reason beyond my orders for why I didn’t tell you about the League until the Promised Day. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is filled with the most dangerous, skilled and powerful men, women and creatures in all the realms.”

“Nicholas, if I can handle your team, Gilles, Shan Yu and Don Quixote, I think I can handle the rest of you guys.” Emma said trying to reassure him.

“Emma, I’m being serious.” Nicholas said sternly, “You think that everyone in the League is like me or the others you’ve met? I won’t lie, some are, but there are even more agents out there who are the exact opposite. There are people in this organization that kill without mercy for all the wrong reasons. People who will cut down anyone just to get what they want. People who disregard our laws and even intentionally go after innocents. I couldn’t even give you a number of how many agents there are who would try to kill you just because you have magic, let alone that you used to be the Dark One. That place is dangerous and so are all the people inside of it.”

“Well, can’t you just say I couldn’t come?” Emma asked a little concerned.

“…They’re always watching. They’d know I was lying and I don’t even want to think about what they’d do if they got mad enough at something that small. You have to come. It’s what the director wants.” he replied.

“…Okay. When do we leave?” she asked embracing the forced outcome.

“This afternoon. We’ll have to be dressed, ready and over at the mansion to meet with the others by five o’clock. From there, we take a couple of beans and we head over to headquarters. It’ll be pretty formal and the dress code’s gonna be like it was in Camelot so I got you a dress to wear upstairs.”

“Really?” she asked.

“Yeah, I hope it fits alright. Why don’t you go try it on?” he suggested before she nodded and went upstairs. Thankfully, the dress was a perfect fit and Emma loved the way it looked. She later called her parents while Nicholas called his sisters to inform them all that they would be leaving for the evening on League business.

As the sun was beginning to set on the little town, Nicholas and Emma drove up to the mansion and parked in front of the steps before heading inside. Nicholas’ attire wasn’t anything too bizarre like his combat gear. It was an expensive, black suit over a dark red button-down shirt and black tie with a shiny, red pin in the shape of his tattoo; he also wore the silver watch Emma gave to him on their anniversary. As for Emma’s new outfit, it was a sleeveless, black gown with a feather-like design and red/orange little jewels here and there. Over the straps on her shoulders were silver and red pads that resembled feathers covering her delicate skin. Her hair was let down save for the braid wrapped around her head like a tiara and she only had a little makeup on. Also, like Nicholas and his watch, she was wearing the necklace he gave her on their anniversary.

Opening both the doors, Nicholas escorted his lovely date inside where they both saw everyone else dressed their best for the ball. Sawyer was wearing a suit similar to Nicholas’, minus the pin. Skinner and Jekyll both wore tailcoats with copper bunds and top hats, but Jekyll decided to add a ceremonial cane to his ensemble. Mina wore a black ball gown with her hair draped over her right shoulder with a bit more make up than Emma. Nemo wore a black, formal Indian suit with medals here and there and the black turban he wore when Quartermain made him his second-in-command. Emma could easily tell that he polished and sharpened his sword by the way it shined at his side. She was, however, surprised to see Ursula linking her arm through his while wearing a beautiful silver dress that hugged her; with everything that had happened lately, she forgot that Nicholas told everyone that Nemo was actually Ursula’s husband. Shan Yu’s attire was a black suit like Nicholas’, but his right sleeve was cut off and sewn shut on account of his missing limb. Gilles was, of course, wearing a black suit with a shirt the same shade of blue as his tattered scarf and a different blue scarf with a cross on each end draped over his suit. Finally, Quartermain was wearing black suit and tie over a simple white shirt under a black trench coat with his own top hat.

“Well, don’t we all look fancy?” Nicholas dryly remarked.

“Oh, don’t make this any worse than it has to be, Nicholas.” Sawyer lectured as he took out a cigarette and lit it.

“You do look lovely this evening, Ms. Swan.” Jekyll complimented.

“Yes, yes, we’re all absolutely gorgeous.” Shan Yu grumbled, “Can we be on our way, now? I’m starving and they promised food at the celebration, tonight!”

“Sounds like somebody’s a little cranky because he hasn’t had his num-nums!” Gilles cooed mockingly with a big smile.

“Shut it, priest.” the angry agent warned.

“You’re right, I’m sorry.” Gilles apologized with a smirk, “I should be a little more respectful…especially since I know how easy it is for you to beat me with only one hand tied behind your-oh, oops.”

“Why you little shi-”

“Ah-ah-ah!” Skinner intervened as Shan Yu was about to throw a punch, “Remember, he’s still a priest.”

“Seriously, though. Let’s be on our way.” Mina suggested, “Mr. Q, if you’d please?”

Nodding his head, Quartermain pulled out a magic bean and threw it on the wall where it transformed into a door. Leading the way, the old man opened the door and everyone else followed. Once the magic cleared from her eyes, Emma found herself in the very land she tried to rescue her parents and friends from.

“Your headquarters is The Land of Untold Stories?” she asked as they walked down the street, earning some looks and whispers from the people around them.

“No, no, Emma, not at all.” Gilles politely corrected with a smile as he walked and looked back at her, “You see, we have to come through The Land of Untold Stories first in order to get to headquarters. Headquarters is in another realm, altogether.”

“Then why didn’t you just open a portal there?” she asked.

“Excellent question.” Jekyll praised taking a quick glance back at her, “When the founders created the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, they also created the world that would act as the central place for which all League business and agents are gathered. After the world was created, they proceeded to create an impenetrable barrier that prevents any and all portals from any and all outside realms from opening into that land. Even for us agents of the League, there is no exception. Portals can be opened leading to other realms on the inside of the barrier, mind you. But there is but only one way in and that entrance is located here in The Land of Untold Stories, the only realm connected to that place.”

“But why this realm out of all the others?” she asked.

“Because this realm was also created by the League.” Skinner replied, “It was the second director who recognized that people from the other realms needed a place of refuge in times of crisis and decided to create another realm overseen and ruled by the League. So, he created this place as an alternative for those considered outcasts in their original realms and for other members of the League who either cannot or choose not to return to their realms. The whole frozen in time thing was added later because some people wanted to return to their homes but wanted to pick up where they left off and live the sort of life they wanted wherever that might be.”

“Plus, it helps for us agents who blow our cover and cannot return to those realms for long periods of time. And so that the ravages of time are optional for us so that we may continue to work as the protectors of the realms.” Jekyll added.

“Although,” Mina trailed while taking in the number of people staring at them, “The place has certainly become more crowded than the last time we were all here.”

“When was that?” Emma asked.

“Let’s see,” Skinner pondered, “I’d say, maybe, a little more than five years before Regina enacted the first curse.”

“That long?”

“Well, we as a branch don’t often need to venture to headquarters unless for emergencies or by order of the director or deputy director.” Nemo explained, “It’s mostly the solo-field-agents who frequently go to and from headquarters to receive their missions and payment. As for us, we have our missions and forms of payment delivered via portal to wherever it is we set up our base. Like the mansion, for example.”

“But before that, we were set up in a little tavern back in the Enchanted Forest.” Sawyer continued before chuckling under his breath, “Yeah, we were bad at running that place. Pft! Certainly didn’t hold a candle to Aesop’s, that’s for sure!”

“Aesop? Isn’t he a storyteller?” Emma asked.

“Maybe in your world, Savior.” Shan Yu grunted, “But here, he used to be an informant for the League after failing to become an agent. Nowadays he runs the best damn beer hall in all the realms right here. There isn’t a single agent in the League who doesn’t love his drinks.”

“Sounds impressive.” she remarked.

“Oh, it is.” Nicholas nodded, “I don’t know what he puts in that stuff, but it can make even ME a little drunk. And it’s physically impossible for me to get completely drunk.”

“Wow.” Emma whispered, “Okay, another question. Why are all those people staring and whispering at us?”

“Probably since it’s been so long since Branch Quartermain’s been here.” Nicholas replied, “Not sure if it’s changed over the years, but we were once considered the best branch in the entire League above all the others.

“We’re here.” Quartermain suddenly said as he came to a stop at the door. From what Emma could tell, it was just a regular round hut made out of stone bricks with two little windows and a wooden door. Behind the hut was nothing. Literally, nothing. It was just the void of space past the edge of the little world. She didn’t have long to get a good look thanks to Quartermain entering the hut with the others quickly following.

“Eleven going up.” Quartermain said to the cowboy on the other side of the glass.

“Eleven goin’ up.” the cowboy responded before spitting his chewing tobacco and pressing the necessary buttons on his console.

For a moment, Emma had to brace herself from falling as the hexagon panel beneath them rose and jerked them up the angled tunnel in front. While zooming through the glass tunnel, the blonde savior couldn’t help but look in wonder at the incredible sights around her. Through the glass she could see beautiful creatures that looked like they were made of starlight swim around them. In addition to that, she could see quick glimpses of other realms on the glass panels like they were T.V. screens. But all those things soon became impossible to see as the light at the end of the tunnel grew brighter by the second until nothing else could be seen. The next thing she knew, Emma found herself in the exact same hut she was in before, only with the exception that she was facing the door and not the tunnel entrance.

“We’re here.” Nicholas whispered in her ear. Continuing to lead the way, Quartermain opened the door and led them all outside to the realm that was home to the League.

“Emma Swan,” Nicholas said as they all took in the beauty of the land, “Welcome to Shamballa.”

While there wasn’t much, Shamballa was indeed beautiful. It reminded her a lot of New Zealand based on what she saw in those Lord of the Rings movies. The land was covered with lush, green grass and rolling hills as a cool, gentle breeze washed over her. There were even two streams flowing down the hills towards the edge of the realm. But between the two streams stood the most impressive building she ever saw. It looked like a mix between a castle, the U.S. congress building and an old fashioned library. The only thing missing was sunshine which seemed impossible because of the small cluster of unmoving clouds covering the sun.

“Behold, Emma. This is where the Original Seven vowed to protect all realms from tyranny and evil. This is the birthplace of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.” Nemo said with pride.

“I didn’t know what to expect, but this place is beautiful.” Emma finally said in awe before blinking in realization, “We’re not gonna have to walk all the way there, are we? Some of us are in heels, here.”

“Relax, there should be a couple of carriages for us any minute.” Sawyer assured. 

Sure enough, three carriages suddenly appeared out of their field of vison, pulled by black horses, with the doors open in anticipation. The ride over was a short one, but much more comfortable than it would have been to walk across the plains. By the time they arrived to the impressive building, the sun had begun to set behind the clouds, which had seemed to follow it down for some odd reason. There weren’t too many people outside excluding the guards, from what Emma could see, but it still did not keep Nicholas from clutching her arm and keeping her close. Quartermain, still leading the way, brought them all to a stop in front of the massive iron doors and the two guards standing before them.

“Branch Quartermain and its guests have arrived. Open the doors.” he ordered almost threateningly. Not wanting to argue, the guards straightened themselves and walked to the walls of the door way where they slammed their spears on the floor twice. As soon as the loud ringing from the strikes ended, the doors gradually opened enough for the party to enter.

Once they were inside, Emma thought she was inside Hogwarts for a brief second. Not that anyone who had seen both those movies and the building they were in could blame her. The long walls riddled with paintings, of whom she believed were agents from the past and present, and the amount of magic she could feel flow through every corner. The foyer they were in had many different halls connected to it with a large pair of glass doors directly across from the entrance. In front of those doors was a well-dressed, handsome man, roughly in his forties talking with another guard before ushering him away once he saw the party.

“Ah, the guests of honor arrive, at last.” he greeted them with open arms and a welcoming smile. His teeth were sparkling white and he had a British accent, as well. Emma smiled back at him with a slight curtsy while the others bowed and curtseyed with looks of distaste. “Branch Quartermain, welcome back to Shamballa. It has been far too long since you all were last in these great halls.”

“Yes, it was some time after a certain event transpired in our absence the last time we were away.” Mina curtly replied with a stiff and fake smile. From what Emma could tell, Mina was angry at the man, as though there was bad blood between them.

“Oh, Mina, how good it is to see you again. You look as lovely as the day I met you.” he complimented.

“Yes, it’s almost as if I am prevented from aging or changing the way I look from the time we met all those _many_ years ago.” she retorted, almost clenching her teeth in anger.

“Yes, indeed.” the man nodded ready to change the subject, “Now then, we will begin the festivities shortly. The ball will commence after each of you are properly introduced and I make my address to the rest of tonight’s guests. From there, you all are free to eat, drink and dance the night away. All that we ask is that no bursts of violence occur tonight and we all try to get along. I’m sure there are plenty of our comrades and fellow agents who are dying to catch up with all of you. Agent de Rais, you will be the first to enter the pavilion followed by Agent Shan Yu. From there, the rest of you will be called in order from Special Agent Sawyer to Special Agent Flamel and his guest. Special Agent Flamel, since this celebration is in your honor, you and your lovely guest will be addressed last following Special Agent Quartermain rather than Agent Jekyll. Please, arrange yourselves, properly and I will see you all later.”

The man gave them all a quick smile and then proceeded up a nearby flight of stairs while everyone lined up in the order he explained. At the back of the line, Emma noticed Nicholas being nervous again. Taking a deep breath, he leaned to her ear to whisper something to her.

“Okay, Emma, listen. There are some last minute things I need to tell you before we go out there.”

“What?” she whispered back.

“First, when we’re addressed, look straight ahead. No matter what, do not make eye contact with anyone we pass. No matter how strange they may look, you need to focus on what’s ahead and act like you don’t care about any of them. Second, if we get separated for some reason, find one of the others and stay with them until I find you. Don’t talk to anyone you don’t know by yourself. And finally, do not, under any circumstances, I don’t care if someone holds a knife to your throat or gun to your head, do NOT eat the meat pies.”

“Wait, what?” she asked just as the doors opened and the trumpets blared. In a similar way she and the other girls were addressed in Camelot, a man dressed like a squire unrolled a scroll and began to address everyone before they confronted the crowd.

“Hailing from The Land Without Color, master exorcist and LXG solo field agent, bearer of the moniker Bluebeard, Agent Giles de Rais!” the squire announced loudly. The trumpets blew again as Giles entered the garden where the other guests were as they applauded.

“Hailing from the Koga plains of The Land of Dragons, general to the army of the Koga clan, solo field agent, Agent Shan Yu!”

Shan Yu entered the garden just as Giles did and made no attempt to acknowledge the people around him.

“Hailing from The Wildlands, seventh seat to Branch Quartermain, Special Agent Thomas Sawyer!” the squire announced earning more trumpets and applause, “Hailing from The Land Without Color, sixth seat to Branch Quartermain, bearer of the moniker The Invisible Man, Special Agent Ronald Skinner!”

Not even Skinner, the narcissist and goofball that he was made any sign of acknowledgement to the agents who applauded him. If anything, he looked as though he was trying not to sneer.

“Hailing from The Land of Lost Time, former warden to The Land of Untold Stories’ prison facility, fifth seat to Branch Quartermain, Special Agent Dr. Henry Jekyll and his alter ego, Special Agent Mr. Edward Hyde!”

Just as blank faced as the others, Jekyll walked down the literal red carpet rolled out for them. Emma found it odd that his other half was given the same introduction, but she chose to ignore it as the squire continued to shout.

“Hailing from The Land Without Color, formerly ranked as the League’s third-most-wanted criminal, third seat and third-in-command of Branch Quartermain, bearer of the moniker Vampiric Empress, Special Agent Dr. Wilhelmina Harker!”

Fewer people clapped as Mina’s name was announced. Apparently, they wanted to make it clear that they were either afraid of her, or still saw her as nothing more than a target the League could set its sights on whenever it wanted.

“Hailing from the kingdom of Atlantica, second seat and second-in-command of Branch Quartermain, captain of the Nautilus, Special Agent Captain Nemo and his wife, princess to the kingdom of Atlantica, Princess Ursula!”

The couple put on their own stoic faces as they walked arm in arm down the red carpet. Unlike with Mina, they received more applause as they joined the others. The squire then began to make the next address.

“Hailing from the Enchanted Forest, senior field agent, first seat and leader of Branch Quartermain, with the monikers of Macumazana and Macumazahn, Special Agent Allan Quartermain!”

The applause that was given to Quartermain seemed a bit more forced than the others was. Not out of disdain like it was for Mina, for Quartermain, it was more out of fear, than anything else. Emma had only seen brief moments of the old man fighting in the time she had known him, but it was enough for her to see that there was much more to the man than meets the eye. But she could not dwell on that, she had to prepare herself because she and Nicholas were next.

“Hailing from the Enchanted Forest, lord of the southeastern kingdom of Misthaven, master of serpents and Nagancia, fourth seat of Branch Quartermain, bearer of the monikers Nag and The Immortal Alchemist, vanquisher of the Homunculi and the man who brought an end to terrors of the Promised Day, Special Agent Nicholas Flamel and his betrothed, princess to unified northern kingdoms of Misthaven, the Savior and former Dark One, Princess Emma Swan!”

“Remember, don’t make eye contact.” Nicholas quickly whispered as they walked arm in arm down the red carpet. It was certainly hard not to look at the people and sights around her. From what she could briefly make out in her peripheral vision, the League had no small amount of strange looking and peculiar agents. When it came to Nicholas, he received far more applause and cheer from the people welcoming him that night. Despite all this, Emma knew he was stone-faced as they walked to the roofless gazebo made from stone columns covered in grape vines and cherry blossom petals on the ground. More music began to fill the air as everyone turned their attention behind them to a balcony above the doorway they all just came from. With a spotlight on the man they met before, he waved to the crowd and began his speech.

“Ladies and gentlemen, my fellow agents and to our honorable and esteemed guests, on behalf of the director, I am happy to say that tonight, Shamballa welcomes you all as we celebrate the victory our comrades achieved in bringing an end to both the Homunculi and the Promised Day!”

Applause, cheers and whistling filled the air before the man raised his hand to calm them all down. He then continued with his speech.

“Yes, we have all gathered here to celebrate and thank those whom answered the threat of that dreadful day, but there is more. We are also here to honor the memory of those who gave their lives that day and the days leading towards it. Special Agent Nemo’s crew, though they were not officially extraordinary, their sacrifices indeed were. We also lost two of our own in the recent times; Agents Robin of Locksley and Don Quixote de la Mancha. Please, I ask that you all take a moment of silence to honor our fallen brothers.”

Silence filled the air as everyone bowed their heads. Emma did, but it was more for Robin on account of not having the chance to get to know Quixote when she had the chance. When the moment passed, the man continued.

“Also, if you would like, you are free to offer a moment of silence for Agent Shan Yu’s missing arm.” he joked causing a roar of laughter from the crowd, and a growl from Shan Yu, “All joking aside, thank you, sister and brothers of the League. Without you, the realms would be no more. The road was hard, and very long, but because of you, all of you, the realms are safe, once more. Now, everyone! Enjoy yourselves, for the celebration begins!”

Cheers erupted from the crowd as fireworks shot into the sky. Music filled the air while the agents ate, talked and laughed throughout the garden. The food was unlike anything Emma had ever tasted; she was tempted to ditch the corset she was wearing so she could try and eat it all. Unfortunately, her eating was cut short when she and Nicholas were told to begin the first dance. He gradually seemed to relax as they slowly waltzed, but she could tell that he was keeping his eyes on everyone.

“So,” she trailed as they danced.

“So, what?” he asked.

“That little mustache man with the stupid hat told everyone here that I’m your ‘betrothed’. Care to explain?” she asked in a teasing tone.

“Oh, well, um,” he fumbled with a blush trying to avoid the green eyes he loved so much, “See, the thing is, these people aren’t exactly up to speed with the vernacular we use back home. So, rather than confusing everyone by saying you’re my girlfriend, they opted for the next best thing which is in reference to us…courting. And, well, there isn’t exactly any other way to address someone courting another person aside from calling them their betrothed.”

“Even though that’s another way to say we’re engaged?” Emma teased while looking up at him, causing the alchemist to blush even more.

“…More like, uh, it’s another way to say that we’re basically doing that whole ‘engaged to be engaged’ thing Brad and Angelina went through.” he replied nervously.

“Works for me.” she said, pressing against his chest, completely in love. Once the music and the dancing stopped, the happy couple heard the distinct sound of slow clapping. Turning their heads, they saw the man from before smiling at them.

“My goodness. Don’t the two of you make the perfect couple?” he asked kindly.

“Thank you, sir.” Nicholas nodded, “And thank you for your acknowledgments for Agent Locksley and Agent Quixote, as well.”

“But of course.” he replied, “I know that Agent Locksley may not have given his life during the Promised Day, but, like Agent Quixote, he dedicated his life to serve and protect the realms. It was the least I could do to honor them.”

“Not to sound rude, sir, but is there a reason you wish to speak with me?” Nicholas asked, cutting to the chase.

“Yes, there is.” he nodded curtly, “The director offers his personal thanks to you and the others for your service to the realms and to the League. He regrets not being able to say this in person, but pressing matters have detained him. Also, because of their outstanding performance and service during the Promised Day, Agents Jekyll and Hyde are hereby reinstated to their positions as fifth seat to Branch Quartermain, effective immediately. He may settle in with the rest of you, permanently, at your base in Storybrooke. The position of the warden is being taken care of, so there is no further need of him there.”

“Thank you, sir.” Nicholas nodded in respect.

“You’re welcome, Agent Flamel. I will inform Agents Quartermain and Jekyll once I find them. Please, do enjoy the party. It is for you, after all. Madam, Agent Flamel, I bid you a good evening.” he said politely before walking off with his hands behind his back.

“Nicholas, who was that?” Emma finally asked.

“That was the League’s second-in-command and deputy director; Gabriel Van Helsing.” Nicholas replied, “He is, without a doubt, the best monster hunter to have ever lived. And he was the man who single-handedly fought, captured and imprisoned Mina back before she joined the League.”

That last detail was enough to make even a person like Emma gasp. Unlike with Quartermain, Emma had seen more of Mina’s abilities in action and was surprised to know that she came face to face with the very man who, apparently, defeated her on his own. She could tell he was powerful when he was near them, but now that she knew who he was, he seemed even stronger than she first believed, even as he casually walked about the party.

“I never would have guessed that.” she admitted, “So, he’s one of the other six members of your director’s team?”

“No.” Nicholas replied as they took a walk about the garden, “Normally, when the director is appointed, that person is typically a branch head, like Quartermain. When they are appointed, the members of their team are promoted, as well. The new director evaluates the currently positioned high ranking agents in charge, outside of the previous administration and decides who is better suited for the positions he or she thinks their teammates are capable of handling. The deputy director is always a dead giveaway, the second-in-command of the branch. Whoever was third-in-command of the branch will also be appointed as third-in-command of the League, but they are also eligible for taking on a different role.”

“Like what?” Emma asked.

“Well, currently, our third-in-command is the head of the research and development department, as well. But she could have been allowed to have any other position the director thought she was better suited for.” Nicholas explained, “But the reason why I said no to your first question, is the director doesn’t have just the six members of his old team. In all, he has thirteen.”

“Thirteen?” Emma asked in confusion, “But you said that your branch teams are supposed to be no more or less than seven.”

“And, yes, that is, typically, the rule.” Nicholas nodded, “But the director doesn’t like to play by the rules. In fact, when he took office, he made a lot of changes just like that one. Instead of promoting just six agents, he, instead, appointed thirteen and dubbed them, ‘The Thirteen Bishops’ for some reason.”

“And…they’re all here, tonight?” Emma asked, slightly worried.

“Oh, yes. That’s the main reason why I don’t want you alone while we’re here. You being the Savior is more than reason enough for these people take an interest in you. Not to mention, it wasn’t just a formality when they introduced you as a former Dark One. That right there, was the director’s way of showing everyone what the woman who managed to ‘defeat’ Rumplestiltskin and then lose the power to him again looks like.”

“But that’s not what happened.” Emma defended, “And who would have told them that?”

“Well, there were only two agents not part of Branch Quartermain who would have known; Robin and Giles. I won’t make you guess, it was Giles. But he had to because he’s in charge of patrolling the area where the well of the Dark One is at. Robin and I told him everything that happened, but I guess someone fudged the truth a little after he gave his report. Probably the director, himself.”

“You know, you don’t really sound like you’re too fond of this director of yours.” she pointed out.

“I’m not.” Nicholas stiffly replied, “He did something that I can never forgive. That’s all I have to say about it.”

“Careful with your words, Agent Flamel. The director has eyes and ears everywhere.” a voice came from above their heads. Looking up, the couple saw a younger looking man wearing formal, older French clothing with a sword at his side, sitting on top of a raised, marble column.

“D’Artagnan.” Nicholas acknowledged in distaste.

“It’s ‘Bishop’ D’Artagnan, to you now, Agent Flamel.” the young Frenchman corrected as he jumped down in front of them.

“And it’s _Special_ Agent Flamel, as it’s always been to you, little dart.” Nicholas retorted not caring about the disrespect he was showing, “Don’t think just because you’re one of the thirteen means I have to automatically treat you with respect. Mine is not so easy to earn, as you well know. Besides, the director is well aware of my feelings towards him. I make a point to remind him.”

“Hmm, I see you’re still as brazen and blunt as you were the last time we saw each other. Although, you certainly did not have this lovely lady at your side.” D’Artagnan said giving Emma a sly smile that made her uncomfortable, especially when he leaned over, ready to kiss her hand before Nicholas stopped him.

“If you so much as think of touching her hand, let alone kissing it, I’ll rip your arms off and beat you with them, little dart.” the alchemist threatened.

“Such hostility.” D’Artagnan mocked with a click of his tongue, “Oh, well. I can tell that this isn’t going anywhere. Enjoy the party, Agent Flamel.”

“Thank you. And be sure to send the Musketeers my regards the next time you see them.” Nicholas sneered as the other man walked away and came to a sudden stop at the mention of Musketeers. Despite the anger inside him, D’Artagnan continued on his way.

“Okay, what the hell was that?” Emma finally asked.

“Just some bad blood.” Nicholas replied, “I knew him when he was just a kid trying harder than anyone I’ve ever seen to get into the League. Worst part is, he became a total prick after he did. You probably don’t know who that was, do you?”

“No, I do.” Emma replied, “That was D’Artagnan. He tried to join the royal musketeers before finding and fighting with the Three Musketeers.”

“How do you know that?”

“Well, aside from the obvious backgrounds you implied in your insults towards him,” Emma deadpanned, “I read the book he was in back when I was a kid. Plus, Henry and I watched the movie he was in before you found us in New York.”

“Ah. Well, I try not to watch those movies. I just find it weird that almost everyone I know gets their own movie or T.V. show, nowadays.”

“Jealous?” she teased.

“Oh, hell no.” he replied in all honesty, “That being said, while D’Artagnan skills are only in his swordplay, don’t let your guard down around him if we come near him, again. He has a grudge against me and would like nothing more than to hurt me.”

“What did you do to him to make him hate you so much?” she asked.

“I told him that he was not extraordinary. He’s resented me ever since.”

“Wait, that’s it?” Emma asked finding the reason weak, “He’s angry at you because you didn’t think he was extraordinary?”

“It’s not a matter of what I think. I know he’s not extraordinary. He never has been and he never will. Even after he was accepted, I still refused to call him that. He’s not extraordinary, so there’s no point in me saying that he is. He doesn’t even know what it means to be extraordinary.”

“What does it mean? To you guys, at least?” Emma asked.

“I’m glad you asked. Most people just automatically think of the common definition of the word. But, that’s not what it means for us.” Nicholas explained, “To be extraordinary, in the eyes of the League, means to have fault. It means that a person must not allow themselves to be blinded by either the darkness, or the light. To understand that there is no true evil or good in the realms, that the hearts, minds and souls of all life are corrupt and can be corrupted. But still, even knowing this harsh truth, those people are still willing to fight for what is right. To believe in the natural sense of right and wrong they have that isn’t clouded by greed or selfish thoughts. To fight and die as they protect the innocents of all realms. Willing to walk through the darkness to protect the light, and to shield the darkness from the light. To understand the wrongful deeds you have done, and what the people you know and love have done. To be extraordinary means to admit you have done wrong, but you are willing to redeem yourself and believe in a brighter future, not for yourself, but for future generations and that they can be better than you were. I was given a chance to become extraordinary. I couldn’t see the end of the path that lied ahead of me, but I could see it was the best choice I would ever receive in my life. I’m extraordinary because I don’t care about what happens to me when I fight. I care about the people I am fighting for and I am willing to do whatever it takes to protect them. Have I crossed some lines? Yeah, I have and will have to, again. But I see that it’s all worth it.”

“Would you change anything?” Emma asked, “I mean, is there anything you regret since joining the League?”

“I try not to live with regrets. In my experience, if you live long enough, the regrets you thought you had fade away once you see the good come from your actions or lack thereof. But if I could change anything, it would be the deaths of all the friends I’ve lost since I was given my coin.” he said somberly, “Yeah, I would change that, for sure.”

“You miss Robin and Quixote, don’t you?” she asked in concern even though she knew the answer.

“They were good men, Emma. Robin didn’t need to die, and he sure as hell deserved a better death than having his soul obliterated. I keep trying to convince myself that dying to protect the woman he loved was an honorable way to go; especially since she was my sister. But…he was one of the few agents I knew who didn’t let his bloodlust control him. He still had his humanity and it spread through his friends and son. And I let that murderous god get away and kill him. As for Quixote? I introduced him to the League and recruited him, myself. Everybody he knew said he was crazy, but I saw something in him. I could see that he was a man capable of becoming extraordinary. And, yeah, he was a little crazy, but in a good way. I could have chosen anyone else I trusted, but because I chose him, he died at the hands of a creature made from my old sense of wrath.”

“You know, Sawyer told me that he mentioned you in his final words.” Emma consoled, “He said he was happy to have helped you. He called you a good man and his friend. Yeah, they both probably wanted to keep on living, but I think they were happy to make their last acts for the people they loved.”

“Yeah,” Nicholas nodded with a sad, yet thankful smile, “But I still miss them.”

“Oh, I almost forgot!” D’Artagnan called as he came back with an arrogant grin, “The director gave me orders to inform you that your payment for the Promised Day is ready to be collected inside the citadel. He wants you to come collect it while you are here, tonight.”

“Well, you can inform the director that I shall collect it when I deem it to be the right time; as per my contract allows me.” Nicholas reminded with a glare.

“Oh, no, no, no, Nicholas. You misunderstand me.” D’Artagnan chuckled shaking his head, “You are to collect your payment, _now_. If you do not, then you forfeit your right to claim the amount you are owed.”

“Why do I get the feeling you’re lying to me, _little dart_?” Nicholas asked.

“Maybe I am, maybe I am not. Either way, you risk losing what you earned because I may just have to inform the director that you said that you did not want to receive payment on account of saving the realms and righting your own wrongs was its own reward.” D’Artagnan threatened.

“Why you damn, lying, little Frenchman.” Nicholas spat before growling in frustration, “Emma, go find one of the others and stay with them until I get back. Do NOT speak to anyone else. Got it?”

“Got it.” she nodded.

As Nicholas followed D’Artagnan, Emma hustled back to where she hoped Branch Quartermain was. Unfortunately for her, the crowd of League agents made it difficult to find the faces she was familiar with. While trying to navigate through the laughing, drinking and eating agents, all of which as unique and strange as her lover’s friends, the Savior managed to reach the buffet.

“Come on, guys. Where are you?” Emma whispered.

“Lost, are we?” a soft voice said from the left. As soon as Emma heard the voice, a cold chill ran through her entire body.

Looking to her left, with a startled gaze, Emma saw a deathly pale man with sullen eyes looking at her with a small, dark smile. Like all the other guests, he was neatly dressed. However, he was wearing a leather apron as he stood behind one of the tables, as though he was serving the food. Aside from his skin color and eyes, the only other feature he had that was off setting was the white streak he had in his curly black hair.

“Um, y-y-yeah.” Emma stuttered, “I’m-I’m looking for somebody from Branch Quartermain.”

“Ah, yes. The ‘heroes’ of the hour.” the man said, still giving that frightening smile, “I am certain at least one of them will turn up. Do not worry.”

Being near this man alone was more than enough to make Emma worry.

“I think I’ll just keep looking.” she said hoping to get away.

“Perhaps you should wait here.” the man offered as he pulled a covered, silver tray from underneath the table, “Have something to eat while you wait.”

“I’m good, thanks. I’m not hungry.” she said, unable to will her body to move away.

“I insist.” he all but whispered as he uncovered the tray to reveal a single meat pie, “I made it, myself.”

But before the man could scare Emma any further, the sound of gunfire rang through the air before the pie exploded and purple energy bullet ricocheted through a man wearing a monocle’s champagne glass, through an old woman’s hat, atop another man’s head taking his toupee and into the duck leg of a man taking a bite.

Startled, Emma looked and saw Quartermain aiming his finger like a pistol at the tray before Sawyer stormed over to stand between Emma and the stranger.

“Still serving that garbage, are we?” Sawyer asked as his nostrils flared in anger.

“Alas, tis the only dish I know.” the man said playfully, and dark.

“You’re sick in the head. You know that?” Sawyer asked pointing at the man.

“Aren’t we all?”

“Not like you, Todd. No one is as twisted as you.” Sawyer spat before grabbing Emma’s arm and pulling her away, “Are you alright? Did he do anything to you?”

“Who was that?” Emma asked as her voice shook with fear and her breathing increased.

“Just breathe, okay? Breathe. Deep breaths.” Sawyer gently coached.

“All he did was talk to me and show me a fricking meat pie! Why do I feel like I’m about to piss myself? Who was that?!”

“Emma, I need you to calm down. He has that effect on people. So, I need you to calm down, and breathe.” he said trying to soothe the blonde, “You good?”

“I think so.” she nodded after a few moments.

“Okay. Listen to me. You need to stay away from that guy. He is a very, _very_ bad man and you of all people shouldn’t go anywhere near him. He’s very unpredictable and prone to murder.”

“Sawyer, who was that freak?” she asked.

“Freak doesn’t even come close to describe that monster. That was the man formally known as Benjamin Barker. Nowadays, he goes by Sweeny Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street.” Sawyer informed. As soon as Sawyer said this, they both heard the murderous barber sing from where they had left him.

“ _There’s a hole in the world like a great black pit_

_And it’s filled with people who are full of shit_

_And the vermin of the world inhabit it!_ ”

“The guy who slit men’s throats and had them ground into meat pie fillings?!” Emma exclaimed in fear, hoping the brief song would not get stuck in her head.

“He’s also ranked number four of the Thirteen Bishops.” Sawyer nodded, “Oh, sorry. The Thirteen Bishops are-”

“I already know. Nicholas told me.” Emma interrupted, “He’s with D’Artagnan to collect his payment for the Promised Day.”

“Something tells me that little prick was hoping you’d run into Todd.” Sawyer growled, “He’s had it out for us ever since he received his coin and he enjoys tormenting anyone affiliated with us, too.”

“Why in the hell are people like those two members of the League? I thought you guys stood for justice and peace, or whatever.”

“And we do.” Sawyer replied as he took her arm and guided her away from the buffet, “But not all of our members are ‘quirky’ like the agents you’ve interacted with. There are some like us in Branch Quartermain, and there are some who are like Sweeny Todd; heartless murders who only want to inflict pain, suffering, fear and death.”

“And where does D’Artagnan fall under?” Emma asked.

“Oh, he’s just a self-absorbed jackass who thinks simply trying at something means he’s more than worthy to be whatever it is he’s trying to be; and that he’s on the same level as someone who has dedicated years of hard work to achieve the strength they’ve gained.” Sawyer dryly replied, “In other words, he’s a prick.”

“You don’t think they’d try anything, do you?” Emma asked, slightly nervous.

“Emma, as long as you’re with us, no one is gonna try anything.” Sawyer promised, “We may have been in Storybrooke for thirty years, but people know there is still a reason to never cross Branch Quartermain.”

As the two walked through the gardens and fountains, Emma finally calmed down enough to further take in the beauty of Shamballa. However, the past three new agents she met would not get out of her mind.

“I gotta say, Sawyer, this league has some people I never expected to meet.” she admitted, “I still can’t believe Robin was a part of all this.”

Despite the late archer and agent being more close to Regina, Emma had grown rather close, in friendship, with the man towards the end of his life. Especially because of how far he was willing to help her save Nicholas from the Underworld.

“I didn’t know the man very long, but he was as much a brother to me as the rest of the boys in our branch are. We could have used him during the Promised Day.”

“Speaking of which.” Emma hesitantly began, “There’s something you guys might not know regarding that day.”

“What?” he asked as they came to a stop.

“Well, for starters, did Nicholas ever tell you who the fifth sacrifice was?” she asked.

“Um, no, he never did. We’ve been rather curious about that, actually. Who was it?”

“…The Evil Queen.” Emma confessed.

“Emma, I think Regina’s made enough progress to where we don’t need to refer to her as that, anymore.” Sawyer defended.

“No, I mean, Regina wasn’t a sacrifice but the Evil Queen was.”

“Explain.” Sawyer demanded. From there, Emma proceeded to tell the man what she witnessed the day she and the others left New York before being introduced to the team. In the meantime, Nicholas was finishing his business with D’Artagnan.

“I trust you found everything you were looking for?” the bishop asked with an annoying smile.

“I’ll consider this payment to be enough.” Nicholas replied as he finished inserting his payment into a crate that would be transported to his home in Storybrooke, “Now, if we have nothing further to deal with, I would like to rejoin my companions.”

“And the Savior?” D’Artagnan teased as Nicholas walked away, doing his best to ignore the man.

“It is a shame that your sisters, or that step-niece of yours could not join you tonight.” D’Artagnan added, causing Nicholas to stop, “I would very much like to meet them one day and get acquainted with them. Or perhaps that wolf girl you were infatuated with. Or even those sisters from Arendelle. I heard they’ve become quite lovely. Perhaps I could offer them with a position amongst out-”

But D’Artagnan was cut off in mid-sentence. Rather than being punched in the face, as Nicholas normally would have done, the alchemist decided to shield his hand and tear through the man’s face with his claws. With four deep claw marks covering his right cheek, D’Artagnan stumbled to the floor as he cried out in pain before Nicholas stomped on his chest and pinned him to the ground, looming over him as his eyes glowed red.

“If you ever go near my sisters, or any of the women in my life, I will kill you.” he warned with a simple, yet powerful threat.

Needing no further words to prove his point, Nicholas turned and left the room, leaving D’Artagnan to cover the wounds that would definitely scar his face. As Nicholas was on his way back to Emma, the Savior had finished explaining herself to Sawyer.

“Well, that’s great.” the agent groaned as he ran his hand over his face, “Now we’ll have to deal with the Evil Queen when we get back.”

“Sawyer, we’ve been looking for her for weeks. We haven’t found anything.” Emma pointed out.

“No offense, Emma, but you and your pals? You ain’t us.” Sawyer replied, “The seven of us, me especially, are very skilled in tracking people down. More so than you, even with your experience as a bail bonds woman.”

Before Emma could give her retort, her arm was gently grabbed and pulled by Nicholas as he stormed by.

“We’re going home, now.” he said as Sawyer followed, “Tom, get the others and have them meet up with us at the terminal.”

“Sawyer, do this. Sawyer, do that.” Sawyer imitated, “You know, in case you’ve forgotten, Quartermain’s back in charge so I don’t really have to do what you say, anymore.”

“Sawyer,” Quartermain interjected as he suddenly appeared behind the younger agent, “Get the others together and over to the terminal.”

“Right away, boss.” Sawyer complied with a salute before heading off to find his associates.

“Nicholas, what happened?” Emma asked as he escorted her through the crowd.

“I need to get you out of here. I never should have brought you here; consequences be damned.” Nicholas muttered to himself.

Not wanting to waste time, or risk the chance of running into another bishop, the alchemist dug into his pocket, pulled out and crushed a transport rock sending them just outside the terminal’s door.

“You know, I just wondered something.” Emma said.

“What?”

“Why is it that every other form of magic that touches you hurts you, but not those rocks you guys use?” she asked.

“Huh. I don’t know. I never thought of that.” Nicholas admitted, “I only ever thought they were like those smoke bombs ninjas use to disappear.”

As they discussed this, the others appeared in their own puffs of smoke.

“Lad, what’d you call the night in early for? What happened?” Skinner asked in concern.

“Oh, not much. Just that Emma’s managed to be introduced to three of the Thirteen Bishops in the past hour; one of which was that man-slaughtering, cannibalistic barber.” Nicholas replied with an irritated tone, “We need to go home; now.”

“Fine by me.” Mina huffed as she crossed her arms under her breasts, “I’ve had as much as I can stand of being near Van Helsing.”

“Well then, let’s go.” Nemo said as he escorted Ursula to the terminal. Once inside, he spoke to the cowboy.

“Eleven going down.”

“Eleven goin’ down.” the cowboy repeated as he activated the panel and sent everyone back to the Land of Untold Stories.

“By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask y’all.” Sawyer said looking over at Shan Yu and Gilles, “Since the Promised Day’s over, what’re y’all gonna do now?”

“Well, if it’s alright with the rest of you, I actually would like to stay in Storybrooke.” Gilles replied with a smile.

“You would, Bluey?” Skinner asked.

“Of course! Before we, the Amestrians and Homunculi practically destroyed the place, I found it to be quite the humble, little community. One that I wouldn’t mind staying in.”

“How ‘bout it, boss?” Nicholas asked.

“If he wants to stay, he can stay. I don’t care.” Quartermain replied not even bothering to look at them as he spoke.

“Excellent!” Gilles cheered.

“And you, Shan Yu?” Jekyll asked.

“I’ll be returning to my home.” the man replied as he clutched his stump, “I’m no good to the League, or anyone, as I am now. I need time. I need to see my family and clan, as well.”

“Of course.” Jekyll nodded in understanding.

“Hey, Yu, just a quick heads up. If you ever want to replace your old arm, I can fix you up with something.” Nicholas offered casually.

“What?” he asked.

“Yeah, if you aren’t opposed to the idea, I can make you a metal replacement arm and make where you could move and use it as well as your other one.”

“You can do that?” Sawyer asked.

“Well, a slightly less intelligent version of me was able to build himself an arm and a leg with only one hand, so it shouldn’t be that hard.” Nicholas shrugged.

“I’ll think about it, Flamel.” Shan Yu dryly replied.

“Whatever floats your boat.” the alchemist replied. Once the panel reached the other realm and everyone exited the hut, they bid their farewells to the Hun warrior.

“Well, Shan Yu, I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done for us.” Nicholas said as he offered his hand for his comrade, “We couldn’t have done it without you.”

“You are a mysterious, shrewd and merciless man, Nicholas Flamel.” Shan Yu stated before giving a small, respectful smile as he shook the man’s hand, “And it was an honor to have fought alongside you all. Farewell to you, comrades.”

With no further words, Shan Yu pulled out a bean of his own and used it to summon a portal back to his home. As everyone turned to head back to the portal they came in, one of Emma’s heels broke. Just before she could fall, Quartermain gracefully caught her by the arm and kept her steady.

“Steady on.” was all he said to her in, possibly, the softest voice she had heard from him.

“T-thanks.” Emma said, surprised at how gently he sounded. However, it quickly went away as the man barked at her lover.

“Flamel!” he snapped, “Fix the lady’s shoe.”

“Aye-aye, boss.” Nicholas dryly complied with a mock salute. 

With a quick flash, the alchemist fixed the shoe, all while Emma watched Quartermain walk slightly faster to where the doorway was. Out of all the teammates of Nicholas’ branch she had come to know over the past month, to Emma, Allan Quartermain was the most mysterious. Once they reached the portal, they found something very unsettling.

The door leading back to Storybrooke was cracked open.

“Oh, that is so not good.” Mina deadpanned.

“Who left the bloody door open?!” Quartermain shouted.

“I told you to close it!” Sawyer shouted and pointed at Skinner.

“I told Bluey to close it!” Skinner exclaimed and pointed at Gilles.

“You did?” he asked earning looks from everyone, “Sorry, I didn’t hear you. My tinnitus was acting up, again. Couldn’t hear a thing over the ringing.”

“How the hell do you know what tinnitus is?” Nicholas asked. Gilles’ only reply was a shrug.

After everyone returned to the mansion, they could not help but wonder if anyone had gone through the door while they were in Shamballa. They also wondered who might have come through to Storybrooke. Little did they know, but would soon find out, someone did go through the door; and they returned with plenty of guests.

In the woods of Storybrooke, a small encampment of newcomers was set up at the orders of their leader. Looking out at the town from the Cliffside view, Storybrooke’s newest problem gave a sinister grin.

“I hope you’re ready, Regina. For this town, and everything you have gained will be mine.” the Evil Queen declared.


	83. The Savior

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or the original LXG

The day following the trip to Shamballa appeared to be as quiet as the past few weeks had been for Storybrooke. Taking advantage of this, and the empty house they were in, Nicholas and Emma were in the process of heating things up. As Nicholas practically pinned the blonde to the couch as they made out, Emma broke away.

“What about Henry?” she asked not wanting her son to see, or interrupt them.

“He’s with Regina.” Nicholas replied, his voice hoarse with passion before continuing.

“Wait! What about my parents.” she asked definitely not wanting either of them to see, or interrupt them.

“They have no interest in walking in on this. Believe me.” Nicholas promised trying to keep going. 

“And my leather jacket?” Emma asked as he kissed her.

“No, it’s fine.” Nicholas replied, not caring in the slightest.

“Really?”

“Yeah, I like the red leather jacket.” he said earning that laugh he adored from her. Unfortunately, their next interruption came from the sound and feeling of the house shaking.

“The hell?” Emma asked as they stopped making out.

“That’s weird. I hadn’t planned on the house shaking this early.” Nicholas remarked as Emma pushed him off and went outside to see what was happening. 

As soon as they did, they noticed a large shadow glide across the ground. Once they looked up to see the source, they saw a large, steampunk styled air ship steadily sail through the sky. Following the contraption, the couple was joined by the Charmings, Hooks, Regina, Henry, the deputy dwarves and several citizens of Storybrooke.

“What the hell is that?” David asked as everyone followed it to the woods.

“It’s a dirigible from the Land of Untold Stories. The League uses them in that land to take people to the different districts of the city.” Nicholas replied, no less surprised to see it.

“What’s it doing in our town?” Snow asked, “How did it get here?”

“How indeed?” Nicholas asked as he shared an embarrassed/panicked look with Emma.

“Dammit, Bluey!” he cursed in his head.

“You think there are people in that thing?” Henry asked.

“Oh, I’d be surprised if there weren’t, Henry.” Nicholas dryly sighed just before the dirigible crash landed in the woods. Once they made it to the crash site, Emma and the others inspected the strange machine.

“Hello?” Emma asked as she entered the dirigible.

“LXG special agents; show yourselves!” Nicholas announced firmly. No one responded.

“No one’s here.” Emma said to her father.

“Where the hell is everyone?” he asked.

“Somewhere out in the forest.” Snow replied as she identified the nearby tracks, “It’s hard to tell exactly how many people there are, but look. From the spacing of their steps, they were running. Now they’re out there, scattered. Nicholas, did you hear anything about the League sending people over here for any reason?”

“Nothing. I can’t even imagine why they’d do such a thing to begin with. No offense to the town, or anything, but trading that land for this one is a pretty bad move. Somebody brought this thing here with intention of gaining our attention. Question is who and why?”

Thankfully the alchemist was too wrapped up in his thoughts to notice the looks his friends and family were giving each other. They had no proof, yet, but they were all worried that the Evil Queen was behind it all.

“Um, mate. Is it possible that a villain from that land came here?” Killian asked hoping to avoid telling his friend the truth.

“It’s possible.” Nicholas shrugged, “Aside from last night and when I went to go get Jekyll for the Promised Day, I hadn’t set foot in that land for about thirty-five years. There’s no telling who could have come and gone from that place during that time.”

“But what about that prison we were in?” Ariel asked.

“That’s only for criminals the League considers to be either useful for future instances or un-killable; like Mina was. Un-killable, that is. That and the deputy director took pity on her.” Nicholas replied, “I honestly doubt we’re dealing with one of those dirt bags. Escaping that place is practically impossible.”

“We managed.” Snow reminded.

“You managed because you were on the first level, from what Jekyll told me.” Nicholas replied, “Plus you had help from his cousin. That prison facility was made to contain the most dangerous criminals the League couldn’t kill, Snow. You got out because Jekyll let you out.”

“Where is Jekyll and the others, anyway?” Emma asked.

“Drunk off their asses and hungover in the mansion.” Nicholas dryly replied, “Since we left the party early last night, they broke out our reserves of Aesop’s alcohol we keep for special occasions. That stuff is _strong_.”

“Can we focus, please?” Regina snapped, “See if you can find something we can use to find these people.”

As everyone was rummaging around the wreckage, David tossed a piece of scrap metal which caused a loud clang. As soon as Emma heard this, her hand started shaking furiously as images she had never seen flashed in her mind. It was brief, but she could tell it was herself fighting some hooded figure with swords.

“Hey, Emma, are you okay?” Snow asked.

“Em? What happened?” Nicholas asked in concern.

“Nothing.” she lied, “Come on. Let’s try looking in town.”

“I’ll catch up with you later.” Regina informed, “I’ll need to put up a protection spell around the house since Zelena and the baby have moved in.”

“I’d better go tell the others, too. Depending on who was in that thing, this may or may not escalate into LXG business.” Nicholas added before he and his sister poofed/transmuted themselves away.

After her magic cleared, Regina entered her house hearing the cries of her baby niece ring through the halls. Out of concern, Regina called for her sister and began to panic when she did not reply. Thankfully, her sister came from the living room with a tired smile, and a cranky baby.

“Regina! Welcome to the madhouse.” Zelena greeted, gesturing to all the boxes containing her and Robin’s belongings.

“What is going on?” Regina exhaled.

“I’m just unpacking. What’s happening out there?” Zelena asked.

“Someone let a flying contraption filled with people from the Land of Untold Stories into the town.” her sister sighed in aggravation.

“Do you think it was the queen?” Zelena asked with worry.

“Most likely.” she nodded as the baby cooed.

“Say, sounds like it’s time for a showdown, doesn’t it, sweetness?” Zelena said sweetly to the baby as she put her in her crib, “Now have a nice nap while Mummy helps Auntie and Unky solve our little problem.”

“Uh, you should stay here.” Regina recommended, “Nicholas said there might be a chance that this’ll become League business, so we have to play defense.”

“Well, you kept me in worse prisons.” Zelena scoffed.

“I’ve said I was sorry about that.” Regina gently defended.

“I’m joking. Seriously, you opened up your home to us, so for as long as we’re here, I’m…I’m so grateful.” Zelena said with sincerity.

“It’ll be good for us.” Regina nodded.

“Oh! I just remembered, I’ve got something for you.” Zelena exclaimed before she started to rummage through the boxes, “Roland gave me something of Robin’s before they all left before the Promised Day.”

“Really?” Regina asked happily.

“Yeah, it was, um, it’s a feather from one of his arrows. It was so sweet.” Zelena nervously chuckled as she kept looking, “You know what? I, um, I remember now. I put it away somewhere extra specially safe.”

“Don’t even worry about it.” Regina said trying to wave it off, “A-a little chaos is normal. I’m just going to put a protection spell around the house and over the vault and…and you can find the feather?”

“I’ll find it.” Zelena nodded, not wanting to let her sister down, “So…you’re not angry?”

“Mhn.” Regina replied shaking her head and pursing her lips, “Course not.”

While Regina was dealing with her sister, Nicholas was about to enter the mansion before he noticed a note on the door.

“Dear Nicholas,” it read, “We drank all the booze from Aesop’s so we went to get more. Hope nothing turns to shit while we’re gone. Sincerely, Mina.”

“They drank it all and went to get more without _me_?!” Nicholas exclaimed, “Those bastards!”

“Glad to know where your priorities are, Flamel.” Rumple said from behind his fellow immortal.

“Oh, I don’t have time for this.” Nicholas whispered in irritation before turning around, “What, Rumple?”

“It’s been _weeks_! Nearly a month since the damn Promised Day, and you people haven’t upheld your end of our bargain.” Rumple hissed in anger.

“What are you talking about?” Nicholas asked.

“Waking Belle!” the man shouted.

“…I never said I was gonna wake her up for you.” Nicholas replied with a baffled look.

“No, Quartermain said-”

“Quartermain said that we are perfectly _capable_ of waking Belle up.” Nicholas cut off, “But none of us ever said we would. As for our ‘bargain’, as you call it, that was you upholding your end of our old deal; nothing more.”

Hearing this caused the Dark One to stare at the alchemist with his mouth agape.

“We were holding Belle as a hostage in case you thought about going back on our deal. And I never promised you that we’d wake her up after it was all said and done. In fact, you should be thanking us for keeping her locked in that box so her soul wouldn’t get taken, thus risk losing her baby; which, in case no one has figured out, is why I sped up Zelena’s pregnancy.”

“If you won’t help me willingly, then I shall have to force you.” Rumple snarled as he raised his now glowing hand, “Unless you want your precious town razed to the ground, you will wake Belle!”

“Go ahead. Try it.” Nicholas replied with a smirk.

“I’ll do it. I swear to God, boy!” Rumple shouted.

“Hmm. Show me.” Nicholas challenged dropping his smirk.

Not giving a damn, Rumple readied to release his spell only to see and feel it be nullified. With a look of shock, the man stared at his hand, utterly speechless.

“I don’t understand.” he whispered.

“Funny thing about magic; it can be very fickle, from what I have seen over the years.” Nicholas said as his smirk returned, “You don’t realize this, but you have backed yourself into the ultimate corner from which you can never escape.”

“What are you talking about, alchemist?!” the Dark One shouted.

“Ever since you became the Dark One, you’ve been making countless deals with everyone you’ve done business with. And in all those deals, you used your magic to bind and seal them, vowing never to break those deals; which, just happens, to include the deal we made all those years ago.” Nicholas explained.

“I set up the terms of our deal with the purpose of ensuring that you wouldn’t screw things up on the Promised Day, and so that you would never harm me, my family, or any of the people I care about ever again. You agreed not to hurt me or my loved ones even after I released you from our deal. That’s still in effect. And just like you’ve always said, Rumplestiltskin _never_ breaks a deal. Now, in case I’m going a bit too fast for you, you know, since you’ve always been slower than me, in lament’s terms, your magic won’t let you break our deal. You can’t destroy the town because my friends, loved ones and myself are in it. It doesn’t matter whether or not you died and lost your magic in the time between after we made our deal and when I cashed it in. It was lying dormant within you when you agreed, and then it returned to you stronger than ever.”

“You knew this would happen?” Rumple asked in shock.

“Eh.” Nicholas shrugged, “Call it a leap of faith. I was hoping this would be the outcome, but magic isn’t my forte. Which is why I kept Belle as a hostage. Do you see now, Rumplestiltskin? You’ve lost! You lost the minute you chose an old tea cup over your freedom to destroy the person you hate the most. A tea cup you eventually broke, I might add. I beat you and it’s taken you all this time to finally realize it. You can’t hurt any of the people I care about, and they’re all your biggest enemies.”

“There is one thing you’ve forgotten, boy, and it will be your greatest mistake.” Rumple warned as he trembled in anger, “Rumplestiltskin is also a master at finding loopholes.”

“I know.” Nicholas smirked, “Which is why I made sure there was only one possible loophole that could have been found in that deal. I intentionally left it out in the open, clear as day for you so you could realize that you’ve already destroyed it.”

“And just what could that be?”

“This.” Nicholas replied as he leaned in and said in his ear, “The only possible way for you to hurt us is if you have someone else willingly do it for you. And before you even think about tearing someone’s heart out to do it, let me continue to educate you. It would still be you trying to hurt us. Since you’d be controlling someone, it would still be you, by extension. Which would be in breach of our deal. So, the only way you could do that is if you had any friends; or even allies, at least. Neither of which, you have. Everyone in this town hates you and sees us as their leaders and protectors. Plus, all your old students or old business partners are either with me, worlds away, or dead.

“In the old days, people used to say we were each other’s rivals. Somewhere along the line, I think you began to believe that, too. But the truth is, _dearie_ , you’ve never been on my level. I told you, back in New York, I’ve always been three steps ahead of you in every way. All you’ve ever been to me is a thorn in my toe. The Dark One; the most feared man in all of Misthaven, beaten at his own game by someone who can’t even use magic. I want that little fact to remain in your brain for the rest of your miserable life. Because I know that will fester and eat away at you forever.” Nicholas harshly spat before whispering in his ear as he fell to his knees.

“That’s what you get for tricking my sister into killing our parents.”

“But, Belle is an innocent in all this.” Nicholas said at his usual tone as he straightened himself, “And as an agent of the LXG, I do not punish or harm the innocent. So, for her, and her alone considering everything she’s been through, I will tell you how you can wake her up.”

Pulling a small vial of sand from his pocket and Pandora’s Box, seeming prepared for this moment, Nicholas gave his instructions.

“This is the Sand of Morpheus. Sprinkle it on Belle and yourself and you’ll be able to enter her dreams and find out how to wake her.”

As Nicholas began to walk away from the broken man, he couldn’t help but chuckle before turning back to say one last thing to his old foe.

“I’m sure the irony isn’t lost on you, but I’m gonna say it anyway. All those years, you were concerned about dealing with Cora’s daughters when it was her son who defeated you.”

Later that afternoon, after putting her protection spells over her house and vault, Regina decided finally stop by her office. Ever since that fateful night, Regina hadn’t even come near the building let alone enter the room where her true love died. It didn’t take more than a few seconds for her tears to flow down her face. However as soon as they did, her brother and sister came in looking for her.

“Still looking for our guests?” Zelena asked with a playful smile, “Hopefully this little ordeal doesn’t involve weeks and weeks of battles and twists and turns like all the others did.”

“Including yours?” Nicholas teased.

“And yours.” Zelena retorted with a smirk.

“Ooh! Ding-dong, the witch comes back!” he laughed, “You hear that, sis?”

“Yeah. I heard.” Regina curtly replied as she crossed her arms and looked at her boots.

“What’s wrong?” Zelena asked in concern.

“This is the first time I’ve been back here…since Robin died.” Regina choked earning sighs from her siblings, “I need a moment.”

“What?” Zelena asked.

“This is just hard.” Regina waved off.

“I know.” Zelena nodded, “I lost someone here, too.”

“We all did.” Nicholas nodded sadly at the thought of his late friend.

“Zelena, Nicholas, I’m sorry, but please go.” Regina said beginning to grow frustrated.

“Shouldn’t we be helping each other?” Zelena asked.

“No.” Regina answered.

“Why not?” Nicholas asked in confusion as their sister approached them.

“Because I blame you. Both of you. Every time I look at either of you, I blame you for what happened.” Regina spat.

“Us?!” Zelena snapped.

“Okay, blaming me is one thing, but Zelena?” Nicholas asked hotly, “Regina, I was the one who sacrificed himself, I told Robin to convince Emma to go to the Underworld and bring me back. Zelena had nothing to do with any of it. Hades was the one who did the deed!”

“Yes, because of her!” Regina yelled jamming her finger at their sister, “Because of you and your stupid League and Promised Day, you let Gold become the Dark One again and had Robin convince everyone to go to Hell. I trusted her! And it was because of her that Hades was able to escape and come here putting us all in danger. Because of all that, Robin’s soul was obliterated!”

“You want to talk about trust?” Zelena asked, “Okay. Let’s talk about trust. You made the biggest decision in your life, ripping out the evil part of you, and you just went to Snow White before coming to your own flesh and blood.”

“Why do you even care?!” Regina shouted.

“You ripped out the part of yourself that was most like me!” Zelena cried.

“What is she talking about?” Nicholas asked not liking what he heard.

“That day you went looking for Henry, when the others and I were trapped in the Land of Untold Stories? Snow White stole something from that other Jekyll and Regina used it to separate the Evil Queen from herself.” Zelena replied.

“It was you.” Nicholas said as realization dawned on him, “You made her the fifth sacrifice!”

“…I don’t know what you want me to say.” Regina said stiffly.

“…The baby and I will be out by tonight.” Zelena said before poofing away. Too angry to think straight, Nicholas opted to storm out the door. That is before he stopped, raised his finger and turned around to set his sister straight.

“No, you know what your problem is, Regina?” he asked rhetorically, “You always blame the wrong people for all the shit that goes on in your life. You blamed Snow for Daniel’s death even though it was Mother who killed him. You blamed Emma for Henry feeling like he was unloved by us. And now? Now you’re blaming us for something both Hades _and_ Robin did. Hades was the one who tried to kill you, but Robin decided to sacrifice himself to save you. I had hoped that you had finally gotten past this. But now I see that you’re still that naïve girl who thought she could ride horses the rest of her life. You can’t blame the people who are really responsible because you know you can’t hurt them.”

Regina said nothing as her brother lectured her. Although, she nearly rolled her eyes as he did it. When the alchemist was done, he transmuted himself out of the office, as his sister did moments earlier. Later in the evening, after Snow and David found the new comers from the dirigible, Emma went home to tell Nicholas the news.

“Okay, we finally got some good news. My parents found the people from the Land of Untold Stories and sent them to Granny’s for food and shelter.” she said as she entered the house. However, nobody answered and the sound of AC/DC music was muffled by the walls. 

“Nicholas?” she called. It took a moment, but her nose picked up the pungent scent of tobacco and saw smoke coming from the basement door. Ever since they moved in together, Nicholas had been using the basement cave as his newest laboratory/man cave. As soon as she opened the door, a cloud of smoke erupted from the basement and gave her a large dose of second-hand smoke as the music filled her now ringing ears.

“Nicholas?” she called between her coughs and over the music as she went down the stairs, “Babe?”

As she called for her boyfriend, Nicholas was too busy welding something with a blowtorch while smoking, not one, but two cigars in his mouth, nearly biting them off with how clenched his jaw was. At the corner of his work bench was one of his ash trays covered in a pile of cigar buds. Even with his old goggles on, it was a wonder that he could see anything past the sparks and cloud of smoke he was making.

“Oh, great. He’s pissed.” Emma sighed in her head before raising her voice to get his attention.

“Nicholas!” Emma shouted, “Nicholas! NICHOLAS!!!”

Having enough of shouting, the music and the smoke, Emma waved her hand and had her magic turn off the music and make all the smoke disappear. As soon as this happened, Nicholas ripped off his goggles, turned off the torch and jerked his body around to see who had done it.

“Who the fu-oh, it’s you.” he began to shout before catching himself as he looked at his girlfriend. Although, he was not too pleased to see her.

“Nicholas, what’s going on?” she asked only to see him scowl at her and cross his arms; much like his sister was known for, “What?”

“When were you going to tell me about Regina and the Evil Queen?” he asked flatly.

“Oh, crap.” Emma thought.

“How’d you find out?” she asked with a sigh.

“Oh, Zelena blurted it out during her little rant at Regina in her office earlier this afternoon. You know, right after Regina flat out told us about how she blames the two of us for Robin’s death.” Nicholas hotly replied past the two cigars still in his mouth.

“She said that?” Emma asked.

“Oh, yeah.” Nicholas nodded, “And apparently, you knew about this little fact the whole time and neglected to tell me.”

“Okay, first of all, you have no room to talk.” Emma reminded with a warning tone, “Second, you were recuperating from your fight with the Homunculi until just yesterday. And third, considering what you just went through, we thought you wouldn’t be able to emotionally handle the situation.”

“Emma, fighting another doppelganger isn’t gonna make me triggered.” Nicholas assured, “If anything, I’ve felt weird not having to deal with the looming threat of somebody’s lookalike. But, I can understand your reasoning, and I appreciate you looking out for me. It just makes me so mad that Regina is acting like this again! I honestly thought she stopped doing this a long time ago.”

“I’m sorry she said that to you.”

“And the fact that she is completely disrespecting both the sacrifices Robin and Zelena made that night make it all the more infuriating!” Nicholas exclaimed, “You know what? I’m not gonna deal with this, again. I am not going to waste my breath trying to change her mind like our father and I did the last two times this happened. I’m done. I’m not even gonna bother speaking to her. When _Gina_ decides finally grow up and stop blaming the wrong people, that’s when I’ll accept her apology.”

“Man, those three have issues.” Emma bluntly thought. As she did, Nicholas cleared his workspace, causing the metal he was using to clang against each other. Hearing this, Emma’s hand started shaking again as her head was filled with the strange vision from earlier.

“Em, what’s wrong?” Nicholas asked in concern.

“Nothing.” she quickly lied.

“Nothing? So, your hand is just randomly shaking for nothing?” he asked as he grabbed her wrist and brought it eye level, “You can lie to everyone else, but not me. So, I’ll ask again, what is wrong?”

“…I don’t know.” Emma gently confessed, slightly afraid of what she was seeing, “I don’t know what’s going on and until I do, just let me handle it.”

“Fine.” Nicholas huffed, “I guess I owe you that much, all things considering what I put you through. Doesn’t mean I like it. But I’ll accept it; for now.”

“Thanks.” Emma whispered as Nicholas grabbed Graham’s old jacket and headed towards the stairs, “Where are you going?”

“Well, I’m more accustomed to Regina’s temper tantrums than Zelena is. And instead of being there to make sure she’s handling this one alright, I’ve been down here smoking and welding to AC/DC. I wanna make sure she’s okay. Plus, those were my last two cigars.” he replied.

“Is that all?” Emma asked with a knowing smirk.

“…And I wanna see my cute, little niece. Happy? After that, I need to find the others and tell them about our situation. I’ll be back by tomorrow morning.” he said before transmuting away.

Later, once it had gotten late enough, Emma turned in for the night and fell into a heavy sleep. Unfortunately for her, the visions plaguing her mind found their way into her dreams, as well. As the flashes of the strange fight flickered in her head, the voice of a male stranger echoed in the air.

“How strange this must be for you, young Savior.” the voice said in a smooth, comforting tone, “Not many are able to witness such a thing like their own fate. Alas, you are part of the rare exception, now.”

Next thing Emma knew, she was standing in her tank top and sleeping boxers in the middle of a mystical, colorful space with sparkling sand floating in the air. But she was not alone. Standing off to the side was the mystical-looking man Regina, Henry and Zelena had seen in the portrait they found on the Promised Day. From what Emma could tell, he did not mean any harm and all the strange dust seemed to be coming from him.

“Who are you?” she asked.

“Oh, you don’t need to know my name just yet, dear.” he said with a kind smile, “But, I suppose you can call me by the name you knew when you were a child. Should be pretty easy to figure out.”

“Are you the Sand Man?” she asked with a befuddled look.

“That’s what they call me.” he chuckled softly, “You don’t seem to be having a very pleasant dream tonight. Do you?”

“What are these-these visions I’m seeing?” Emma asked.

“You are seeing many things and one thing all at the same time. Call it whatever you like; your destiny, your fate, your future. It’s all the same.” the Sand Man answered, “What you have seen today are but fragments of what your mind is trying to tell you. I can show you more, if you only ask. But I warn you, knowing the future is a heavy burden.”

“If that’s going to happen to me, I need to see more no matter how heavy. I need to know how I can stop it.” Emma said, anxious to know.

“The future is always in motion, always changing, but also inevitable.” Sand Man replied.

“The visions are coming whether I want them to or not. Let’s get this done.” Emma demanded.

“As you wish.” he nodded as he raised his hand and sent a wave of his magical sand into Emma’s head.

In an instant, Emma was looking at the completed vision. Like before, she was locked in a sword fight for her life against a hooded figure in the streets of Storybrooke. But she was losing. As she struggled to fight back, the sword she was using vanished after her enemy parried it out of her hand. Next, Emma tried to use her magic only to see it fail as her hand started shaking. It was then the stranger drove their sword through Emma’s stomach, causing a fatal wound before she fell to the ground. After she fell, the sky turned purple and the roar of a wild animal filled her ears. Using her last bit of strength, Emma turned her head and saw a monster made of purple fire charge towards her in fury before leaping to dive and devour her. Before the creature could, Emma gasped as she returned to the Sand Man.

“What you saw, was a small piece of the end of your story, Savior.” he said.

“What were those things?” she asked in fear.

“One was an evil that has yet to be born into this world. The other, an ancient beast that will unleash havoc on your home.” Sand Man warned, “Storybrooke will burn, Savior, and you won’t be around to save it. When your story ends, so, too, will your home.”

“There has to be another way.” Emma pleaded.

“You can change the path to the destination, but the destination is still the same. On the day you saw, on the battle you saw, you will die. And that beast will be free to unleash its wrath on anyone it desires.”

“How can I stop it? Whatever’s coming, I will defeat it, but I need to how.”

“I do not doubt you. But unfortunately, that’s what the Saviors always say until they lose faith and delay the inevitable.” Sand Man said with a sad look in his eye.

“What are you talking about?” Emma asked.

“You are not the first Savior, Emma Swan. There have been many before you that bared the responsibility of that title and power. The magic that lives inside you has been passed on through many who were believed worthy. But wherever there is a Savior, there is a villain who brings them down; one way or another. That is the never changing story of the Savior. It is your fate.”

“…So, who is it?” Emma all but whispered.

“You will know soon enough, dear girl. Heed my words, Emma. Do not lose faith. Not in your family. Not in your friends, and especially, not in yourself.” Sand Man advised, “Believe in the magic that courses through you. For when the time comes, it will be all that you have left to fight with. But until then, all that I have left to say is…sweet dreams, Savior.”

With nothing further to say, the mysterious Sand Man vanished from Emma’s dreams and left her to sleep as peacefully as she could for the rest of the night. While Emma was sleeping, Zelena had just finished settling Robin down to sleep; again. As she left the bedroom to grab a glass of water, she noticed her fireplace was lit.

“Trouble sleeping?” a familiar voice called from the kitchen.

“Regina?” she asked only to see the Evil Queen sitting at the table with two green appletinis waiting to be drunk.

“Isn’t life deliciously ironic?” the queen asked as she examined her nails, “All you ever wanted was a sister. And when you finally get that wish, it’s the wrong one.”

“You.” Zelena said in disbelief as the queen laughed evilly, “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, let’s have a drink, sis.” she said playfully as she slid one of the glasses her sister’s way and raised her own to drink, “It’s time for some sisterly bonding.”


	84. A Bitter Draught

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

After making sure Robin was sound asleep, Zelena and the Evil Queen decided to take a little field trip, rather than drink and chat. Something the sleep deprived mother was not pleased about.

“I agreed to a drink, not a private graveyard tour. Where are we going?” Zelena asked.

“You’ll see.” the queen replied with an evil smile as they reached the vault.

“No.” Zelena flat out refused, “No way. I can’t let you in there.”

“If Regina didn’t want me helping myself to a few ingredients, she wouldn’t have sealed the vault with blood magic.” the queen defended as they entered the vault with ease. Once down stairs, the evil half began searching for whatever it was she wanted.

“And how do you know I won’t tell her or Nicholas about this little field trip?” Zelena questioned.

“Because you already would have.” Evil Queen chuckled.

“Why do you need all that magic?” Zelena asked.

“Because I already used everything The Dragon had in his shop to get back to this pitiful little town after the Promised Day.” she replied.

“And what became of him?” Zelena asked.

“Let’s just say he should have known better than to underestimate me.” Evil Queen vaguely replied as they both chuckled.

“Sound advice for us all, no?” Zelena dryly joked.

“You’re worried I’m going to hurt our brother and my better half, aren’t you?” Evil Queen asked.

“It remains to be seen which half is better.” Zelena retorted, “Besides, Nicholas can take care of himself.”

“True. But, no one knows what makes our little brother tick better than Regina and I.” she warned still smiling as she grabbed a box full of everything she needed, “Besides, I’m just going to use this to teach Regina a lesson; that she can never escape who she really is.”

“And what do I get out of it?” Zelena asked.

“A sister who appreciates all of your delightfully malevolent qualities. A sister like you.” Evil Queen promised before poofing away. The following morning, Henry and Regina headed towards Granny’s, with the story book, and nervous gitters.

“Okay, Mom. Are you ready for this?” Henry asked.

“Yeah.” Regina sighed, “Everyone listened to me before…because I was the Evil Queen. Now I’m going to show them that I’m just as strong without her.”

“Remember what we’re calling it; Operation Cobra: Part Two.” Henry reminded as he gave her the book.

“Part two?” she asked.

“Yeah. This time you’re the hero.” Henry said full of belief. Inside the diner, the heroes were trying to get things organized with their new guests.

“Okay!” David hollered over the chatter, “Room keys are on the counter. Fresh clothes are by the jukebox.”

“What’s a jukebox?” one man asked.

“Lunches are by the front door.” David finished, feeling the irony in full effect as Regina and Henry walked in.

“Your Majesty, it’s about time.” Hook greeted, “The rabble are getting restless.”

“Was I this bad when I first got here?” Ariel asked her husband.

“Love, you still comb your hair with a salad fork. What does that tell you?” Hook asked his wife.

“That you’re too cheap to buy your wife a new hair brush?” Ariel asked without even looking at the pirate.

“…I am not cheap.” Killian retorted quietly after getting over his shock before Regina gained everyone’s attention by dropping the book on the counter.

“As mayor, I would like to officially welcome you to Storybrooke. You fled to the Land of Untold Stories because you were afraid that whatever was in this book is going to play out. But now that you’re here, I’m sure you’re scared it will. But what you don’t realize is…I’m just like you. I’m also getting a fresh start, and I don’t know what the future holds either. But I do know one thing. We don’t have to be afraid of anything, because whatever comes next, we’re going to face it; together.”

Once the speech was done, all the newcomers began to applaud. As they did, Belle entered the diner, surprising all her friends.

“Hey, does anyone know-”

“Belle.” Emma said happy to see her friend, “You’re here, and you’re awake.”

“Yeah, and I need a place to stay. Have-have I really been asleep for over a month?” Belle asked finding it hard to believe.

“Aye, love. And you missed out on…a lot.” Killian said not finding the right words to sum up recent events.

“Is, um, is Nicholas here, by any chance?” Belle asked looking around through the crowd.

“Um, no. Why?” Emma asked.

“Let me guess.” Regina said as she and the others joined in, “You want to either slap him across the face, punch him in the nose, or kick him in the nuts.”

“If what Rumple told me is true, then I’d rather go with D: All the above.” Belle grumbled angrily.

“Um, you may want to leave out that last one, love.” Killian gently defended, “He may be immortal, but he’s still a man.”

“Not when I get through him, he won’t be.” Belle muttered, “So, are all these people part of this League Nicholas is a part of?”

“Well, that’s just one of the things we’re trying to figure out.” David sighed, “And until Nicholas and the others get back, we won’t know for sure.”

“How come you’re not staying with Rumplestiltskin, Belle?” Ariel asked.

“We’re, uh, we’re not together at the moment, Ariel.” Belle replied trying to avoid the subject, “So, I thought maybe Granny would have a room.”

“Oh, I would not wish those mattresses on my worst enemy.” Emma warned while Granny waved her off, “We’ll find you something better.”

“Aye. I know just the place.” Killian nodded, “What do say, Swan? Care to join us?”

“Oh, I, uh, I can’t.” Emma replied.

“Why not?” Ariel asked.

“I have an appointment with Archie.” she answered.

“Everything okay?” the mermaid asked.

“Yeah, it’s just…we’ve been through a lot. Can’t hurt to talk about it.” Emma partially lied.

“Well, we’re glad to hear it, love.” Killian said feeling proud of his friend as he and Ariel escorted Belle out the door, “Right. This lady needs to find some accommodation. Right this way.”

Right as they were about to leave, Nicholas, Sawyer and Nemo came in to see what all the commotion was about. As luck for Belle would have it, Nicholas came in first.

“Belle!” he said happily, “You’re awake!”

Next thing he knew, he was getting punched in the nose which knocked him back into Nemo’s arms as the trio walked out.

“Now, you can’t say that you didn’t deserve that.” Nemo pointed out.

“Yeah, I know.” Nicholas groaned holding his nose as it healed and stood up straight.

After they went to find the Charmings, another newcomer came into the diner wearing tattered clothes. This, of course, did not go unnoticed by Henry who had been looming over his book.

“Who are you?” he asked the man.

“Beg your pardon?” the stranger asked, caught off guard by the question.

“What’s your name? If I could find your story, then maybe we could figure out how to pick up where you left off.” Henry clarified.

“You won’t find me in there, my boy. I’m not important enough to have my own tale.” the man mysteriously replied.

“Don’t say that. Let me just see if I can find you.” Henry said, taking his eyes off the man for a second before realizing he vanished. But not without leaving a sealed letter behind on the counter. After informing his grandparents and the three agents about the strange encounter, they went outside to prevent any of the newcomers from becoming worried.

“And he just left it on the counter?” David asked.

“Then he vanished. You think he might be another vampire? What if he’s Dracula?” Henry asked before catching himself, “Oh, wait. It’s daytime.”

“Believe me, Henry. The last thing this town needs is for that blood sucker to show up.” Sawyer mused, “Mina would destroy the place to get to him if that ever happened.”

“What did he look like?” Nemo asked.

“Uh, old clothes, about 5 10’, looked like he’d been in a lot of fights. He also had a scar on his head.” Henry replied.

“Did he have brown piercing eyes?” Sawyer asked.

“Yeah.”

“Was the scar kinda curved over his left eyebrow?” Nicholas asked.

“Yeah.” Henry nodded.

“Crap!” the two agents exclaimed while Nemo sighed.

“Oh, please don’t tell us it’s another agent.” Snow pleaded with a groan.

“He is, but not like the agents you’ve met.” Nicholas said in annoyance at the situation.

“His name is Edmond Dantes. Or as we like to call him, Agent Monte Cristo.” Nemo informed.

“The count? That Monte Cristo?” Snow asked.

“Well, it’s not the sandwich.” Sawyer dryly joked.

“Why is the Count of Monte Cristo wanting to meet with us?” David asked.

“Better question is, why is he here?” Sawyer asked as he grabbed the letter to read it, “He never goes to the outside realms. It’s always just been back and forth between headquarters and the Land of Untold Stories with him.”

“Because he wants the two of you dead.” Regina answered looking at Snow and David, “He wants his revenge, and that’s the only way he can get it.”

“That doesn’t make sense. We’ve never even met him. Why would he want to kill us?” Snow asked.

“Because I hired him to do it.” Regina replied.

“Here we go.” Nicholas dryly remarked, rolling his eyes. As this went on, Emma was sitting in Archie’s office listening to the sound of the ticking clock as he sat across from her.

“Emma, this is a safe space. You can trust me.” Archie assured.

“The tremors, they come with visions, or a vision. One vision, actually.” Emma corrected.

“What do you see in this vision?” Archie asked while Emma struggled to admit the truth.

“Uh, alright. Um…I’m on Main Street. I’m fighting somebody wearing a hood. They’re strong. So strong. I’m giving it my all. I almost start to win. But then my hand starts shaking.”

“And what happens then, Emma?” Archie asked.

“Um…the person I’m fighting knocks my sword out of my hand and before I can grab it, it vanishes. And then…”

“And then…what?” Archie pressed.

“…They stab me in the gut and I fall to the ground. And as I’m lying there, the sky turns purple and I hear something roar off to the side. I look and see something, some kind of monster, made out of purple fire charge towards me and jumps at me. Probably wants to eat me, I don’t know. Long story short, I die. That’s the first time I’ve said that out loud.” Emma finished.

“Well, I think the more you talk about it, the less it will haunt you.” Archie advised.

“You think I should tell my family?” Emma asked.

“Well, I mean the question is, why haven’t you?” he asked.

“Because I know exactly what they would do. They would tell me to stop doing what I’m doing until they could save the day.” Emma answered in frustration.

“And what would be so wrong about them trying to protect you?” he asked.

“Because I’m the Savior.”

“And the Savior can’t take a day off?” Archie challenged.

“If I don’t help people, then who am I?” she asked.

“Well, I don’t know, Emma. I mean, that’s, uh, that’s a question you have to ask yourself.”

“Okay, I’m not here for some identity crisis. I just want you to help me figure out how to win this fight and protect the people I love.” Emma said.

“I think you’re here for me to help you deal with whatever’s troubling you, and-and-and if that’s not an identity crisis, then-”

“Okay, this was a mistake.” Emma said getting up from her chair and heading out the door. In the meantime, Snow, David and Regina were inspecting the count’s room while the three agents went looking for the man.

“He was definitely here.” Snow said, looking at the calligraphy set.

“Whoa!” David exclaimed as he opened a trunk filled with weapons, “Yep, he’s definitely part of the League, alright.”

“Why didn’t you tell us?” he asked Regina.

“Well, I didn’t know he was in Storybrooke.” Regina defended, “And do you really want to hear about every time I tried to kill you?”

“Yes.” he said without hesitation.

“I’m sorry. You know I’m trying to put that behind me. Clearly, _Agent_ Monte Cristo didn’t get the memo.” Regina sighed.

“Maybe that’s the problem. You hired him, you fire him.” Snow said not too pleased about a hitman on her tail.

“Well, that’s exactly what I’m going to do. The invitation says to meet him at the dirigible in an hour.”

“Well, we’re coming with you.” David nodded.

“No. This is my mess. I’ll fix it. And, really, it should go more smoothly if he’s not trying to use you as a pin cushion.” Regina argued.

“Is that why you decided not to tell Nicholas about where he’d be waiting?” Snow asked as Regina was about to exit the room. 

For a moment, the mayor hesitated before walking down the hall and poofing away. A few moments after she arrived at the dirigible, she found herself surrounded by a familiar face.

“Did you really think we were that stupid?” Sawyer rhetorically asked his friend’s sister.

“This has nothing to do with you, Sawyer. This is my mess, not yours.” she spat at him.

“He’s an agent like me and Nicholas, Regina” Sawyer reminded, “That makes this LXG business. So it has everything to do with us. And Edmond is not like the other agents you’ve encountered this past month. He’s far more dangerous than when you hired him to kill the Charmings.”

“What are you talking about?” she asked.

“After Edmond successfully infiltrated the Charmings’ castle, as you ordered, his little assassination attempt didn’t go through like he wanted. He didn’t think they deserved to die. But, Rumplestiltskin, whom you informed on the matter, wasn’t willing to take any chances. So, he poisoned Snow’s handmaiden, who reminded Edmond of his late fiancé, and left her to die in a wine cellar. Until Nicholas showed up and offered the man a way to the Land of Untold Stories and a position in the LXG.”

“What position?” she asked as the man paced around her.

“Oh, pretty much the physical trainer of the LXG.” Sawyer deadpanned, “He was so skilled in combat, Nicholas saw the chance for him to help other agents hone their skills by training with him and allowing them to become better than ever; all of us agents you’ve met, included. So in other words, the man is practically as skilled as every agent he’s ever trained and spared against over the past thirty plus years. Do you understand the severity of the situation now?”

“Highly unlikely.” the count said from behind them with a sword at his side, “Thomas.”

“Edmond.” Sawyer greeted with his hand over his pistol.

“I’m calling off our deal, Count.” Regina informed.

“What happened?” he asked as he drew his sword to intimidate her, “Did they finally convince you that finding your happiness is the best revenge?”

“Actually, yes.” Regina nodded calmly, “It took some time, but they’re right.”

“But that doesn’t change anything.” Edmond argued.

“Edmond, let us help you.” Sawyer calmly offered, but still on guard, “We’re friends, right? Just come with me to the mansion and we can settle things out. This town has been through enough because of the League. We don’t need to cause these people anymore trouble by fighting.”

“You don’t need revenge to get over what happened to the person you loved.” Regina assured, “If I can learn that, anyone can.”

“You may have sent me down this path, Your Majesty. But not even you can take me off it now.” Edmond denied as he discreetly crushed a transport rock and poofed away.

“Plan B it is.” Regina sighed as she called Emma on her cell phone.

“On it.” Emma said before hanging up in the patrol car with her parents.

“What is it?” Snow asked.

“Errol Flynn is not backing down.” Emma replied as she started to drive towards the town line.

“Where are you taking us?” her mother asked.

“I told Regina I’d take you somewhere safe.”

“Emma, no, we are not leaving town. We’re not running from our wine steward.” Snow argued before the car crashed into some invisible barrier.

“What the hell was that?” David groaned in pain.

“Looks like the Count doesn’t want you running either.” Emma assumed. After getting out of the car to inspect what happened when Regina and Sawyer showed up, Emma changed her mind.

“I don’t think the count did this.” she said before waving her hand to show the barrier.

“A protection spell?” Regina asked as she inspected it.

“Just like the one you used to keep everyone in here during the curse.” Emma nodded.

“Not _like_ it. This is the same spell.” Regina said in surprise, “The only way to do that is with the ingredients from my vault, which I sealed with blood magic.”

“So that leaves either the queen or-” Sawyer began before everyone noticed Zelena poof in.

“Regina. I got your message. Is everyone okay?” she asked as she walked towards them.

“Nicholas’ other sister wearing a form fitting dress.” Sawyer thought as they all looked at her.

“You know, I’ll never understand why you parade around these deathtraps rather than just magicking yourself around town. What happened?” Zelena asked.

“Well, someone put a protection spell on the town line.” Regina informed, crossing her arms.

“Really?” Zelena asked, despite knowing it was the queen, “Well, who would do that?”

“I was gonna ask you the same question.”

“You’re accusing me of causing this?” Zelena asked insulted.

“Oh, come on. Zelena, it was either you or the queen, so you might as well admit-”

“What?” she interrupted, “That it was _me_?”

“Or _wasn’t_ you.” Regina finished with a snooty tone.

“You know what? I’m getting really tired of this inquisition. Have fun dealing with this by yourself.” Zelena snapped before poofing away.

“I’m starting to think the Count isn’t the only one we have to be worried about.” Regina said to the others. True enough, back in town, the other threat in question was proving to be a nuisance to another citizen; Mr. Gold.

Entering his shop, Rumplestiltskin immediately noticed something was off. Not a moment later, he noticed one of his glass cases was left open and missing one of the trinkets he kept inside.

“When I heard the Savior tell my fellow sacrifices and I on the Promised Day what Regina did, I thought, ‘No, this is too good to be true.’” Rumple said with his back turned to his uninvited guest.

“Don’t lie. You’re happy I’m back.” the queen argued from behind.

“Happy isn’t the word I’d use.” Rumple corrected, “Now, where is it?”

Rolling her eyes and clicking her tongue, the Evil Queen held up what she took in her fingers; a small coin from the Enchanted Forest. Not playing any games, Rumple made it appear in his hands via magic.

“Did you really think you could steal from me?” he asked.

“Oh. It’s just a piece of tin.” Evil Queen scoffed.

“And yet, so much more.” he smirked.

“You want a deal?” Evil Queen playfully challenged, approaching him.

“If you want this bauble, my terms are simple. Whatever you have planned for this town, leave Belle and my unborn son out of it.” he demanded earning a sigh and eye roll, “Do you want the coin or not?”

“Fine. I won’t hurt them.” she promised taking the coin and his hand and pressing it against her throat, seductively, “But, are you sure that’s all you want in return? Hmm?”

“What else did you have in mind?” Rumple asked, not looking very interested.

“Oh, I don’t know.” Evil Queen pouted, running her hands over his chest, “The tales in the Land of Untold Stories aren’t the only ones that never played out.”

“And what makes you think I have any interest in seeing how this one goes?” he challenged.

“Eventually, you’ll get tired of waiting for that bookworm to accept you for who you are. And when you do…that’s when the real fun can begin.” she whispered darkly and seductively before leaving. Back at the dirigible, Regina and Henry were searching for ways to stop the Count.

“I know you think this was your fault, Mom.” Henry reasoned.

“That’s not it, Henry. I stood up in Granny’s and told everyone from the Land of Untold Stories not to be afraid. They’ve only been here one day. I can’t let the first story play out like this.” Regina said before gasping at an unexpected sight. Snow’s old handmaiden lying dead and covered in black veins.

“Mom.” Henry gasped.

“Sawyer was telling the truth.” Regina whispered. Hoping to save the girl, Regina tried to use her magic, only to watch it be canceled out as soon as she touched the body.

“Mom, are you okay?” Henry asked.

“What the hell was that?” she asked, “What the hell is going on?!”

“The handmaiden’s story finally caught up with her.” the Evil Queen said off to the side by the dirigible, “Just like yours is catching up with you. Miss me? Hi, sweetie. Mommy’s back.”

“No. I killed you.” Regina spat as fear shook her.

“What? Didn’t believe what everyone’s been so afraid of this past month?” she asked, “Did you really think it would be that easy? After everything I did for you, after everything we accomplished together, you threw me away like I never existed.”

“No, I threw you away _because_ you existed.” Regina corrected as she tried and failed to summon her fireballs, “What the hell?”

“I laced the girl’s cloak with a magic dampening spell.” Evil Queen boorishly replied.

“I should have known. You’ve been controlling the Count this whole time.” Regina realized.

“Well, of course I have.” Evil Queen replied summoning Edmond’s heart, “I don’t leave things to chance. I will give the man credit. It wasn’t easy getting my hands on this. Guess they just don’t make Extraordinary Gentlemen like they used to.”

“That’s why he didn’t want my help. That’s why he said I couldn’t stop him.” Regina explained.

“You ordered the Count to kill Snow and Charming all those years ago, so now…that’s exactly what he’s going to do. You should be thanking me.” Evil Queen suggested with a chuckle before poofing away.

As they were walking along the docks, Snow and David came face to face with their old wine steward wielding his sword and a broken expression.

“Edmond.” Snow breathed.

“Edmond, come on. This is all a big misunderstanding.” David tried to reason.

“Oh, you have no idea.” Edmond exhaled before swinging his sword, causing the couple to roll away.

“Edmund, we can explain everything.” David said.

“Regina’s our friend. She’s changed.” Snow promised, “She doesn’t want you to do this.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. She does.” Edmond corrected as they tried to fend him off.

“Then why are you doing this?” David asked as they struggled.

“Because she has my heart!” Edmond growled.

“Who, Edmond? Who has your heart?” David asked again.

“The Evil Queen!” he cried as he shrugged them off with ease.

“It doesn’t matter.” Snow denied, “We defeated her before, we’ll do it again.”

“This time is different, Snow White.” Edmond reminded as he skillfully waved his sword, “This time, I am Extraordinary.”

Catching them off guard, Edmond cut a strand of rope holding oil drums that slammed into the couple and knocked them out.

“Forgive me,” Edmond softly pleaded as he raised his sword, “This is not the ending I wished for any of us. All I wanted was a fresh start.”

Before he could kill either of them, Regina appeared with a sword of her own, blocking the attack.

“You can still get one.” she said as she tried to shake the man off, “Listen, I know the Evil Queen has your heart, you can fight this.”

“I’ve tried to fight!” Edmond shouted as he pushed her off, “I can’t! I can barely hold back, as it is!”

“This is him holding backing?” Regina bluntly thought as he kept her on the defensive.

“Your story doesn’t have to end like this.” she said.

“My story ended the moment your evil half took my heart and plucked us from the Land of Untold Stories!” he snarled while Regina tried kicking him.

“You mean Charlotte? I’m sorry. I was too late.” she apologized.

“So the poison finally took her.” Edmond lamented giving Regina the chance to get away a few feet.

“I may not have been able to save her, but I am going to save you.” Regina promised only to be knocked on her ass by the Gentleman. In a desperate attempt, she tried throwing a fireball only to see it go out like before.

“Henry, call Emma! I could use some of her magic right about now!” Regina shouted to her hiding son as she continued to fight.

“I can’t!” he shouted as magic covered his phone, “It’s the queen! She did something!”

Having enough, Edmond relieved Regina of her sword and made his way back to the fallen royals, ready to kill them. But he was once again stopped by the voice of Storybrooke’s mayor.

“Stop! Please.” she begged.

“…This is the only way.” Edmond said knowing what would come next. With no other choice, Regina hurled the sword and watched it fly through the Count’s chest, killing him almost instantly and ending his misery. Regretting what she did, Regina hurried to the fallen man, hoping he somehow survived. But it was too late.

“Mom, Mom. Are you okay?” Henry asked in concern as his grandparents finally woke up.

“I’m so sorry.” Regina apologized on the verge of tears.

“You did what you had to do.” Henry tried to soothe.

“Edmond.” David said sadly.

“No.” Snow mourned.

“I had no choice.” Regina sobbed.

“No, that’s not true.” the Evil Queen mockingly denied from the side.

“I couldn’t just stand by and watch the Count kill my friends.” Regina spat.

“Oh, I thought heroes always found a third way. Unless, of course, this means you’re _not_ a hero.” the queen laughed as Regina snarled, charged, and grabbed her by the collar of her dress.

“I will rip your heart out!” Regina shouted.

“Yes! That’s the Regina I remember.” Evil Queen said with a crazed look in her eyes, “We do like it rough, don’t we?”

“You didn’t want the Count to kill Snow and David. You wanted me to kill him.” Regina exhaled.

“Well, it was the only way to show you that no matter what you do, the darkness will always be inside. And that _tiny_ bit of darkness I awakened today is only going to grow.”

“Don’t listen to her, Regina.” Snow coached earning the biggest death glare from the queen she’d seen in decades.

“Snow…White.” the queen hissed in fury.

“Snow.” David warned.

“No, I’m not afraid of her.” Snow declared, not backing down, “We defeated you before. We’ll do it again.”

“Oh, _I’m_ not the one who’s going to destroy your…happy endings. Not this time.” Evil Queen corrected.

“Then who is?” Regina asked.

“You.” Evil Queen replied, “You’re going to destroy everyone’s happy endings.”

“You won’t divide this family.” Snow denied.

“Oh, I won’t have to. The people from the Land of Untold Stories aren’t the only ones with tales they don’t want told. And when your stories finally play out? I’ll just sit back and watch you,” Evil Queen laughed before speaking in a singsong voice, “ _Tear yourselves apart~._ ”

And with that, the deranged doppelganger vanished in a cloud of purple smoke. Later that day, after night had fallen, in the League’s mansion, Mina was looking for one teammate in particular. Sure enough, she found him in the place she knew to find him.

“Nicholas?” she softly asked in concern. Although he acknowledged her presence, Nicholas did not take his eyes off what he was mournfully staring at; Robin’s, Quixote’s, and now Edmond’s memorial portraits hanging in the Hall of Portraits.

“Three agents.” he said somberly, “We’ve lost three agents in less than two months in this town. Three damn good agents. And I personally recruited two of them into this damn League.”

“Quixote and Edmond’s deaths are not on your hands, Nicholas.” Mina gently argued as she stood next to him to offer comfort, “You gave them a purpose and something to believe in.”

“And what good did that do?” he whispered, “They still died. And Edmond died as someone’s puppet today. Worst of all, it was at the hands of both halves of my sister. I take it H.Q. isn’t going to do anything about this?”

“We received word that this is to be considered a Storybrooke problem. So, the responsibility of handling it falls on the people of Storybrooke. Edmond’s position has already been filled.” Mina replied.

“…How did it become like this, Mina?” Nicholas sadly asked with a sigh.

“You know how. We all do.” she reminded.

“This isn’t going to end well. This town will destroy itself from the inside if these people can’t accept their stories and move forward.”

“Yes. But you know better than anyone that is not an easy thing to do.” Mina pointed out, “The past will come back to haunt us all. Only question is, who’s next?”

Back at the diner, while everyone was licking their wounds from the day’s events, David found something meant only for him. Inside an envelope was the coin the Evil Queen had obtained from Gold earlier that day. Suspecting that it came from her, David went outside expecting to find her waiting for him; and she was.

“How do you like your gift?” she asked sitting at one of the outside tables.

“I had a feeling it came from you.” he said, “Why did you give it to me?”

“Simple. Like I said, we all have untold stories waiting to be played out.” she reminded.

“I hate to break it to you, but this one’s already been told.” David informed, “You see, this was a good-luck charm I wrapped around my father’s wrist before he left out farm.”

“Oh, you mean the trip where he left his untimely demise?” Evil Queen asked tauntingly.

“You’re not gonna get in my head.” David denied, “I made peace with what happened. My father succumbed to weakness. He got drunk. Because of that, he died in a cart accident.”

“Oh, I’m not here to because of your daddy issues.” Evil Queen clarified as David tried walking away, “I’m here to ask you one question.”

Not seeing the point in arguing, David sighed and gave the queen his attention.

“Are you sure it was an accident?” she asked before poofing away and leaving David to contemplate the question.

In the meantime, back at the farm house, Zelena was once again woken up by her baby’s crying. Tying her robe and hurrying as fast as she could, the Wicked Witch called out to her little one.

“Mummy’s coming, sweat pea.” she said only to hear the crying suddenly stop. Worried for her baby, Zelena hurried and found the Evil Queen smiling and rocking the smiling baby by the fire with a silver rattle in her hand.

“You like this rattle, don’t you, little one?” Evil Queen cooed with love at her niece, “My mother used to use it to soothe me and your uncle when we were little. Mhm-hmm.”

“Our mother used that on you and Nicholas?” Zelena asked.

“Yes. Abba loved listening to it. It helped calm him as it apparently does for Robin.” Evil Queen said thinking fondly of her childhood memories before offering the rattle to her sister, “And now it’s yours. Consider it a gift.”

“For what?” Zelena asked.

“You didn’t tell Regina, or Nicholas, about our little visit to the vault. You know how much I admire the ability to keep a secret.”

“Oh. So it was a test.” Zelena said unamused, “And here I thought you were different from Regina.”

“I am, because, unlike her, I will never doubt you again.” Evil Queen promised earning a light chuckle.

“So, when you said I’d get my sister back you didn’t mean Regina, did you?” Zelena asked with a sigh.

“I’m the sister you want, Zelena. I know this because…you’re just like me. You would never settle for less. And Regina is quite literally…the lesser of two evils.” the Evil Queen chuckled.


	85. The Other Shoe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

Enjoying the rare occurrence of a seemingly normal morning in Storybrooke, Nicholas, Emma and Henry were having breakfast at Granny’s. In addition to enjoying the morning, Henry was also finishing his job of logging the names of all the newcomers.

“Just finished signing in the last of the newcomers.” the teenager informed as he sat next to his mother in the booth, “I had everyone write down who they were traveling with so we can add up who’s still out there.”

“Not bad, kid.” Nicholas lightly praised. Although there was not as much tension between Nicholas and his nephew as there had been, the two still did not act as casual as they used to around each other.

But aside from that, the three of them heard a familiar voice call out to Emma from the counter. Holding her little girl in her arms, Ashely Boyd, a.k.a. Cinderella, smiled happily at the sight of her old friends.

“Emma! Hi!” she happily greeted.

“Ashely, hi.” Emma greeted before giving the former baby she saved an even warmer greeting, “Hey, Alexandra! How are you? You guys want to sit down and join us?”

“Oh, no thank you. Thomas is just getting us some food to go, and I don’t want to take up your time. I know you’re busy, but with all these people, I just thought I should help somehow, and since I’m running the daycare, I figured why not offer them free babysitting.” Ashely explained, “Anyway, I was hoping to maybe get a look at that list just to see who brought kids.”

“Well, if you can understand these scribbles, then be our guest.” Nicholas lightly teased towards Henry.

“Shouldn’t be too hard. Not like they were written by an alchemist.” Henry retorted with a smirk.

“Not bad, kid. But you still have a long way to go before your as sharp as me.” Nicholas reminded smirking. While Ashely was looking, Henry spotted a newcomer he hadn’t met before and immediately grabbed his book.

“Someone new. Mom, want to come help?” he asked.

“That’s what I do, kid.” Emma said as they got up.

“Hey,” Ashely said to Nicholas, “Would you mind distracting Alexandra while I take a look at this?”

“Yeah, sure.” Nicholas nodded as the princess sat her daughter next to him.

“So,” he said playfully to the girl looking curiously at him, “You’re a toddler now, huh? How’s that working out for ya?”

Slightly confused, Alexandra just stared at him and babbled a little while her mother lightly laughed at the sight. Although they did not notice, Emma was watching her boyfriend with a fond smile as he tried to entertain the little girl.

“Quite the little charmer you’ve got there.” Nicholas smiled.

“Yeah, thanks to you and Emma.” Ashely smiled fondly at her baby girl, “If it weren’t for you two, I wouldn’t have any of this.”

“Nah, I barely did anything back then.” Nicholas denied raising his hands, “Emma was the one who stood by you and helped you fight back. All I did was tell you a story.”

“Well, that story of yours was what gave me the courage to fight in the first place. It’s what’s been giving the strength I need ever since.”

“Well, just be careful with that, Ashely.” Nicholas gently warned, “That story may be motivating, but it can lead you to do crazy things. You just got know when to draw from it.”

“Right. So, anyway, what about you and Emma? Any chance of a fairytale ending? Couple of little Flamel’s running around down the road?”

“Oh, well…” Nicholas said looking a little sad, “I don’t think that’s in the cards for us, Ashely.”

“Why not? You two are crazy about each other.”

“Well, it’s not that I don’t want any. Quite the opposite; I’ve always wanted kids. I…I just don’t think I can.” Nicholas replied before gesturing to his body, “I mean, this? This isn’t a regular body, Ash. Anything that leaves it, just-just disintegrates. As far as I know, I can’t have kids. It’s more than likely physically impossible for me.”

“Hmm. Sounds like you need to tell yourself that story of yours.” Ashely said with a knowing look and smile.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“Nicholas, you and Emma have managed to do so many things people thought were impossible. You really think there isn’t a way for you to have your happy ending? Especially with how good you are with kids?” she asked, “By the way, how did you get so good with kids?”

“Oh, I had a very…challenging experience the first time around.” Nicholas chuckled.

“Henry was that much of a handful?” Ashely asked.

“No, Henry wasn’t the first baby I had a hand in raising.” Nicholas replied, shocking the woman, “And if I could survive raising _that_ child…I can raise any baby.”

“Well, I have faith in the two of you, anyway.” Ashely said full of belief, “Believe me, if I can get a happy ending, anyone can.”

**OUaT**

Roughly three years ago, when Emma first arrived in Storybrooke, Ashely was still heavily pregnant, as she had been for the past twenty-eight years. Even though she was ready to pop any day, especially since time was moving again, the poor girl was still working herself to death as a cleaning maid for the dreary town. On the day Emma would first meet the poor girl, Nicholas was the one she ran into first on the day that would change her cursed life.

Struggling to hang a fresh load of laundry out to dry outside, Ashely had a hard time maintaining her balance on the stepstool she was standing on. As she did this, Nicholas was walking down the street and noticed how unstable the stool was for the heavily pregnant girl.

“Ashely, I think you might wanna come down from that thing.” Nicholas advised, accidently surprising the girl.

“Wha-Aah!” she cried finally losing her balance and falling. Time seemed to slow as the girl fell and fear filled her for her baby. But before she could hit the ground, Nicholas suddenly appeared and caught her as gently as possible.

“Nicholas, how-how did you get over here so fast?” she asked not noticing the man quickly used his super speed to save her.

“I’m a lot faster than people think.” he nonchalantly replied as he helped her to her feet and guided her to a nearby chair, “Ashely, what were you thinking standing on something so unstable like that? And in your condition, no less. Actually, why are you even hanging all this outside to dry and not in a dryer?”

“Well, because thanks to my crappy luck, the damn dryer broke and I’m supposed to have all this dried and back at my client’s house by this afternoon.” Ashely replied on the verge of frustrated tears.

“Oh, Ella.” Nicholas sadly thought, “If it wouldn’t freak you out and put you in danger, I would transmute all these sheets dry for you in a heartbeat.”

“And if I don’t get them ready by then, I’ll lose my job and-and-and-”

“Hey, hey, hey, hey. It’s okay.” Nicholas gently soothed as he rubbed her back to calm her down, “It’s gonna be alright. You’re not gonna lose your job, okay? Granny has a laundry room for the Inn and I’m sure she’d be more than happy to let you use it. Ashely, you’ve been working and worrying yourself to death throughout your entire pregnancy. Don’t you think it’s time to admit you could use a little help at this point? You know, before you worry yourself into early labor?”

“That’s a thing?” Ashely asked in concern.

“The fact that you don’t know that also tells me you haven’t been going to those Lamaze classes I told you about.” Nicholas said with a look, “You shouldn’t even be working right now. Why isn’t your boss letting you have maternity leave?”

“…Bad luck?” Ashely shrugged with a tired look.

“Ashely, you can’t keep doing this to yourself. It’s not good for you or the baby.” Nicholas gently lectured in concern, “You have to show some backbone to people or else they’re gonna walk all over you. If you don’t, you and your baby’s future is gonna be a lot harder than it needs to be.”

“What future?” she scoffed under her breath as tears came to her eyes again.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked before narrowing his eyes, “Ashely, what did you do?”

“…I can’t give this baby a future, Nicholas!” she cried, finally letting the dam burst.

“Who decided that?” he asked taking her hands in his, “Who decided that you won’t give that baby all the love in the world? Do you already know what your future is going to be like? All the ups and downs you’ll have to go through? No. So why are you letting complete strangers who look down their noses at you decide your life for you?”

“I’m not. I’m…” Ashely trailed as she sniffled, “I’m not strong like you Nicholas. I can’t just tackle everything that comes my way and win like you do. Maybe if I was I could be better for the baby, but…”

Seeing the once proud and strong woman Nicholas knew back in the Enchanted Forest rendered to such a weak and helpless girl made the man’s blood boil. His sister’s damn curse was going to ruin the girl’s chance at keeping her baby without ever knowing the truth behind why she was alone and struggling. Seeing no reason to stop him, Nicholas asked Ashely the one question he knew would help change her life until the curse was broken.

“Ashely,” he said softly, “Have you ever heard the story about the slave and the plum tree?”

**OUaT**

After dealing with the newcomers’ list, Emma decided to pay Archie another visit in order to talk about the stirring emotions inside her. So, without so much as a knock, the blonde sheriff barged into the office, interrupting the session between Leroy and Archie.

“Archie!” she said before noticing her deputy, “Sorry. I can come back later.”

“Oh, no need.” Archie assured, standing straight up, “Um, we were just wrapping up.”

“Wrapping up? I paid for an hour.” Leroy reminded, “We haven’t even gotten to the work stuff. I mean, I’m stuck toiling in the mines when I’m not deputying this town and Dopey does off and gets his master’s degree? Now I got to pick up his slack on both jobs? He’s flirting with coeds.”

“I thought Dopey was a tree?” Emma asked her deputy.

“No, we got him out back when you guys were down in the Underworld.” Leroy replied as he headed towards the door.

“Really?” she asked.

“Yeah. You think we sit around waiting for you to do everything, boss?” Leroy asked, a little rudely before closing the door.

“Oh, I wish he’d stop calling me that.” Emma muttered, “Makes me feel like I’m Quartermain.”

“Heh-heh.” Archie lightly chuckled, “Um, y-you want to sit down?”

“No.” Emma said looking out the window at her town.

“Last time you were here, you were worried about people in hoods and fiery monsters.” Archie brought up.

“I don’t want to talk about that stuff.” Emma informed as she paced around.

“But you want to talk about something.” Archie noted, “Okay, well, that’s good. That’s-that’s progress. Go on.”

“You know that I’m not a jealous person.” Emma reminded.

“But?” Archie asked.

“But…seeing Ashley today with her perfectly happy family…”

“Made you jealous.” Archie finished, “Because…you’re not happy?”

“No, because I _am_ happy and I know it’s going away; that vision of my future. My number is up. And every time I think about it, then _that_ thing happens, and my magic goes away.” Emma ranted as she imitated her hand spasms.

“The mind has a profound effect on the body. Whenever I get nervous, I get hives.” Archie admitted.

“My magic doesn’t have hives. My magic is failing!” Emma exclaimed in frustration as she plopped down on the couch.

“Okay.” Archie sighed in understanding the woman’s frustration, “Let’s just say it is, okay? Is that a reason to stop striving for what you want? Emma, any day, I could walk out that door and I could get hit by a bus, but that hasn’t stopped me from walking out the door.”

“This is not about a bus.” Emma argued weakly, “It’s very hard to keep this secret from my family. Like Nicholas and me. I just moved in with him and actually allowed myself to imagine a future with him. He wants one, I want one. And-and-and now I can’t give him one. I feel like a fraud. This happiness is an illusion. I went and fought for everybody else’s happy endings, and then…I don’t get mine.”

“Emma, maybe it’s not about how you end things. Maybe it’s about how you live them.” Archie offered, “I mean, okay, take Nicholas for example. Emma, for fifty plus years, the man thought he was gonna die, one way or another, on the Promised Day. But that didn’t stop him from living his life. His relationship with you is proof enough of that. And if someone with as big a negative outlook on life as him could go on and do that, why can’t you?”

A little later, after ending the sudden session, Emma walked out of the office, contemplating what she discussed with the former cricket. However, as soon as she left the building, Thomas, Ashley’s husband, called out to her as he carried Alexandra.

“Emma!” he called as he jogged over to her.

“Thomas, are you alright?” she asked.

“It’s Ashley. I went to drop Alex home, and she wasn’t there, but I found this.” he explained as he gave her his wife’s note.

“Clorinda was on the newcomer list. She’s in Storybrooke, and I have to find her before it’s too late.” Emma read aloud in confusion.

“Clorinda was, uh, I guess you’d call her the evil stepsister.” Thomas clarified.

“Do you think she’s gonna hurt Ashley?” Emma asked.

“More like the other way around. My hunting rifle is missing.” he warned.

“Wait. You think that Cinderella’s gonna kill her stepsister?” Emma asked not believing it.

“Some wounds don’t heal; you know?” he asked trying to make a point before Emma walked off, “Where are you going?”

“To find her.” she replied.

“How?”

“The way you find Cinderella.” Emma answered with a proud smirk as she summoned one of Ashley’s sneakers to her hand in a puff of white smoke, “With her shoe.”

In the mansion, gathered around in Hyde’s new, personal laboratory, Regina and the Charmings were watching the gentleman perform his work. Ever since the Evil Queen cornered Regina into killing Edmund, Branch Quartermain was offering to help the local heroes defeat the Evil Queen. Since it was Jekyll’s own cousin who developed the serum that separated the two, Jekyll was the town’s best bet in figuring out how the split was possible and how it might be reversed.

“So, your little science experiment can really tell us why the Evil Queen is still alive and how to destroy her?” Regina asked skeptically.

“In theory.” Jekyll replied as he carefully measured and mixed the chemicals, “If I can recreate the serum my blundering cousin concocted that split you, then yes.”

“Not too fond of the guy, huh?” David asked making small talk.

“Harold has always been…an unoriginal soul.” Jekyll replied not taking his eyes off his work, “The fact that he tried to remake my own formula and pass it off as his own is proof enough. Although, I will give him this; his batch isn’t addictive as my first recipe was. That was like going through nicotine, alcohol and narcotic withdrawals all in one to the maximum.”

“Speaking of which, why is your other half so…so…” Snow trailed.

“Monstrous?” Jekyll asked with a light chuckle, “Well, my formula was a bit different than Harold’s. Harold’s formula apparently brings out the side of us from which we wish we could be. A stronger version of ourselves.”

“I do _not_ want to go back to being the Evil Queen, Jekyll.” Regina snapped.

“I didn’t say you did, Madam Mayor.” the man replied as he worked, “However, can you honestly deny that you were stronger when you were like that? You had built yourself to be a formidable and terrifying adversary to everyone around you in those days. Nowadays, you’re…I don’t want to say softer, but…you have more hope inside you than before. You have tasted defeat and lost people you cared about since you turned over that new leaf of yours; something that you never had to worry about as the Evil Queen. Harold is a bit different. He’s always been timid, weak and has never believed in himself. That other version you saw is most likely the exact opposite; a strong, confident man with plenty of charisma.”

“What about your other half?” Snow asked causing the man to stop his work and sigh.

“My half.” he muttered before working again, “My half was created from a formula I created with the original purpose of drawing out one’s inner darkness and eliminating it. Throughout my entire life, I was filled with so much rage and murderous intent which I kept bottled up inside. Then, one day, when I called that inner darkness out, it erupted through me, taking on a monstrous form of rage and the will to kill and started calling itself Mr. Edward Hyde. One thing led to another and I had to flee my home and my realm. Later on, I was found by the League and given a second chance. But enough of that, let us see if this mixture is what we are looking for.”

Finishing the mixture, Jekyll stared intensely at it before sighing in disappointment. 

“I’m sorry, but that wasn’t it. Whatever Harold used must have been infused with magic. He must have added something with magical properties I had at my town house in the Land of Untold Stories. I may have to consult with Mina on this one.” he sighed before leaving the room to find the vampire lady.

“He’s as useless as he says his cousin is.” Regina complained.

“Regina, he’s trying to help.” Snow reminded.

“I know. I’m just…I’m sick of being one step behind her.” Regina stressed.

“So get a step ahead.” Snow urged, “She thinks like you. You try thinking like her.”

“Fine. I used to be good at this.” Regina said as she tried to think as she used to, “When you want to tear families apart, you…you look for the cracks that are already there. Like Zelena, Nicholas and me. I have to talk to my siblings.”

As Regina exited the room, David noticed his wife’s look of concern and decided to step in and comfort her.

“Hey.” he gently said getting her attention, “We will find a way to defeat the Evil Queen. We always do.”

“Is this our life now? Just defeat and repeat?” Snow asked, “I just want things to be normal someday.”

“What does normal even look like?” David asked with a bit of humor.

“Well, it might sound crazy, but for twenty-eight years, things were normal.” Snow replied.

“When we were cursed?” David asked.

“There was a downside.” Snow pointed out earning a chuckle from her husband, “I liked teaching.”

“That was Mary Margaret.” David pointed out.

“And why can’t a princess be a teacher? What’s more noble than that? I’d like to teach again. Is that crazy?” she asked before David cupped her cheeks with a happy smile.

“That is the most normal thing I have heard in a long time.” he said before that shared a loving kiss.

While this was happening, Emma was looking for her usual partners in crime; her son and/or boyfriend. As luck would have it, she found them both, and Zelena and Robin, at the playground near the docks. When she got there, she watched Nicholas playfully talking to Robin as he gently pushed her in the baby swing while Henry and Zelena watched.

“Whee!” he said to the baby as she swung, “Come on, Robbie, say it with me. Whee! Say ‘whee’ for Unky.”

“Hey, what’re you guys doing?” Emma asked as they all watched.

“Oh, we’re just waiting.” Zelena replied.

“Waiting for what?” Emma asked.

“She’s zooming! She’s swinging! Ladies and gentlemen, the baby is soaring!” Nicholas said earning a happy smile and laugh from Robin.

“For Uncle Nicholas to prove, once again, that’s he’s completely accident prone.” Henry replied.

“He is not…oh, God! He is.” Emma finally realized after her head became filled with the many times Nicholas had gotten hurt in the time she knew him, “So, are you waiting to see if Robin’s seat will hit him in the head, if he runs into something, or trips and bites his tongue off?”

“That is oddly specific.” Zelena noted.

“It’s all happened before.” they both said at the same time.

“Hey, Nicholas?” Emma called out. Sure enough, the klutz/alchemist ended up hurting himself. When Emma called out to him, Nicholas was tying his shoe and slammed his head on a piece of the swing set when she caught his attention.

“Agh!” he hissed in pain clutching his head, “Agh! What, Emma?!”

“I think Ashley’s going out to kill her wicked step-sister. I need to find her and I figured you’d want to help. You know, considering we’re both to blame for her gung-ho attitude.” Emma replied nonchalantly.

“Oh, no, no, no, no.” Nicholas said shaking his head, “You can’t go blaming me for that. That was mainly your doing. All I did was tell her a story.”

“What story?” Zelena asked her nephew who shrugged.

“A story you knew would motivate her to take control of her life; _by any means necessary, no matter the consequences_. Weren’t those your exact words, babe?”

“…Operation Cobra Part Two?” Nicholas dryly asked with a sour look after having his own words used against him.

“You know it.” Emma smirked as she showed him and Henry the shoe before enchanting it to find its owner and following it.

“Well, now,” Zelena cooed at her baby as she picked her up from the swing set, “I think it’s about time to have some lunch. Huh, sweet pea?”

Babbling cutely in response, Robin watched as her mother laughed at her cuteness as she was placed in her carrier before the witch poofed away. In the meantime, over at Gold’s pawnshop, David walked in to find the man looming over a glass chess set.

“Hello, sheriff.” Rumple greeted, “Thought you would be on patrol right now.”

“Where’d you get this?” David asked getting straight to the point as he placed his late father’s coin on the counter, “This was my father’s coin. I need to know if his death was really an accident. So, what do you say we skip right to the part where you offer me a deal?”

“Well, I do like candor. Almost as much as I like deals.” Rumple grinned, “So, yes, the coin was mine for a time. And lucky for you, I’m a stickler for records.”

“Name your price.” David said while Rumple brought out the coin’s information.

“Now you’re talking.” Rumple said, “But I must warn you, the more desperate the man, the higher the price, and you seem quite desperate. So I’ll have to ask you. How badly do you want a deal?”

While David was making his deal, his daughter was following the enchanted shoe to the docks where it found its owner. Just as Thomas warned, Ashley was carrying a hunting rifle as she searched for her long-lost step-sister. For some odd reason, however, the woman felt the need to point it at the trio looking for her.

“Ashley! What are you doing?” Emma asked as they caught up to her.

“Go away!” Ashley ordered.

“We’re your friend. Why are you threatening us?” Emma asked as Ashley cocked the weapon.

“Look, I don’t want to hurt you.” Ashley assured, “There’s just something I have to do just as soon as I figure out where my sister’s hidden herself.”

“We cannot let you hurt her.” Emma warned.

“Hurt her?” Ashley asked, “No, you’ve got it all wrong. I’m not trying to hurt Clorinda. I’m trying to help her!”

“Why?” Henry asked, “She’s your wicked stepsister.”

“You don’t know the real story. In the end, Clorinda wasn’t the wicked sister. I was.” Ashley corrected.

“Uh, that wasn’t the one who ran off with a guy named Will Scarlet, was it?” Nicholas asked.

“No, that was Anastasia.” Ashley replied not lowering the weapon.

“Oh, good.” Nicholas exhaled, “Last thing I need is to meet my mother’s only student. I’ve got enough family issues going on as it is.”

“Okay, so you did something bad. People do bad things.” Emma said ignoring her boyfriend’s comments, “A long time ago, I told you if people saw you a certain way, you had to punch back and show them who you are. If you see yourself a certain way, punch back and see yourself differently. You can change. You can fix this. Whatever it is, I will help you.”

“No, but that’s the thing. You just said it. _I_ have to throw the punch. That’s why I came out here alone. You can’t do it for me this time. Do you know how it feels when all your happiness is a lie?”

“Yeah. I do.” Emma said softly as her hand started to shake.

“Ella,” Nicholas said using the woman’s real name, “If all you want to do is help your sister, why are you carrying that rifle?”

“Because there’s something I might have to do. And I may need this.” Ashley replied, “Nicholas, I owe you as much as I owe Emma, but I can’t risk losing everything at the cost of someone I once hurt. I have to do this; no matter the consequences.”

“Ella, I told you that story when you needed to hear it. Not just because you were cursed and weak and at your wits end. But because you were alone. You haven’t been alone since the day you became a mother. You don’t need to keep relying on that story to give you strength. Trust me when I say this; that story can lead people astray if they rely on it too much. You have a loving husband and a town full of friends. You don’t need to do this alone. Let us help you.” Nicholas offered with a hand for her to take.

“…I’m sorry.” Ashley whispered before tucking in the rifle and shooting Nicholas directly in his left eye. As soon as the alchemist fell to the ground and clutched his slowly healing wound, Ashley ran off.

“Mom, stop her!” Henry exclaimed, “Use your magic!”

“I can’t.” Emma whispered, “I’m sorry, I can’t.”

“Agh!” Nicholas groaned as he finished healing, “Geez! When the hell did Cinderella learn how to shoot that well?!”

“You okay?” Emma asked.

“I’m never gonna get over the irony of my immortality. I can’t die, but I can still feel pain.” Nicholas grumbled, “What happened to your magic? I thought Archie’s sessions were helping you.”

“I thought so, too.” Emma said staring at her hand.

“Having a little trouble with your magic?” the Evil Queen asked after suddenly appearing off to the side, again.

“Stay away from my mom.” Henry barked.

“Henry. Now is that any way to speak to your _real_ mother?” the Evil Queen chastised.

“You’re not my mother.” Henry denied.

“Well, sure I am.” she corrected, “I raised you. I helped you with your homework. I packed your lunches. Regina and I may have split, but I am as much your mother as she is. Now stop slouching. Posture is self-respect, and if you don’t have it, no one else will give it to you.”

“Wow.” Nicholas said, “I think I’m starting to realize what I would have gone through had Cora raised me my entire childhood. I can’t believe I’m just now putting the pieces together. This is freaky.”

“And hello to you, too, little brother.” Evil Queen said with a sickly sweet smile, “Did you miss me?”

“No. I always found this side of you to be annoying a major nuisance that caused me nothing but trouble with the League.” Nicholas dryly responded, “Besides, I’m at the point where I wanna repeatedly smack Regina upside the head, so there isn’t really a part of me right now that’s happy to see you. From what I hear, you’re just the worst part of Regina.”

“Am I?” she asked, “Or am I the part that is honest about myself? You see, Regina never had her happy ending because she’s never been strong enough to let her story run its course. I won’t make that mistake for myself or our new arrivals.”

“That is the one thing I don’t understand. Why did you bring those people here? What do you hope to gain?” Nicholas asked.

“Patience, brother dear.” Evil Queen smirked, “You just wait until those untold stories play out. But here’s a little spoiler. Cinderella’s story won’t end well.”

“Why would you want to hurt Ashley?” Emma asked.

“I don’t. I want to hurt you. I want you to see how pointless you are.”

“I saved her once. I’ll save her again.” Emma countered.

“Oh, that’s the tragic thing about being a savior. You have to keep saving people. But once you’re off the chessboard,” Evil Queen said flicking her finger, “Everything falls apart. All those happy endings turn to dust, and your entire life means… _nothing_. Let me show you what it feels like.”

With a wave of her hands, the trio was poofed away leaving only the queen to laugh and spin happily in triumph. When the smoke cleared, Emma and the others found themselves outside of town in the middle of the road.

“Where the hell are we?” Nicholas asked.

“She took us off the chessboard.” Emma said.

In a less serious setting, Belle was reading up on what to expect during her pregnancy in the captain’s quarters of the Jolly Roger while Killian and Ariel were out. As she read, David knocked on the wall letting her know he was there with a friendly smile.

“David, hi. Come in.” she greeted with a smile of her own, “Do you, uh, do you want to sit down?”

“Oh, no thanks. I’ll stand.” he politely declined.

“What brings you here?” she asked.

“Nothing much. I have something for you. From your husband.” he informed pulling out a vhs tape from his jacket, “I have no idea what it says. I’m just the messenger.”

“You? A messenger?” Belle asked skeptically, “What did you need from him?”

“He has information about my father. About his death.” David answered.

“And you had to make a deal to get it? Sounds like my husband.” Belle remarked before taking the tape, “There. You can say I took it. And I’m sorry. I’m sure it must not have been easy growing up without your father.”

“It was. Of course, it wasn’t easy when he was there, either. Drunk and sad.” David chuckled trying to hide his old pain.

“I guess it’s hard to say which is worse for some fathers.” Belle wondered.

“…Gone. It was worse having him gone.” David admitted.

“Fathers and sons. It’s hard for you, I think. Because no matter what the damage to the relationship, you need each other.” Belle said offering some comfort.

Back with Emma, Nicholas and Henry, Emma was sitting on the ground with her legs crossed as she tried to think. Despite the fact that Nicholas could easily track Ashley and transmute himself to her, he knew this was Emma’s fight and she needed to be the one to finish it.

“Ashley was my first save. You take that away, then what? Everything I’ve done can be undone?” Emma asked rhetorically.

“By the Evil Queen?” Nicholas asked, “No, no, no. My Emma’s too strong for that. Look we can worry about the big picture later. Right now the little picture’s saying that we have to go, magic or no magic.”

“Go where? Back to where Ashley left us? She’s not there. She’s charging into who knows what, and if the Evil Queen wants it to play out, it’s not good.” Emma reminded.

“Then we figure out where she’s headed next.” Henry offered, “You didn’t used to have magic and you found people.”

“He’s right.” Nicholas nodded, “Just imagine that you’re back in your old life as a bails bonds person-woman. Whatever. How did you find people then?”

“I’d try to think like the skip thinks and get inside their head. Why are they running? What is their story? Who do they love?”

“Their story.” Henry realized as he rummaged through his backpack for his book, “Ashley said she was trying to help her stepsister, uh, Camilla?”

“Calinda?” Emma asked her boyfriend.

“Ca…uh.” Nicholas trailed.

“Calinda.” Emma repeated.

“Callista.” Nicholas guessed.

“I thought it was Calinda?” Emma asked.

“It’s Clorinda.” Henry recalled, “Ashley blames herself for her not getting her happy ending. If the book says what her ending was supposed to be, then that’s a clue we need. Yes! It’s in here. Look.”

“Is this how you two did things the first time around during the curse?” Nicholas asked, “Cause this almost seems too easy.”

“Pretty much.” Emma said as she looked through Cinderella’s story.

“So, this basically what happened the first time you helped Ashley?” he asked.

“No, last time you were the one who started it all.” Emma replied with a smirk.

“For the last time, all I did was tell that woman a story!” Nicholas shouted comically, “Whatever. We need to find Ashley before things escalate even further.”

“How?” Emma asked, “My magic’s still on the fritz and you can only transmute yourself.”

“What about those smoke rocks you use?” Henry asked.

“I’m out. Guess we got to do things the old fashioned way.” Nicholas sighed before pulling out his phone, “Nemo, it’s Nicholas. Have Ishmael bring the car around to the…south-west border of town. It’s an emergency.”

“Ishmael?” Henry asked. Both mother and son could have sworn that Hook and Ariel said the Nautilus’ first-mate was killed on the Promised Day. Perhaps Nicholas did not know.

“Um, Nicholas?” Emma cautiously asked as Nemo’s white Rolls-Royce pulled up in a cloud of black, magic smoke, “Babe, uh, Ishmael-”

“Here you are, Agent Flamel.” the driver of the car said politely after stepping out of the vehicle.

“Who the hell are you?!” Emma exclaimed as she and Henry looked at the man in shock.

“I am first-mate to Captain Nemo’s crew of the Nautilus. Call me Ishmael.” the man greeted, unfazed at the exclamation. What frightening part of this introduction was not that the man had the same name as the that first-mate, but that he was completely identical to the man who had his brains blown out in the town square a month prior.

After reading what happened to Cinderella in the book on the ride over, the trio was able to put the pieces together and found out where to find everyone. Over at the pumpkin patch, they found Ashley, her stepsister, her stepsister’s secret boyfriend and her mother in the stables. Unfortunately, Lady Tremaine had just stabbed Ashley with her cane. With no other option, Emma pushed away the shaking in her hand and summoned enough magic to heal the wound while Nicholas restrained the helicopter parent with the bad hairstyle. As Ashley and Emma hugged happily, Nicholas couldn’t help but think back to the last time the young woman was saved and how he was involved.

**OUaT**

After successfully finding Ashley and bringing her to the hospital in time for the baby being born, and putting an end to the deal the girl made with Mr. Gold, Emma watched the new parents shower their baby girl with love. As she did, with a smile on her face, the one person she did not expect to show up suddenly walked up and stood next to her, all while looking at the new, happy family.

“Have you ever heard the story about the slave and the plum tree, Ms. Swan?” Nicholas randomly asked. For a moment, Emma said nothing as she glanced suspiciously at her son’s adoptive uncle. But she gave her answer.

“No.”

“Hm. I thought not.” he hummed with his hands behind his back, “It’s not a very well-known story.”

“Once upon a time, in a kingdom tucked away in the middle of a desert, there was a little slave boy. He was young, but he was forced to do as much backbreaking labor as all the older slaves were forced to do. But unlike all the other slaves, the boy was not born in this vile kingdom; he had been taken from his home at a very young age and sold into slavery soon after. One day, on a day hotter than all the others, the little slave boy was forced to gather large amounts of heavy sand to mix into the mud pits to make bricks. He was a frail boy and not very strong. But his masters enjoyed watching him struggle to carry the heavy pots filled with sand on his back to the pits.

“The boy had been out in the sun ever since the day began and was given little water. Like all slaves, he was only allowed to drink when the water girls would come to him. From the heat of the sun, and the lashes he received from a drunken taskmaster, the boy felt as though he was going to die. He needed water. As he filled his pot with what little strength he had, he could see one of the water girls come towards him with the life giving liquid he so desperately needed. But, the drunken taskmaster, laughing as he threw his whip on the backs of the slaves, was closer to the girl and he wanted her all to himself. The taskmaster ordered the girl to come to him first and give him water. As a slave herself, the girl could not refuse, even though she could see the boy’s strength and life leaving him.

“After drinking all of the water, and humiliating the poor girl with his words and touch, the taskmaster ordered the water girl away to bring him more. The little slave boy knew he would be dead by the time the water girl returned. But he did not care, for hope died within him long ago. Collapsing from thirst, the boy felt the hot sand burn his face and suck away the sweat covering his skin. But before the boy shut his eyes, eager to die and be free from this hell, he could see something in the distance.

“Not knowing whether or not is was a mirage, he could see a nearly barren tree not too far from where he laid. And on that tree, he could see a piece of fruit hanging from one of its dried branches. Somehow, in some way, strength returned to the boy, just enough for him to pick himself off the ground. The boy looked back to see if the drunk was looking at him and found that the fool was vomiting all the wine he drank earlier. The slave then took the chance and ran as fast as his weak legs let him until he reached the tree. In order to prove whether or not it was real or just a cruel taunt before he died, the boy placed his hands on the trunk and felt its dry bark on his skin.

“The tree was real, and so, too was the fruit hanging over his head. It was the biggest, juiciest plum the boy had ever seen. It took several jumps, but the boy finally plucked the plum from the branch and gently held it in his hands. Not wasting another moment, the slave devoured the plum. His heart soared as the flavor filled his mouth and life returned to him. By the time he was finished, there was not a single string of pulp left on the wet seed. With this strength and life flowing through him, the slave ran back to his pot as fast as he could before the masters noticed he was gone. For the rest of his time in that desert, the boy held onto that plum seed and kept it as a reminder of when he found his strength.

“Do you know what the moral of this story is, Emma?” Nicholas asked after finishing the long story, “One must be willing to do whatever it takes in order to survive; no matter the consequences.”

“You told Ashley that story, didn’t you?” Emma asked already knowing the answer.

“Maybe I did. Maybe I didn’t.” he cryptically replied, “Even if I did, I seem to recall hearing that you offered the girl some motivation of your own, too.”

“Yeah, but based on that story, your advice was more extreme than mine.” Emma retorted, “Besides, she’s nothing like the character in your story. Her life wasn’t in danger.”

“I disagree.” Nicholas smoothly countered with a smirk as he crossed his arms and leaned against the glass, “The way I see it, surviving means to live and Ashley wasn’t really living. Not like she could have been. You haven’t been in this town long, Ms. Swan. You don’t really know what these people have been through, not like I do. Ashley Boyd’s always been a pushover and that pregnancy didn’t help. Letting people walk all over you and telling you who you are without so much as a fight isn’t exactly living, Emma. Not much different than the slave boy, from my point of view. That story is meant to teach people the value of taking action. It’s also a harsh reminder of what a person can miss if they don’t follow the slave boy’s example and take a chance.”

“Whatever.” Emma rudely scoffed as she walked off.

“Another thing about that story,” Nicholas continued stopping the woman, “Everyone who hears it will eventually face a choice similar to what the slave boy made. To either do nothing, or say consequences be damned. Now that you’ve heard this story, Emma Swan, I wonder what situation you’ll face that will make you have to choose as the slave boy did?”

Not saying another word, Emma continued on her way, leaving the man she found mysterious alone in the hall. Still smirking, Nicholas pulled one of his delicious plums from his jacket pocket and stared fondly at it as he thought of a certain someone from his past.

“No matter the consequences, old friend.” he muttered before taking a bite of his beloved fruit.

**OUaT**

After Tremaine had been arrested and sentenced to indefinite community service, Nicholas and Emma decided to head over to Granny’s and grab lunch. When they arrived, they found Zelena and Robin sitting outside, enjoying the sunshine and victory. For the rest of the day, nothing else odd happened. However, there was something that was keeping David awake that night at the loft. The records card he had received from Gold on his late father’s coin. Sitting at the table bit a lit candle, the co-sheriff re-read the card for the however many-th time that night. That is until his wife came over to check on him.

“You’re still up? What’s going on?” she whispered as to not wake their son.

“Yeah.” David sighed as he showed her the card and coin, “I have this…Gold gave me this. It’s about the coin. A shepherd found in the wreckage of a cart.”

“Your father.” Snow sighed with empathy as she sat next to him, “What a terrible reminder. I’m sorry.”

“There’s more to it.” David said, “This man, my father, he’d been stabbed. He wasn’t killed in the accident. He wasn’t drunk.”

“That’s good news.” Snow nodded, “He didn’t betray you. He kept his word.”

“That means his killer could still be out there.” David pondered.

“Don’t do this.” Snow said shaking her head, “Don’t think about who did it. Just let it go. Let us live our lives. I’ll teach, you’ll be sheriff.”

“Isn’t this what a sheriff does?” David asked.

“No, no, no. What you’re contemplating is vengeance, not justice, and we don’t need vengeance. We have this town, and our daughter, and our son who really needs you.” Snow reminded desperately, “It may not be epic, but it will be the most important thing we will ever do, and it won’t happen if you’re off seeking revenge for some decades-old crime.”

“…Being there for Neal, and Emma, how could that not be epic?” David asked with an assuring smile, “Of course it’s where I want to be.”

“Good.” Snow smiled as he caressed her cheek, “Come to bed.”

“You know what? I’m just gonna burn this.” David said holding the card, “That way I don’t even have to think about it.”

Sharing one last kiss with his wife, David was about to burn the card as she checked on their baby boy. But, when she wasn’t looking, David instead hid the card in his pocket and blew out the candle.


	86. Street Rats

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, only my own original plots and characters

The following morning, the Charmings had come over for breakfast as a form of a “celebratory” breakfast for Snow returning to teaching. Since he was still on good terms with his eldest sister, and loved spending time with his niece, Nicholas invited Zelena and Robin over to join them. While Henry was finishing getting dressed in his uniform, Emma was bouncing her baby brother and making faces at him with her mother while David and Nicholas were fighting for dominance over who was in charge of making the pancakes and who was better. Zelena could not help but watch in amusement at her brother being a total smartass.

“You’re doing it wrong, again.” Nicholas bluntly told his step-nephew-in-law as he took over, “You need to _lightly_ whisk the batter. Not beat it around like you’re the small-town high school jock giving the president of the chess club a noogie.”

“…I really can’t stand you, sometimes, Flamel.” David sighed in frustration.

“But your daughter loves me.” Nicholas reminded being ornery, “Kinda stings, huh?”

“Nicholas, be nice.” Emma lectured with a smirk at his remarks.

“I am being nice!” Nicholas defended as he made the pancakes, “I’m telling your father how his way of making pancakes is wrong and how my way is better. I’m helping him.”

“You know, when you first showed up, I really couldn’t see the resemblance between you and Nicholas.” Snow said to Zelena, “But as time went on, and we all ended up hearing your own snide, little comments in addition to his, it’s almost uncanny at this point.”

“Honestly, I’m almost convinced it’s a family trait we three got from our mother.” Zelena admitted.

“Oh, believe me,” Nicholas remarked slightly dramatically, “Mother was so much worse. If any of you ever wondered how Regina turned into such a bat-crap-crazy, homicidal monarch, you can thank our dear old mommy and her influence.”

“Yeah,” they all thought bluntly, “No shit.”

“Speaking of which, any ideas where the Evil Queen might be hiding?” Emma asked her boyfriend.

“Not a one.” Nicholas deadpanned as he ate his plate of pancakes, “Unfortunately, she smells exactly the same as Regina. So, tracking her isn’t exactly easy for me. Besides, she’s probably using some sort of magic to keep an eye on me, or one that lets her know when I’m getting too close so she can just poof away.”

“So, what are you gonna do?” Snow asked while Nicholas quickly finished his breakfast.

“I’ll see if Mina can lend me a hand in tracking her down. She can see almost as good as I can smell. If that doesn’t work, we may have to use drastic measures.” Nicholas replied.

“What do you mean, ‘drastic measures’?” David asked.

“Well,” Nicholas smirked, “If you don’t see them, you’ve got nothing to worry about. If you do see them, don’t say I never made things interesting for this town.”

“Well, that’s not a reason to worry, at all.” Snow sarcastically deadpanned.

“Oh, relax. I’m just kidding.” Nicholas chuckled, “Quite frankly, I could use some peace and quiet lasting longer than just…what’s our record? A month? Two at the most?”

“Oh, who remembers?” Emma waved off.

“Seriously, though. I better find Mina and see if she can lend me a hand in finding the Evil Queen. Because I’d, honestly, rather avoid Plan B.”

“What’s Plan B?” Henry asked.

“Quartermain.” Nicholas replied with a slightly frightened look on his face before transmuting away. Ironically, just after he left, the doorbell rang followed by a rapid knock on the front door. As soon as Henry opened it, Jekyll, Skinner and Sawyer barged in.

“Nicholas, we did it! We found the solution!” Jekyll announced as they came in.

“You, literally, just missed him, guys.” Emma informed.

“Seriously?” Skinner asked as Sawyer sniffed the air.

“Is that coffee?” he asked.

“Uh, yeah. Help yourselves. David made plenty.” Emma offered, no less confused as to what was going on, “What do you mean you found the solution?”

“We know how to end the Evil Queen.” Jekyll replied as the three of them made their plates.

“Really? Well, that’s good.” Emma praised.

“Eh, not as good as you think.” Sawyer winced as he poured his coffee, “Turns out, you can’t kill the half that didn’t drink the serum. But you can kill the one that did.”

“So that means…” Snow trailed.

“We’d have to kill Regina to kill the Evil Queen?” Zelena asked.

“Afraid so.” Skinner nodded as he stuffed his face, “But, we’re looking for alternate solutions, so you don’t need to worry about us killing off Nicholas’ big sister.”

“Where is Nicholas, anyway?” Sawyer asked.

“He just went out to track down the Evil Queen with Mina.” Emma replied.

“Of course he did.” Jekyll sighed, “Well, in any case, now that we have this information, we can start formulating an alternative solution. Of course, that will take time and the Evil Queen will use that to her advantage to suit her own agenda. Oh, how I wish we would have captured her on the Promised Day instead of going through all this.”

“I told you this was going to come back and bite us in the arse one of these days!” Skinner exclaimed.

“Hey!” Snow and Zelena admonished as they covered their babies’ ears.

“Oh, relax. At that age they can’t process even half of what we’re all saying.” Skinner waved off, surprising everyone but his friends that he knew that.

“Any who.” Jekyll trailed hoping to change the subject, “Since Nicholas is undoubtedly going to be preoccupied with dealing with his maniacal sister,”

“Again.” Sawyer and Skinner quipped.

“One of us should consider telling Regina about this before things get even further out of hand.” Jekyll suggested.

“And why one of y’all decide, we’ll be doing our part in finding another way to kill the Evil Queen.” Sawyer added as they got up to leave.

“Thank you for the food.” Skinner thanked as they left. Once outside, Sawyer decided to continue the conversation.

“You know, you really shouldn’t have cursed in front of the little ones like that, Skinner.” he lectured.

“Oh, please. We all said far worse when _you-know-who_ was a baby.” Skinner reminded.

“That was completely different!” Sawyer exclaimed, “That kid almost killed the seven of us on a regular basis!”

“Ugh!” Jekyll shuddered, “To this day, nothing has been more terrifying than that giggling baby using magic to hurl knives at us.”

“Ugh!” they all shuddered as they walked down the street. In the meantime, Nicholas was going around town, sniffing for any trace of Nagancia that would lead him to the rock’s location. As he was walking down main street, his focused expression caught the attention of many onlookers.

“Hey, Nicholas!” Doc greeted as he and his brothers walked in front of the alchemist, “What’cha doing there, guy?”

“Silence!” Nicholas shouted as he stopped in front of them, “I must brood!”

Shoving past them, Nicholas continued to sniff and track. Although, he did not get much further on account of Mina standing right in his path with her arms crossed and left eyebrow raised. As soon as he reached her, she casually struck him with the bottom of her fist, sending him flat on his stomach.

“…Hiya, Mina.” he casually greeted, looking up at his black-clad friend, “Would you mind telling me why you did that?”

“I don’t know.” Mina sarcastically replied as she looked down past her large breasts, “Maybe I just felt like taking my anger on the first Mills sibling I laid my eyes on this morning.”

“Gee, thanks.” Nicholas retorted sarcastically, “I’ll keep that in mind should Zelena ever say something witty and insulting towards you and I’m the first sibling you make eye contact with.”

“Oh, shut up and get up, you’re embarrassing yourself; again.” Mina groaned as she picked him up by his collar.

“Well, you’re in a pleasant mood this fine morning.” Nicholas sarcastically snapped, “What’s with you?”

“Oh, you mean besides having to walk around in the sun while looking for your sister’s evil doppelganger like I had to do with yours?” she asked hotly, “On a Monday, no less?”

“Okay, I get the point, Garfield.” Nicholas said dryly as he rolled his eyes before Mina swiftly punched the back of his head.

“Shut up!” she barked.

“Excuse me!” a woman’s voice called out gaining their attention. Hurrying over to the agents was a beautiful young, Hindu woman dressed in white clothes obviously from the town. For some reason, however, the woman had a worried and nervous look on her face.

“There something we can do for you, Miss?” Nicholas asked as he and Mina slightly raised their guards.

“Are…are you two, by any chance, agents of the League?” she asked.

“That depends. Who’s asking?” Mina asked.

“Someone in need of the Extraordinary.” she replied after steeling herself.

“…Excuse us for a moment.” Nicholas said with a fake smile before he and Mina huddled together and whispered to each other.

“What do we do? Nobody’s used that old line to request a contract since the old days.” Nicholas reminded.

“She must not be aware of how we’ve changed things over the years. Obviously, she’s from the Land of Untold Stories, but she should at least know we don’t use that line anymore.” Mina whispered.

“Maybe she’s just not updated?” Nicholas suggested.

“Maybe. Or maybe she has it out for LXG agents.” Mina pondered.

“If you two don’t mind, I’m actually in desperate need of your help.” the woman stressed from behind.

“Okay, here’s what we do. We hear her out and help as best we can. If what she says is true, we get the others involved and treat this like any other contract. If not, well, then we’ll…” Mina trailed as she made a throat slicing gesture.

“Good, good. I like it.” Nicholas nodded before they turned around, “Very well, Miss. On behalf of Branch Quartermain of the LXG, Special Agent Harker and I will listen to your request and decide whether or not we shall accept your contract. First, we shall need to know your name and why you are in need of our services.”

“My name is Princess Jasmine of Agrabah, and I need you to help me find the Savior Aladdin.” Jasmine informed with the authority of a princess.

Needless to say, both agents had completely shocked expressions as they stared at the princess who had just randomly appeared and shattered their understanding of a great many things with just one sentence.

“…We’ll take the case.” they both croaked.

On the other side of the street, another bizarre incident was about to happen to another resident of Storybrooke. As Archie entered his office, he immediately came face to face with the ever frightening Evil Queen.

“It’s about time the doctor’s in.” she sighed as she sat in Archie’s chair, pretending to look distraught like his patients.

“What do you want?” he asked trying to sound brave.

“I want to talk about Emma Swan.” the queen answered with an evil smile.

“You know I can’t talk about my patients.” Archie reminded.

“Oh, I think you’ll make an exception for me.” the queen corrected as she got up, “Yesterday, when I intercepted my brother’s goodie-goodie side squeeze, I overheard something interesting. Seems like the Savior has been confiding in you about something. Something that makes even Emma Swan afraid to confront alone. I need information, and you, Cricket, are my only source.”

In a desperate attempt, Archie lunged towards the door in hopes of escaping. Unfortunately, the queen’s magic was faster and slammed the door right in his face.

“Don’t you remember what a great team we made? Let’s do it one more time for old time’s sake.” she suggested with a sadistic grin.

“No.” Archie said standing his ground as he remembered how his cursed-self abandoned his integrity the last time the woman intimidated him.

“Well, I always knew you had a conscience. Tell me, are you developing a spine to go with it? No matter.” she said before changing her appearance to match Archie’s, “If you won’t tell me about Emma’s visions, then I’ll just ask her myself.”

With a wave of “his” hand, the cricket imposter poofed away the real Archie to be tied up and gaged at Zelena’s farm house while the Evil Queen looked for Emma. As she did, the Savior in question was entering her parents’ loft. Given the connection she and Aladdin shared, Nicholas immediately called and told her about the situation. As soon as she heard this, the current Savior was allowing herself to be filled with hope that her visions were nothing to worry about and that she would not have to tell her family anything. Inside the loft were her parents, son, boyfriend, Regina, the Hooks, everyone in Branch Quartermain except Quartermain and Jekyll, and Jasmine.

“Any luck on finding Aladdin?” Emma asked before noticing Jasmine, “This her?”

“Yes. This is Princess Jasmine of Agrabah, Ms. Swan.” Nemo introduced.

“But no. Unfortunately, we can’t find him.” David added.

“We tried a locator spell and it didn’t work.” Snow said, “Nothing belonged to him. Everything he had, he stole.”

“And we’re giving up?” Emma asked.

“No, but it ain’t lookin’ too good.” Sawyer sighed.

“Where’s Quartermain and Gilles?” Emma asked.

“Out looking for monkey boy.” Skinner replied.

“So, if they can’t find anything, we may not find Aladdin at all?” Emma asked.

“Which means you’re running out of excuses, Emma.” the Evil Queen disguised as Archie said as he came into the loft.

“Archie, what are you doing here?” Emma asked.

“I’m sorry, but I couldn’t allow you to continue lying to yourself and your family.”

“What is going on?” Snow asked.

“Emma has a secret.” Archie said to them all.

“Archie.” Emma warned.

“No. Continue.” Killian said out of concern for his friend.

“Killian.” Emma warned.

“Emma, if he thinks it can help, why not?” Ariel asked, “Archie’s always been on your side.”

“Mom, please.” Henry pleaded. Having her son beg was the last straw, so Emma finally confessed.

“I’ve…I’ve been having visions of what I think is my future. I’ve been shaking. In the vision…I die. According to this guy in my dreams, the Sandman, or whatever, all Saviors die.” Emma informed greatly alerting all the agents in the room, “Aladdin was also a Savior, so I thought if we found him, if I found him alive…he could help me avoid my fate.”

“So you lied all of us?” Hook asked as Archie left and resumed his real form as the Evil Queen.

“Do you not trust us?” Snow accused.

“We’re your family.” David reminded.

“And you don’t keep secrets from your family.” Ariel snapped.

“And you die? Who kills you?!” Henry all but exclaimed. Off to the side, the five agents were staring intensely at Emma with horrified looks on each of their faces.

“Oh, my, God.” Sawyer exhaled with worry, “I can’t believe that _he_ invaded her dreams and introduced himself to her!”

“This is very concerning.” Skinner nodded, “She’s met with two founders now. That is no accident.”

“It’s rare enough for an agent to meet at least one. But a person outside the League meeting two?!” Mina frantically whispered.

“We have to tell Quartermain.” Sawyer informed.

“And what good will that do?” Skinner asked, “She’s already met them. What’s the old man gonna do? Go back in time and stop that from happening and get rid of the giant target on her back?”

“Skinner, please!” Nemo scolded as he was the only one offering Nicholas comfort over the news he just heard. It wasn’t much, but having one of his oldest and closest friends rubbing his back helped the alchemist a little.

“Oh, cripes.” Skinner cursed as he and the other finally noticed the shattered and worried look on Nicholas’ face, “Nicholas, I-I’m sorry. I didn’t think-”

“It’s okay, Rodney.” Nicholas gently assured without changing his expression. All he could do was stare at the woman he loved and try and memorize every detail about her in case the worst actually did happen.

“H-hey. Why don’t we go join Quartermain and those other goobers find Aladdin?” Sawyer awkwardly suggested to the other three.

“Yeah!” Mina agreed trying to sound optimistic, “Let’s go do that.”

“I’ll drive.” Skinner offered as they got up and left. As they did, Mina was the last to leave as she gave the man she loved as a little brother one last piece of comfort.

“She’ll be alright, Nicholas. We won’t let anything happen to her.” she gently soothed.

“I just hope we’re enough.” he whispered before getting up to join the ordinary people, “Okay, Emma. Enough secrets. Tell us everything. What happens in your vision?”

“…I’m sword-fighting a hooded figure in the middle of Main St. at night.” Emma began feeling small under all the glares the others were giving her, “I get knocked down and lose my sword before it disappears in a cloud of magic smoke. The figure in the hood stabs me in the gut and I collapse on the ground before the sky turns purple and I hear something roar. I don’t know what is. I don’t where it came from. All I know is that it’s some creature made out of purple fire and it leaps towards me just before the vision ends.”

“The sky turns purple?” Snow asked with a baffled look.

“Yeah, like, it lights up and turns purple.” Emma nodded, slightly avoiding her mother’s gaze.

“And then, a monster finishes you off?” Hook asked.

“A monster made out of purple fire?” Ariel asked.

“Yeah.” Emma nodded.

“I’ve never heard of any monster or magical creature like that.” Regina stated, confused at the description, “What did it look like?”

“I don’t know.” Emma replied, “Everything gets blurry as I’m on the ground. But I can tell it’s coming towards me and on four legs.”

“Mate, do you or the League know anything about this?” Hook asked Nicholas.

“The only thing that comes to mind is a Yoaguai. But those things aren’t purple.” Nicholas recalled, “I don’t know if the League would know about it, but I can ask Mina to check. She is the head research for Branch Quartermain.”

“Well, whatever it is, maybe Aladdin knows something about it and he can tell us after we find him. Meet me at the vault in an hour.” Regina said to Emma before turning to her brother, “You, on the other hand, should get back to looking for our missing alternative Savior.”

“I’ll go when I’m good and ready.” Nicholas defiantly spat with his arms crossed creating an awkward tension in the air.

“…Are you ready?” Regina asked with an unamused tone.

“As a matter of fact, I am. By my own choice.” he retorted before transmuting away. Naturally, Regina scoffed and rolled her eyes as she left the loft for her vault.

With the sobering news in mind, everyone in the room needed time to process the information and figure out a way to prevent Emma’s vison from coming true. Although, the loft’s newest visitor was processing the news on her Savior’s potential death by herself. Not wanting to be a burden, Jasmine took the liberty of going upstairs to the spare bedroom to be alone. That is until Henry joined her and tried to offer her some comfort.

“Hey.” he greeted clearly unsure of what to do or say, “You can play the X-Box if you want. Or whatever helps.”

“I’m sorry to intrude.” she said sincerely.

“Oh, no, it’s okay.” Henry assured, “I know this is hard for you, too. Because of Aladdin. I’m sorry about that.”

“The worst part,” Jasmine choked through her tears, “Is being the Savior is a death sentence. And back in a cave in Agrabah, I was the one who put him on the path.”

“…I did the same for my mom.” Henry realized, “I brought her here to break a curse. She was just living her life.”

“So was Aladdin.” Jasmine sadly added.

“Maybe they’re wrong about Saviors dying.” Henry suggested.

“I hope so.” Jasmine replied, “For both of us.”

Just beneath them, Snow and Emma were having a conversation of their own.

“You should have been honest.” Snow softly scolded.

“I didn’t lie. I just…got scared.” Emma defended with a weak excuse.

“Which is exactly when you should talk to your mother.” Snow pointed out.

“Can you forgive me?” Emma asked letting some of her past insecurities and fears resurface at the thought of her parents abandoning her because of her mistake.

“I mean, of course I forgive you. We’re your parents. We’ll always forgive you. But what about Nicholas?” Snow asked while David answered a call on his phone, “You’re trying to build something. And look, your father and I may not be perfect, but we don’t keep secrets from each other.”

“That was Leroy. He had an appointment with Archie but he didn’t show.” David informed with a confused look.

“Archie left with plenty of time.” Emma stated.

“That wasn’t Archie.” Snow realized.

“The queen. She has him.” Emma said.

Back at the farmhouse, Zelena was enjoying a cup of tea while she forced Archie to soothe and bounce Robin. Despite the random tied and gagged hostage she found in her home, Zelena made the most of it and managed to get a free babysitter out it all.

“Keep bouncing. She likes it. And if you know what’s good for you, you’ll add funny faces.” Zelena threatened the frightened shrink before the Evil Queen poofed into the room with a happy face. “About bloody time.”

“Oh, good, you’re here. What a day.” Evil Queen all but squealed, “Thanks for watching him.”

“Yeah, thanks for asking.” Zelena sarcastically snapped, “You know, I could’ve called Regina or Nicholas and turned him over.”

“Yes, you could have, but you didn’t.” Evil Queen pointed out, “You know what, sis? I know exactly what you need. Come with me.”

“Come with you?” Zelena asked, “What about Robin?”

“Oh, we have the perfect babysitter.” Evil Queen said before threatening Archie even further, “If the baby dies, you die. See, sis? Now put a barrier spell over this dump to keep the vermin in and come along. Your little sister can make everything better.”

After a quick poof away, the Evil Queen revealed to her sister her plans; a trip to Storybrooke’s own spa for an afternoon of relaxation and sisterly bonding. Receiving the full treatment, the two sisters found themselves drinking wine and chatting as they had their nails done.

“Have you seen Gold’s new haircut?” Evil Queen asked.

“Yes, I bumped into him today.” Zelena replied.

“He’s looking good isn’t he?” Evil Queen asked, “That man needed to get away from that blithering bookworm.”

“Have you and the Dark One ever…” Zelena trailed.

“Have you?” Evil Queen asked with intrigue.

“God, no.” Zelena scoffed with a chuckle, “No. But I did try once. Back in my wicked days.”

“You know those days don’t have to be over.” Evil Queen pointed out, “So, what’s holding you back now, hmm? I mean, isn’t this what you always wanted? A family who gets you, who chooses you? Regina and the others only tolerate you. They want you to shun your gifts. But I choose you because you’re wicked.”

“…Nicholas doesn’t.” Zelena muttered, “He’s never tried to make me shun my gifts. He doesn’t care that I’m wicked.”

“To an extent.” Evil Queen corrected pointing her finger and smiling, “Trust me. I’ve been down that road with him before. Back when _I_ first started acting like myself, our dear, little brother wasn’t as understanding as most people thought. I mean, all those times he went behind my back to help those goodie-goodie Charmings? Not very supportive at all. He may not be blinded by some misguided morals like those heroes are, but when someone does something he doesn’t like, he won’t stand for it. He’s not the forgiving sort. And all it takes is one, tiny, little, wicked deed for him to turn on you like he did me. Don’t forget what he and those friends of his did to the Lost Boys. True family, my dear Zelena, always accepts each other.”

“But what if my daughter doesn’t?” Zelena asked.

“I understand. Now, don’t forget I spent ten years lying to Henry about who I really was because I thought, well, if he ever saw the real me, I’d be rejected.”

“But isn’t that exactly what happened?” Zelena asked slightly confused at her sister’s words.

“Only because I lied to him. You see, I never gave him the chance to accept the real me; and I suppose I did the same thing to Nicholas now that I think about it. But you, Zelena, you are strong and powerful and wicked. But your daughter won’t embrace who you really are unless you embrace yourself first. Who knows? She may just turn out as wonderfully wicked as you.”

Over at the vault, Regina was putting the final touches on a potion she hoped would find Aladdin for her friend. As she did, Emma finally arrived.

“You, uh, took off kind of quickly.” Emma pointed out.

“Well, I’m sorry. I’m trying to save your life.” Regina flatly reminded.

“Fair enough.”

“How’s Henry?” Regina asked in concern, “How are you?”

“Honestly, anxious to figure this out. What are we making in this jar of nightmares?” she asked.

“It’s a different kind of locator spell.” Regina replied.

“I thought everything Aladdin had was hot property?” Emma asked.

“So did I, but then I realized there’s one thing Aladdin didn’t steal. His magic. This potion links like magic; in this case, the magic of two Saviors.” Regina explained.

“Mine and Aladdin’s.”

“All you have to do is drink. Let’s go find Aladdin.” she said as she handed Emma the goblet and watched her drink. 

After gathering a search party in the woods, Emma led them as her magic guided her. However, as it did, it led them all into an abandoned, underground tomb filled with skeletons and darkness.

“This is the place. He’s here.” Emma informed them all.

“Here?” Regina asked, “We’re directly into the cemetery in some kind of forgotten…”

“Crypt.” Jasmine finished with dread, “This is a crypt. Aladdin can’t be here. You must have made some kind of mistake.”

“I don’t think so.” Emma gently disagreed.

“Why don’t we wait outside while the others look around?” Hook suggested as he and his wife tried to guide the princess out.

“No.” Jasmine refused as she snatched a flashlight and looked at the carcasses. Soon enough, she found the one thing that confirmed her worst fears. A gilded scarab. A keepsake she once gave to Aladdin. As soon as she picked it up, the poor princess felt as though the wind got knocked out of her.

“Jasmine?” Emma asked in concern.

“You were right.” she said as tears began to fall, “He is here.”

“Are you sure that’s Aladdin?” Regina asked.

“Yes.” she nodded as she sniffled.

“I’m so sorry.” Regina said as she and the Hooks led the girl outside. At this point, it was only Henry and Emma.

“Mom.” Henry asked fearfully, “Does this mean…”

“I…I don’t know.” she said feeling a torrent of emotions, “I think I need to be alone for a minute.”

Despite her request, Nicholas wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around the woman he loved and assure her that everything would be alright. But, he could tell she needed to be alone and reluctantly exited the crypt. After he did, Emma found herself a spot to sit on and stared down at her shaking hand as the vision flickered in her mind again. Between her fight with the stranger and the mysterious monster that scared her even more. But these thoughts were soon interrupted by the sound of her son’s worried voice.

“Mom?” he asked.

“Kid.” Emma gasped, “I said I wanted to be alone.”

“I know.” he said as his voice shook, “But…I’m so sorry.”

“What?” she asked immediately going in to comfort him.

“This is all my fault.” Henry said with guilt lacing his voice.

“What? What are you saying?” she gently asked.

“If I never knocked on your door, if I never dragged you to Storybrooke in the first place, none of this would be happening. I forced you to become the Savior.”

“You didn’t force me to do anything. You helped me believe.” Emma corrected.

“Believing won’t stop the future.” he argued.

“Maybe not. But it gave me a family. It made me a mother. I have actual magic in my life. I have you.” Emma said with love to her not-so-little boy, “If I could go back, I wouldn’t change a thing.”

“But it’s not fair.” Henry protested.

“Oh, kid. Let’s not worry about the end of this story, okay? Endings usually suck. Let’s just…enjoy the middle, the journey together.” Emma suggested before giving her son a much needed hug. As they did, a stranger with a knowing smirk emerged from the shadows.

“Stand back. I got this.” Emma said as she raised her shaking hands.

“Sure you know how to work that?” the man teased with a kind smile.

“Aladdin?” Emma asked.

“From one Savior to another, that is no fun, is it?” he asked.

“…You’ve had visions, too?” Emma asked, “What did you see? How did you stop them?”

“What I saw isn’t important, because I can tell you it wasn’t what you’ve been seeing. As for how I stopped them, well…” Aladdin trailed as he pulled out a pair of golden, Egyptian styled shears, “I took the easy way out.”

“What are those?” she asked.

“The Shears of Destiny.” he answered, “They were once used by the Three Fates to cut the threads of life. But, when used properly, they can destroy something else; a person’s destiny. My time as the Savior was a short one. I only had one villain to deal with and I let him get inside my head. So, I did the one thing I never should have done.”

“You used them.” Emma concluded.

“Yeah, I did.” Aladdin nodded, “I cut my string of fate, lost my magic, stopped being the Savior, and because of all that, Agrabah fell. So, I fled to the Enchanted Forest and got swept up in the curse.”

“So, you’ve been in Storybrooke this entire time?” Henry asked in disbelief.

“Lucky for me, the sheriffs in town are too busy saving the world to notice a common thief. A very good one to give their credit.”

“So, you planted the scarab. You didn’t want us to find you.” Emma explained rhetorically.

“Well, I never intended to reveal myself. But after hearing you and the boy, I couldn’t keep these to myself.” Aladdin said as he gave Emma the shears.

“But Jasmine; she’s looking for you.” Henry pointed out, “You need to go to her.”

“She was the first person to believe I could be more than just a selfish street rat. I can’t see the look in her eyes when she realizes that’s exactly what I am.” Aladdin said in a dejected tone.

“I was-I am a street rat, too. I made plenty of mistakes.” Emma admitted, “But I found people who kept me strong and cared about me as much as Jasmine clearly cares about you. Maybe the real mistake was keeping the Savior burden to yourself.”

“Our story never even begun.” Aladdin said with a regretful, sad smile.

“You never? In the movie, you-”

“Duty always got in the way.” he informed.

“It’s never too late to start.” Henry offered. Sure enough, the former Savior took the chance he had always put to the side and reunited himself with his princess.

In the meantime, at the farmhouse, Archie was at his wits end as he babysat little Robin. Even though the baby was cute as can be, the former cricket quickly learned the cutie was quite the handful. Thankfully, or so he hoped, the two sisters finally returned from their spa trip.

“Where have you been?” he asked exhaustedly.

“Yes, mothering isn’t easy, is it?” Evil Queen sarcastically asked.

“A spa day is exactly what Mummy needed to get back to basics, isn’t it?” Zelena said cheerfully as she took her baby.

“Basics?” Archie asked in fear, “What-what-what are you going to do? You gonna torture me? Kill me?”

“Please.” Zelena laughed as she put Robin in her crib, “Don’t be ridiculous. That would be a bit too, well, evil for my tastes. No. I’ve got to show my daughter who her mummy is. Wicked.”

With a wave of her hand, Archie quickly found himself in his old cricket form trapped in a cage hanging over Robin as she cooed at his chirping. The Evil Queen could only laugh and applaud at the demonstration as Zelena gave her own wicked laugh, as well. Over at the loft, after Emma and Henry explained everything, they showed the others the shears Aladdin gave them.

“A pair of scissors?” Regina skeptically asked as she closely examined the ancient shears, “Why does magic always have to be so literal?”

“Troublesome is the word I would have used.” Nicholas bitterly remarked.

“We came as soon as we could.” David said as he and Snow barged in.

“Still no sign of Archie.” Snow said before coming to a stop once she saw the shears, “Are those…”

“Aye. They are.” Hook said.

“Look, I brought those here because I’m done with secrets, but I do not want to use them.” Emma said to them all.

“Emma.” Snow said.

“Just hear me out.” she said, “Aladdin didn’t trust the people he loved. That’s why he failed. But I believe in us to find a third way. It’s kind of what we do. But if we don’t, and my magic does come with a price, I will pay it. The Savior is what I am, but I am also part of a family.”

“Well, I choose to believe in us, too.” Snow declared as she gave the shears back to her daughter.

“We all do.” David nodded, “We can protect you, and we can protect this town.”

“If that’s what you want, we’re with you, Swan.” Hook said.

“You’re as much as a member of our family, too.” Ariel added, “You’re like the sister I never had. Well, I mean, I have six sisters but none of them have legs.”

“What my lovely wife is trying to say,” Hook interrupted with an amused smile, “Is that if there is anything you need, anything at all, we’ll be there for you.”

“Good. Which is why I want you to take them.” Emma nodded as she gave them the shears, “I don’t want them used as a weapon if they fall into the wrong hands. We need to be sure to be rid of them.”

“Consider it done, love.” Killian said to his friend. Once night had fallen, Emma and Nicholas watched from the docks with Ariel as Killian rowed back to them after dropping the shears into the depths of the sea.

“There we are.” he said wrapping his arm around his wife to feel her warmth, “They’re thousands of leagues under the sea. No one will ever find them, not even Poseidon himself.”

“Thank you. Both of you, so much.” Emma to her friends as thunder rolled over their heads.

“There’s a storm coming. Better get back home, Nicholas. You know, before you get struck by lightning.” Ariel joked.

“You laugh, but that actually has happened to me before.” Nicholas dryly informed. 

“Night guys.” Emma smiled before turning away to walk down the pier with Nicholas’ arm around her.

“Good night, Swan.” Killian said softly. Once she was far enough away, Killian pulled out the shears from his jacket and looked at his wife who shared the same concerned look. “You really think this is the right thing?”

“No.” she admitted, “But we can’t keep risking the life of our friends just so we and everyone else in this town can stay safe.”

“Aye.” he nodded, “I just hope we’ll never have to use these.”


	87. Dark Waters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

When Nicholas and Emma returned to the house, Emma wanted nothing more than to put the day behind and go to sleep. As he went to the bathroom to wash off his face, Emma had changed into her usual sleeping boxers and tank top. It may have made her look like a complete tomboy, but Nicholas always found that part of her completely sexy.

“Hard to imagine life without her.” Nicholas thought, “It’s amazing how much this incredible woman has changed me.”

Seeing him staring at her, Emma threw her arms around him and gave a saucy smile. A smile Nicholas couldn’t resist smiling back at.

“You smell like the ocean. It’s kinda nice.” she said to him.

“And so do you. But you should probably go to sleep after the day you’ve had.” he said playfully covering her face with her hair.

“What about you?” she asked after clearing her face.

“What about me?” he asked.

“Are you gonna sleep tonight?” she asked.

Even though it had been over a month since the defeat of the Homunculi, Nicholas still continued his bizarre, unhealthy sleeping, or lack thereof, patterns. In fact, he hadn’t slept once since he left the hospital on the Promised Day. Even after finally killing the one, living, remaining person from his time in Xerxes, Nicholas was still afraid he was going to have night terrors if he went to sleep. And considering how in past nights he had wrecked his room because of the night terrors, he especially did not want to risk it now that he and Emma were sharing the same bed.

“Um, probably not tonight, Em. Don’t worry about me. Just go get some sleep.” he said gently.

Knowing that sleep was a sensitive topic for her lover, Emma relented and gave her lover a comforting kiss good night. Even though he wanted to just lay down and hold her in his arms while they both slept peacefully, he was content with seeing her like she was. All in all, he was just grateful to have her in his life. So, in order to prevent waking her up, Nicholas quietly left the room and made his way to his study to keep himself preoccupied until his girlfriend and nephew woke up for breakfast.

“Do I really want to risk it?” he asked himself, “She’s never seen one of my night terrors and I want to keep it that way. But I can’t stay awake forever.”

Deciding to stay up through the night, once again, Nicholas kept himself preoccupied until getting up and around to make breakfast for himself, Emma and Henry. Sure enough, Henry was the first one down and made a beeline for his box of pop tarts.

“Mornin’, bedhead.” Nicholas greeted.

“Morning, Uncle.” Henry greeted back as he pulled out a pack.

“Oh, come on. Pop tarts, again?” Nicholas groaned as he gestured to the food he made, “And after I made all this? Put those away.”

“But-”

“Put them away.” Nicholas repeated a bit more sternly as he pointed at Henry with his spatula.

“Fine.” Henry huffed as he put the pack back in the box.

“I don’t understand why you insist on eating those things by themselves for breakfast, anyway. It’s just sugars, fats, and carbs. There’s no nutritional value in eating those things.” Nicholas practically ranted.

“Says the guy who smokes like a fricking chimney.” Henry muttered.

“What was that?” Nicholas asked cupping his ear, “I couldn’t hear you past the sound of your cracked voice, little Mr. Puberty.”

“Well, this seems like we’re all off to a cheerful start this morning.” Emma playfully remarked as she came down and joined them in the kitchen and kissed Nicholas’ cheek while Henry looked away slightly disgusted, “Smells great, babe.”

“Thank you.” Nicholas nodded, “At least someone is appreciative of my cooking.”

“Yeah, yeah, you made your point. Get off the soapbox.” Emma teased with a grin as she bumped his shoulder with hers. After she did, her phone buzzed with a text alert. “It’s Jasmine. She’s worried because Aladdin ran off, and she doesn’t know where he is.”

“And that makes it official ‘Savior’ business. Which makes it a good thing I made all of this into a burrito for you.” Nicholas smirked as he held up a foil covered breakfast burrito for her.

“You’re the best.” Emma praised before pecking him on the lips and snatching the burrito out of his hand.

“So, I hope you’re hungry.” Nicholas said to his nephew.

“Yeah, actually.” Henry nodded before noticing some of the ingredients off to the side for the omelets, “Wait, you didn’t put mushrooms in these, did you?”

“Yeah, why?” Nicholas asked before it dawned on him, “Oh, right! You don’t handle mushrooms well. I’m sorry. I completely forgot about that. Tell you what, I’ll eat this one and I’ll just make you a fresh one without mushrooms.”

“Um, yeah, sure.” Henry agreed.

“Great. And you can take out the trash while I make it.” Nicholas added as he nodded to the trashcan.

Even though he did not want to start his morning by doing chores, Henry did as he was told and took the trash out back. As he did, he tried to calm down his growing temper and irritation towards his uncle.

“I know what you’re thinking.” Evil Queen said suddenly appearing behind the teen with a partially eaten apple in her hand, “How long before that old know-it-all stops treating me like a little kid?”

“What are you doing here?” Henry asked with hostility.

“Looking out for my son.” Evil Queen replied as though it were a stupid question, “Tell me, is your new father bothering you?”

“He’s not my father.” Henry shot back, “He’s just my uncle.”

“Well, it’s _just_ a matter of time.” Evil Queen reminded as Henry tried to make a break for it, “Henry, I’m just trying to help. Now, I know how difficult it is when someone new joins the family.”

“How would you know?” Henry skeptically asked.

“Because I used to be that person.” she smoothly replied.

“But he’s not like you. He would never hurt this family.” Henry spat.

“Like he hurt you?” she asked pointing to his lip, “I know Nicholas better than anyone, Henry. Even better than Regina. But that’s not the only reason why I’m here. Your uncle, and daddy-to-be, took something away from you. Something that rightfully belongs to you and has yet to give it back. Now, be honest with me. Don’t you want your quill back?”

“I’ll get it back when I’ve earned it.” Henry spat.

“No, those are your uncle’s words. I’m asking _you_ , sweetheart. Do you want your quill back?” she asked again with a malicious smile.

“Even if I do, I’ve looked everywhere for it!” Henry all but shouted, “It’s not in the house and it’s not in the mansion.”

“Ah, but there is one other place those gentlemen could have it hidden. Some place you _haven’t_ been to. Give you three guesses.”

“The Nautilus.” Henry whispered, “Why do you care whether or not I have the quill?”

“Because I’m your mother, Henry.” she answered smiling, “I want what’s best for you. And besides, you’ll probably want it now more than ever. Especially because of these.”

Holding them loosely by her finger, the Evil Queen revealed to Henry that she was in possession of the Shears of Destiny.

“Hook and Ariel didn’t get rid of them. They kept them.” Henry realized.

“The one thing that can take away what makes Emma special.” Evil Queen reminded with an eye roll.

“You’re not taking these.” Henry declared.

“Oh, I don’t want them, Henry. I want to make sure you know who you can and cannot trust in these dangerous times we live in.” Evil Queen clarified, “The pirate and his fish-wife don’t care about you or Emma. So now you have to ask yourself one tiny question: what are you going to do about it?”

Poofing away in a cloud of smoke, the Evil Queen left her son to decide what he was going to do. While this ordeal went on, the ex-Savior, Aladdin, was strolling about Main Street with an interest in an all too familiar car belonging to a certain dwarf. As he broke in and took Doc’s wallet, Emma came up behind him with a slightly amused smirk.

“Really?” she asked.

“Emma, this is not what it looks like.” Aladdin said, lying through his teeth, “This is my new car.”

“Oh, really?” she asked, “You traded your magic carpet for a Miata that looks identical to the one that one of my deputies drives?”

“Yeah, what can I say? Great minds think alike.” he nodded coolly.

“Sure, right.” Emma sarcastically said ending the game as she took back the wallet, “Let’s take a drive. We need to talk.”

“Jasmine sent you.” Aladdin stated, “Sorry, not in the mood.”

“I wasn’t asking.” she stated with a glare strong enough to make him obey. 

Over at the docks Henry was hiding behind cargo crates as he spied on the Nautilus. Repairs were still being conducted to the damage done by the Dwarf in the Flask’s explosive attack so sneaking in would be tricky. Thankfully, after finding an opening, Henry was able to get in and begin his search.

For some reason, Henry had expected a darker design when it came to the inner part of the massive submarine. Despite all the wreckage and torn metal, the white and silver designs actually impressed him. Since all the casualties caused on the Promised Day, it was easy for the teen to sneak around. It did not take long, but after maneuvering through the halls, Henry came up to a large, heavily bolted door. Just as he came up to it, he saw two sailors open it and exit from whatever chamber was on the other side. Henry could hear them speak, but could not understand their native tongue. It did not matter, though. Especially since they failed to completely close the door, which he took advantage of and snuck through.

Unlike the hall he was just in, this part of the Nautilus was dimly lit with red lights. There were also dozens of thick, heavy-looking cables that ran along underneath the walking grate. Along the sides of the walkway were strange, black, column-shaped devices with touch-screens, gauges and small, rectangular, red lights. 

Not knowing if there were any more sailors around, Henry quietly snuck around, keeping his eyes peeled for any sailors or, most importantly, any clues that would lead him to his pen. Unfortunately, the sound of two sailors talking carried from down the hall, alerting the young teen.

Thinking quickly, Henry ducked behind the nearest column, out of sight of the two, heavily armed, turban wearing sailors. Once they were gone, Henry then noticed a downward tunnel with a ladder behind him. Letting his curiosity get the better of him, the boy went down and was dazed by the yellowish-green light filling the room. After he finished climbing, and waiting for his eyes to adjust, Henry walked around the lower parts of the columns. As he did, with his hand pressed against them, to guide himself, he noticed he was touching a humming, glass dome. Once his eyes finally adjusted, Henry loudly gasped in horror at what he saw.

Floating in the domes, filled with some sort of yellowish-green liquid and wearing oxygen masks, were human beings. But not just and human beings, they were human beings being grown in the tanks!

All around him, Henry could see various men identical to many of the sailors he had seen in the past month, many now dead, varying in ages. Some were fetuses, some were toddlers, some were teenagers, and some were nearly fully grown adults; he even saw a few tanks with younger versions of Ishmael.

Backing away in horror at the unnatural creations, Henry stumbled into a few oil drums and crates which he rested against as he tried to catch his breath; clutching his heart as he did. As this happened, with a creepy smile, Nicholas slowly raised up from behind and made his presence known.

“You know when I first learned that Nemo’s crew was made up of a whole bunch of clones from his original crew, I was all like, ‘what?!’” Nicholas said, scaring Henry even more before sighing at his nephew and helping him to his feet, “Henry, what are you doing here?”

“How’d you know where I was?” Henry asked.

“Uh, hello?” Nicholas dryly asked as he tapped the side of his nose, “You honestly think I didn’t smell the Evil Queen when she showed up at the house? Not to mention, you randomly disappearing after you went to take out the trash? You were looking for you quill, again, weren’t you?

“Yeah, but-”

“Agh, Henry.” Nicholas groaned in disappointment as he shook his head in his hand.

“It’s not what you think!” Henry stressed.

“Oh?” Nicholas asked sarcastically as he peeked through his hand, “Then enlighten me. No, no, wait. Let me guess. You’re deliberately disobeying me, again, because you think you’re protecting the family and our home. Sound about right?”

“You know what? Forget it!” Henry snapped before turning around to storm off.

“That’s not the way out, genius.” Nicholas informed as Henry continued to walk off, “Oh, for cripes sake.”

Having enough, Nicholas dug into his pocket, crushed a transport rock and tossed the dust at Henry, transporting him outside just before he transmuted away to join him. On the other side of town, at the farm house, the Evil Queen was playing coy with the Dark One who was sporting his new haircut and old scowl.

“To what do I owe the pleasure?” Evil Queen flirtatiously asked with the southern accent of a lady from New Orleans, “It’s not every day Rumplestiltskin makes a house call.”

“No. It’s not.” he flatly said, not in the mood for games, “I see you’re celebrating.”

“Yes, well, I’m in the midst of driving a wedge into the middle of the Charming clan. One that will finally free my naïve little brother of them for good.”

“Really?” Rumple asked, despite not caring in the slightest, “And here I was thinking you wanted your brother to be happy.”

“I do.” Evil Queen corrected, “Which is exactly why I am working so hard to make him, finally, understand that the Savior isn’t good enough for him. Or, rather, _bad_ enough for him. But why waste time talking about them? Care to join me for a drink?”

“Do you remember your old lessons?” Rumple asked, still not playing any games.

“Why, yes, I do.” Evil Queen said with an excited smile before sitting down and posing herself as flirty, teenage, schoolgirl, “What do you want to teach me now, _teacher_?”

“Well, it seems you have forgotten the most important lesson of all.” Rumple said before making it clear he was angry with her through his gritted teeth, “Never take what’s mine. The shears. The pirate and his mermaid had them hidden, and now they’re gone. And I could smell your magic all over it.”

“You want the shears?” she asked, genuinely confused, “I didn’t think you cared whether or not the Savior met her fate.”

“You really think the Shears of Destiny work only on the Savior?” Rumple rhetorically asked before the queen gasped in realization.

“Oh. You want to use them on Belle and the baby she has brewing inside her so you can change the fate of your pathetic little family.” Evil Queen explained, “Well, I wish I could help. But like everyone you’ve ever loved, those shears are long gone.”

“Careful who you cross.” Rumple warned as he made his way to leave, “You’re thin on allies.”

“You don’t need allies when you win.” Evil Queen chuckled, “And as you can see, I’m doing just fine without you.”

“We’ll see about that, dearie. We shall see.” Rumple said darkly before heading out the door. On the outskirts of Storybrooke, Emma parked her bug and exited it so she could talk directly with Aladdin, Savior to Savior.

“If this is some kind of nature therapy, you should know woods aren’t really my thing.” Aladdin joked.

“Come on, you’ll see.” Emma said as she led him to Storybrooke’s historical welcome sign.

“Welcome to Storybrooke.” he read aloud in a bored tone.

“Look closer.” Emma said.

“Alright.” Aladdin sighed as he took a closer look, “So? It’s been repaired. Drunk driver must have hit it.”

“Well, despite how strongly Regina spiked her cider, I was not drunk.” Emma corrected.

“You did this?” he asked with an amused grin.

“Yeah. I hit the sign right after Henry tried to convince me that I was Storybrooke’s Savior.” Emma nodded as she thought back to the night her life changed forever.

“Hang on. So, you, Emma Swan, you ran.” he stated.

“It wasn’t the only time.” she added.

“When was the last?” he asked.

“Yesterday when you gave me the shears.” she admitted.

“But you got rid of them.”

“I told my family I was worried somebody would use them as a weapon against me.”

“That’s not true?” he asked.

“I was worried that I might use them.” Emma admitted, “Every time I think about the vision of my future, and I think about my trembling hand and…I imagine my family blaming themselves for whatever reason I die for. And I wish I never became the Savior. So I knew I could not have those shears anywhere near me.”

“Tell me, then. What do I do now?” Aladdin asked.

“What I did all the times I ran; I came back, faced the people I disappointed, and tried to find a way to make up for my mistakes.”

“My mistakes?” Aladdin asked, “Whatever happened to Agrabah was all my fault. I don’t even know where to start to fix it.”

“You don’t even know what happened. Maybe that’s where you start?” Emma suggested, “You can’t fix a problem until you know what it is.”

Outside at the docks, Henry was still storming off while his uncle casually followed with his hands in his pockets.

“Do you mind telling me where you’re running off to this time?” Nicholas asked, “I mean, I know that’s not really your style, but it wouldn’t kill ya to shake things up now and then.”

“You wanna know why I went looking for my pen?” Henry hotly asked as he came to a stop, “Ask them!”

Looking over Henry’s shoulder, Nicholas saw his nephew pointing directly at Hook and Ariel as they were walking towards the Jolly Roger with groceries in their hands.

“Jones!” Henry shouted, startling the couple as he stomped over to them, “I got a bone to pick with you.”

“What hell has got him so angry?” Nicholas asked himself as he joined them.

“Is something the matter, Henry?” Ariel asked in confusion.

“Yeah, I’d say so.” Henry nodded in anger before pulling out the shears from his jacket, causing the three adults to look at them in shock.

“Where the hell did you get those?” Nicholas asked as he snatched the shears from the boy’s hands before he put the pieces together, “You guys didn’t get rid of them?”

“How the hell did you get those?!” Hook exclaimed before exhaling through his nose, “It was the queen, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah, it was. And she told me you guys kept the shears instead of tossing them like you said you did.” Henry snapped, “My mom trusted you two and you lied to her!”

“Excuse me, Henry. Sorry for interrupting. One sec.” Nicholas calmly said as he handed the shears back before repeatedly slapping Killian’s face. They were light slaps, but still brought a bit of stinging pain to the pirate’s face.

“Ow! Stop it-ow-cut-cut it-ow-stop it-ow stop it!” Hook exclaimed as he was being slapped before Nicholas slapped him once more, “Ow!”

“What, the hell, were you two _Barnacle-Heads_ thinking when you decided it would be a good idea to keep these damn things?!” Nicholas shouted at the top of his lungs.

“We were just trying to help!” Ariel defended.

“And yet, I fail to see how this could, Ariel.” Nicholas retorted.

“Mate, we know Emma’s afraid right now, but maybe keeping those shears is her best option.” Killian argued.

“How? By taking away what makes her the Savior?” Henry snapped.

“You stay out of this!” Nicholas shouted with a raised finger, “I’m not done with you and your little excursion, boy.”

“Why should I listen to you?! You’re not my father!” Henry shouted, creating a heavy tension in the air. For a moment, Nicholas pretended to be emotionally hurt by the statement before reverting back to his angry expression.

“Yeah, no shit I’m not your father, Henry. I’m your uncle. If I were your father, I probably would have abandoned you at this point out of not wanting to deal with your drama like he did the first time.” Nicholas shot back.

Out of pure anger for the insult to his late father, Henry swung his fist as hard as he could at Nicholas’ jaw. To the alchemist, it felt like a love tap. However, he did not take kindly to his nephew striking him as though they were equals.

“Oh, so Heny-Weny thinks he’s a big boy now, huh?” Nicholas asked with a dangerous look in his eye before grabbing him by the collar, “If that’s the case, why I don’t I show you just how rough the big boys can play?”

“Stop it!” Ariel shouted as she pulled the two apart, “Killian and I are the ones at fault here. We had our reasons for keeping the shears. So, if you wanna hear them, get on the ship. Otherwise, I’ll call Emma here and you can both explain to her why I had to beat up the both of you. Okay?”

“…After you, _nephew_.” Nicholas said with an outstretched arm towards the ship. Once they were on the deck, and after the Hooks put their groceries away, Ariel took the liberty of explaining everything.

“Look, we you two are upset that we kept the shears. But it wasn’t so we could use them on Emma.” she said as she paced in front of them, “We kept them in case Emma ever changed her mind and decided to change her fate and prevent her death from whatever it is that’s coming to Storybrooke.”

“We weren’t willing to throw away the one thing that could save her.” Killian added.

“Being the Savior is who she is.” Henry stressed, “It’s what brought us together; all of us.”

“We weren’t trying to take that away from you, Henry. Or you, Nicholas.” Killian defended.

“Why do you guys even care?” Henry snapped, “You’re not even a part of this family.”

“Cool it.” Nicholas hissed as he smacked the teen upside the head.

“…Aye, you’re right, lad. We’re not.” Killian said, clearly hurt by the statement, “But we see her, and the rest of you, as a part of ours. We weren’t willing to lose her, or any of you to another threat.”

“Last time was hard enough.” Ariel choked as she avoided eye contact with Nicholas who sighed in guilt.

“And there was another reason I had for not ridding the shears.” Killian said trying to swallow the lump in his throat, “I killed my father.”

“What?” Henry asked in confusion.

“You asked me why I care about keeping your family together. It’s because I once had the chance of having my own.”

“With your dad?” Henry asked, still confused, “I know. You told us.”

“There’s a part of the story I didn’t share, Henry. When I killed my father, I didn’t just destroy his life. He had a son.” Killian somberly explained as Ariel went over to sit next to him and soothingly caress his hand.

“So you had another brother.” Henry stated.

“Aye. He named him Liam, after my older brother. That was just too much for me.” Killian continued with guilt and regret in his voice.

“The man sold his children and then named his third son after the firstborn he abandoned for a few coins?” Nicholas thought in disgust, “That’s just not right. That is wrong in so many ways.”

“I killed my father, and I left an innocent boy an orphan.” Killian finished as Ariel held his arm and rested her head on his shoulder.

“You’re trying to make up for what you did to Liam with me?” Henry asked.

“I can’t ruin another family, Henry. Especially yours. I owe your parents too much. And you, too.”

Deciding that he needed some time to process the information, and settle his nerves, Henry got up from his makeshift seat and went up the stairs towards the helm.

“Well, that’s good enough for me.” Nicholas said with a cheerful disposition as he hopped to his feet.

“What?” Killian asked.

“Ah, you guys had good intentions and you said it yourselves that you won’t be using them on Emma without her consent. So, there’s no harm done.”

“You’re taking this surprisingly well.” Ariel pointed out.

“Guys, come on, you hid a pair of scissors. It’s not like anybody’s dead. Besides, compared to all the shit I’ve done and put everyone through, this is nothing. Although, I do think you should come clean with Emma and tell her the truth.”

“Aye, you’re right. We will.” Killian nodded.

“Good. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to have a chat with my nephew.” Nicholas sighed as he went over to join Henry at the back of the ship.

Henry noticed Nicholas leaning against the railing he had his arms and upper body resting on, but he said nothing. So, Nicholas decided to speak first, instead.

“Why were you looking for the quill, Henry?” Nicholas finally asked, deciding it was time to listen to his nephew for a change.

“I’m sick and tired of standing on the sidelines, Uncle.” Henry confessed as he stared out at the ocean, “I have magic. But I can’t use it to fight or protect anyone. All I’m meant to do is watch. That’s it.”

“But you know that you _can_ do something about it, at the risk of losing your powers.” Nicholas nodded in understanding.

“I thought if I figured out a way to use my powers without breaking the rules, I could stop whatever’s coming. That way Mom doesn’t have to fight anyone alone and…”

“Yeah.” Nicholas nodded somberly, “I’m worried about her, too, kid. But take it from someone who spent over fifty years trying to prevent a horrific event; it doesn’t always work the way we want.”

“You’re saying I should just give up?” Henry asked, finally turning to face him, “Like my dad?”

“Okay, I’ll admit, that was not cool. I apologize.” Nicholas admitted, “I respect the sacrifice your father made at the end, Henry. But I can never respect the man who abandoned you and your mother out of personal fear. Even if he didn’t know about you, and I ended up with Emma instead of him because of that, he shouldn’t have ran. A real man wouldn’t do that. And no, I would never say give up. Don’t ever give up or stop fighting for the people you love.” Nicholas immediately corrected, “But what I am saying is don’t spend all your time thinking about what might be instead of experiencing what is.”

“Isn’t that what you did?” Henry asked.

“Not towards the end, I didn’t. But at first, way back when, I missed out on a lot of stuff I can never reclaim, now. It was only after I forever lost my chance did I realize my mistake.” Nicholas sadly sighed in nostalgia, “I didn’t take that pen from you out of anger or disappointment. I took it out of concern for your well-being. You made the same mistake so many times over the years; and you did it again, today. But when you and Violet ran off to New York with that crystal…you crossed so many lines and put everyone in this town in danger. You were so wrapped up in your adventure, your own story, you completely disregarded how your actions might have effected everyone else. You didn’t care.”

“That’s not true.” Henry argued.

“No, it is.” Nicholas retorted, “At that moment, you didn’t care. All you thought about was what _you_ wanted. You were selfish. It was the same stunt you had been pulling ever since you brought Emma here. But that wasn’t the only thing that made me worry. You were completely oblivious to how much you were acting like Isaac. Like him, you were born and raised in a land without magic. You became too blinded by its ‘wonder’. I don’t mean this as an insult, it’s not, but I don’t think you’ll ever, truly, see this all as anything more than a fairytale. Isaac certainly didn’t. He saw us as characters to manipulate as he saw fit. You saw magic as something only you had the final say in deciding its fate. You played God, kid. And someone died because of that.”

“…I know.” Henry said, “Maleficent may not have been an innocent, but I killed her. I will never forget that.”

“You have the power to change reality simply through writing. You could very well be able to change what might happen to Emma. But that could just open another door to another crisis. I know you wanna protect your mom. But you can’t just use the power inside you without a care. Whatever’s gonna happen will happen. But we’re the ones who decides how things play out.” Nicholas said as he gently held the side of his nephew’s face in one hand, “But we’re gonna do it the right way. Not the easy way. Deal?”

“…Deal.” Henry nodded before wrapping his arms around his uncle who hugged him back.

“So, you want this back?” Nicholas asked as he pulled the pen from his pocket after they separated. Leave it to Nicholas to keep what Henry was looking for on his own person.

“…I don’t need it.” Henry replied with a smirk.

“Well, you’re getting it anyway.” Nicholas flatly spat as he forced it on Henry before walking off in a huff, “That damn twig has been giving me hives the whole time I kept it on me. Oh, there you go! That’s it. I’m allergic to magic. Let’s just start saying that, now. Sound good?”

“Sure thing, Uncle.” Henry chuckled to himself.

Later that day, after Killian and Ariel properly dumped the shears in the ocean, and confessing the truth to Emma, who immediately forgave them, Gold was back in his shop going through his things. As he did, he heard the bell on his door ding and knew exactly who was visiting him.

“You’d only be bold enough to walk through that door for one reason.” he said to the person behind him, “The alchemist and your son worked things out in the end.”

“Insipid bunch.” Evil Queen lightly chuckled, “They really are much too forgiving of each other.”

“Well, forgiveness is a virtue. One I’m not particularly fond of.” Rumple pointed out as he kept his back turned.

“Aw, that’s too bad. Because I’ve come here to make amends. You see, I’ve been going about this all wrong, trying to pin my brother and the Charmings against one another. I’ve forgotten the most important lesson you ever taught me. Know what you want and go after it with everything you have.” Evil Queen said as she sauntered up close to Gold’s proximity.

“And what is it you really want?” he asked before she went in for a desirable kiss, “Me? Is that what you want?”

“No.” Evil Queen breathed, “There’s something else…but I need your help to get it.”

“And what makes you think I’d be willing to help?” Rumple asked.

“Because, fortunately for you,” she said as she revealed the Shears of Destiny which he gladly took, “There are still a few underwater creatures who owe me a favor.”

“So, tell me, what is it you need my help in getting?” Rumple asked.

“Oh, the one thing I’ve always wanted; Snow White’s heart.”


	88. Heartless

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

In the dead of night in Storybrooke, Snow, David and their little prince were sound asleep in the loft. Unfortunately, not all of them were sleeping peacefully. As Snow slept, her dream suddenly changed to something close to a nightmare. Opening her eyes, Snow found herself in her nightgown, standing in the middle of the woods of Storybrooke. To make it an even bigger blast from the past, the Evil Queen stepped out from the shadows, looking even more sinister than she did in the old days.

“Did I wake you?” she asked, “You’re so peaceful when you sleep. In fact, sleeping Snow is my favorite Snow.”

“What do you want?” Snow asked, not showing an ounce of fear.

“Do you remember your fifteenth birthday?” Evil Queen asked, “You wanted a pony. Your father bought one. A miniature horse, really. Tiny as a dog. He had a trainer work with it for half a year. Then he brought you to the stables, to this sweet little horse. And when you went to it, it did as it had been trained and bowed its head. Another loyal subject eager to honor you. Oh, I’ve never seen such delight as I did on your face when that tiny horse bowed to you. ‘This is my perfect day,’ you said. Your father always made sure you got what you wanted. Plus, a little bit more. Well, now I want what I’ve always wanted…your heart in my hand. And since your husband had half your heart, I get that, too. You see, that’s a little bit more that’ll make today my perfect day.”

“Regina put a protection spell on both of us the moment you rolled into town. You can’t take them.” Snow informed.

“Oh, did I say I would take them?” Evil Queen asked rhetorically, “No, I said you would hand them over; willingly. And this is how I know it will happen.” she said holding up a small vial of clear liquid and placing it in Snow’s hand.

“What is this?” Snow asked.

“What do you think? Something terrible.” Evil Queen retorted, “You have twelve hours to figure it out. And follow your conscience, or the whole town gets a taste of it. And it will be their last taste of anything.”

With a wave of her hands, Evil Queen poofed herself away and sent Snow back to the loft with the mysterious threat in her hand. Later, once the sun had risen and most of the town was awake, Evil Queen happily strode into the kitchen of the farmhouse while Zelena fed Robin.

“Well, well. Hello, there.” the queen greeted with a smile, “Oh, don’t you two look pretty and domestic.”

“What terrible things have you been up to?” Zelena asked, “You look like you’re having a good day.”

“Oh, it’s a perfect day.” Evil Queen said as she looked into a small mirror to gawk at herself, “I’m finally getting my revenge on Snow White; and Prince Farming thrown in as a bonus. Soon, I’ll have their little shared heart beating in the palm of my hand.”

“You seem confident. Is the Dark One helping you?” Zelena asked, slightly irritated, “Is that why he dropped by yesterday?”

“Yes.” Evil Queen said with a smirk at the memory, “It was a…productive conversation. Lots of give-and-take.”

“What did you give, and what did he take?” Zelena asked making her irritation a bit more obvious.

“Oh, he wanted the Shears of Destiny, so I fished them up for him. He was grateful.”

“Hmm. I’ll bet.” Zelena remarked as she shifted her attention back to Robin.

“Oh, now, now, sis. Don’t start insinuating anything. We’re simply old friends.” Evil Queen defended.

“Of course. I didn’t mean a thing.” Zelena assured with a sneer as she sipped her morning tea. Sensing the tension, the queen decided to end the conversation.

“Well, I’d love to stay and burp the baby with you, but I’ve simply got tons to do before Snow’s last breath.”

Outside over at Granny’s, after informing David about what happened in the Night, the Charmings called the others, except Branch Quartermain, to meet with them in order to figure out whatever it was the queen was threatening to use.

“So, if you guys don’t give in to her, she’ll use that on everyone?” Emma asked.

“Yes.” Snow nodded.

“So, what is it?” Regina asked as she inspected the bottle.

“She told me to figure it out and that if we didn’t give over our hearts within twelve hours, she would use it on the whole town.” Snow said as Emma reached for the bottle only for her hand to start shaking, “Are you okay?”

“No, but I have an excuse. Haven’t you heard? The Evil Queen’s trying to kill my parents.”

“Speaking of death, I think I know what this is.” Regina said with a fearful look on her face. After uncorking the bottle and pouring a single drop on a nearby plant, everyone watched as it instantaneously dried out and died, looking as though a single breeze would reduce it to ash.

“Whoa.” Henry remarked.

“What kind of potion is that?” David asked.

“It’s not a potion.” Regina corrected.

“No, it’s not.” Nicholas added looking afraid, “I know that scent. It’s water.”

“Oh, I knew it. Never trusted the stuff. Rum would never do that.” Hook joked, hoping to defuse the tension.

“Tell that to your liver.” Nicholas said with a dry look, “Especially since you’ve been drinking the stuff for centuries, now.”

“What kind of water?” Emma asked trying to get back on track.

“From the River of Lost Souls.” Regina replied before realizing how it was brought to town, “Gold. She’s working with Gold. He brought it back from the Underworld.”

“Why would he bring something like that back?” Ariel asked.

“Give you three guesses.” Nicholas scoffed, “He was probably gonna use it on me since he knows he’s incapable of killing me with his own powers.”

“Well, wait, isn’t he breaking your deal, then?” Henry asked with a bit of hope.

“Hmm, no.” Nicholas answered, “Technically, he’s not the one threatening the town with this stuff and he already bottled it before I cashed in our deal. Plus, the conditions I made don’t prevent him from making deals with others.”

“Either way, if you don’t give the queen your hearts, she can destroy the whole town.” Regina warned.

“Nicholas, do you think _now_ your team will want to be involved with this?” Ariel asked.

“Look, they _want_ to be involved. We just don’t have the clearance to help out like last time.” Nicholas defended on his friends’ behalf, “And besides, I don’t know if there is anything that can counter this stuff. Definitely not with alchemy, I can tell you that.”

“Maybe Belle or Blue knows.” Emma suggested, “I mean, those two have read more about light and dark magic than anyone else on our team.”

“Our team?” Nicholas chuckled, “If we’re a team, what’s our mascot?”

Not giving a verbal response, they all briefly glanced at the alchemist before looking away. It took him a moment, but Nicholas got the message.

“Oh, screw you!” he shouted. Later at the loft, Belle had come over earlier than Blue and inspected the water after everyone explained what the queen was doing and how her husband was involved over the phone.

“You don’t seem shocked that Gold brought some of this back and gave it to the queen.” Emma pointed out to the, surprisingly, calm, pregnant librarian.

“I’m not.” Belle said, “He’s not acting like the man he could be. I wish I could help. But I’ve looked through all my books on any information on how to neutralize water from the River of Souls, but I’m afraid there’s nothing. I’ll keep looking.”

As Belle left, Blue passed her and entered the kitchen.

“I’m sorry to interrupt. I came as quickly as I could. David called and told me what happened.” Blue said in a hurry before stopping in fear as she looked at the vial of water.

“Can you help?” Snow asked.

“Unfortunately, I don’t have a way to counteract the Lost Souls’ water.” Blue informed.

“So we either let the whole town die, or the Evil Queen gets exactly what she’s always wanted.” David sighed.

“Maybe. But there is a bit of magic that just might be powerful enough to imprison the Evil Queen. It’s a sapling.”

“A baby tree?” David asked.

“It was created by the first spark of a true love. It’s incredibly rare.” Blue explained.

“Have you got one?” Hook asked.

“We had one, back in the Enchanted Forest. We assumed it was left behind in the curse, but now we think it might be lost somewhere here in Storybrooke.”

“There has to be some magical way to find it, right?” Emma asked.

“There is a spell that could point the way with a sort of beacon. But it wouldn’t be visible just to us. If Gold or the queen or even Zelena saw it, they would know exactly what it was.”

“Then we have a race on our hands.” David pointed out.

“Maybe not.” Regina spoke up.

“What?” Emma asked before Regina took on an embarrassed expression.

“The Evil Queen and Gold’s alliance, there, um, may be more to it than business.” Regina bashfully informed which made everyone look at her in confusion, “Rumple and I…there was always a certain amount of chemistry.”

Needless to say, everyone in the room was visibly disgusted at this revelation; especially Henry considering it was about his mother and grandfather.

“Regina, oh, my God.” Emma deadpanned in disbelief.

“I know. I know. Nothing ever happened.” Regina assured while Nicholas’ gagging sound caught everyone’s attention. This wasn’t comedic, or an exaggeration. Nicholas was genuinely trying not to regurgitate at the news he just heard. He even pressed his fist against his mouth to try and block the vomit trying to rise from his stomach.

“Mate?” Hook asked in concern, “Are you alright?”

“Hmm!” Nicholas nodded as he managed to swallow it down and compose himself for a moment. However, it did not last long.

“Nope!” he groaned before smacking the window over the sink open and proceeded to loudly empty his stomach. After several hurls, Nicholas pulled himself up and screamed to the heavens.

“Agh! Why? Why?! WHY ARE ALL THE WOMEN IN MY FAMILY ATTRACTED TO THAT PSYCHOTIC MIDGET?!?!” he wailed.

“Shut up, Nicholas!” Regina snapped, “Anyway, I think we can use this to our advantage.”

Grabbing a pen and pad, Regina made a special little note for her big sister. After having a raven deliver it to the witch, Zelena read that it was from the queen and she wanted to meet over in Gold’s shop.

“Hello?” Zelena asked after she walked into the empty shop. However, she began to hear the sounds of heavy breathing in the back. Sure enough, the eldest sibling found her _half_ -sister making out with their old teacher.

“Maybe we should take this someplace more comfortable.” Evil Queen suggested.

“Yes.” Zelena said, alerting them, “Like a bed of lies.”

As Zelena stormed out, and as her neck was beginning to turn green with envy, the queen poofed in front of her to stop her from leaving.

“Just let me pass.” Zelena said in annoyance.

“No, we need to talk.” Evil Queen denied.

“I don’t think so. I saw what you wanted me to see.” Zelena argued.

“I didn’t want you to see it.” Evil Queen said, confused at the accusation.

“You lied to me.”

“Only because I knew you’d be jealous.”

“I’m not jealous, not of you. Not ever.” Zelena spat.

“Really?” she asked, “Then what’s wrong with your neck? Growing moldy?”

“We were supposed to be a team. No secrets.” Zelena hissed, “Spa days and sisterhood. We were gonna run over this town together. And now what? He’s riding on your handlebars and I’m just sitting in the sidecar?”

“You need to calm down.” Rumple calmly lectured as he inspected the letter, “What’s this?”

“Ask her. She wrote it. Wanted to rub my nose in it.” Zelena sneered as the queen read the note.

“I didn’t write this.” Evil Queen said hotly.

“No. Someone with your handwriting did.” Rumple corrected.

“Regina.” Evil Queen stated.

“We’re being played.” Rumple said to his students. While the three villains were distracted, over at the docks, Blue cast her spell to lead the way to the sapling.

“There, where the light has landed. That’s where you’ll find the sapling.” Blue said as everyone followed the direction of the rainbow colored trail.

“Regina can magic Snow and me out there to find it. We’re just gonna need to figure out where we’re gonna put the Evil Queen once we’ve got her.” David said to them.

“My vault.” Regina replied, “I’ve taken all the blood magic off the locks, so it should hold her. But there’s still a lot of dangerous stuff in there.”

“Nicholas and I can pack it all up.” Emma offered.

“Alright, let’s go.” David said.

“Dad, just be careful, okay?” Emma pleaded.

“Don’t worry. I’m in good company.” David said looking at his wife with a smirk.

Down at the vault, after poofing over a bunch of boxes, the young couple was packing away all of Regina’s ingredients. As they did, Nicholas noticed one of the bottles and decided to make conversation by remarking on its name.

“What’s adder’s fork?” he asked.

“Snake’s tongue.” Emma replied, “There was some of that in the thing I had to drink to find Aladdin.”

“And you kiss me with that mouth?” Nicholas asked playfully, “Although, I’ve actually had to eat actual, freshly killed snakes several times in the past, before. So, not much room to talk.”

“And you kiss _me_ with that mouth?” Emma asked with a playful smirk of her own.

“Well, that among other things.” Nicholas added as he raised his eyebrows suggestively.

“Let’s just get this stuff up to Henry so he can pack the Bug before the new tenant comes.” Emma said with a blush before her hand started to shake.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold up.” Nicholas said as he came over to ease her troubles, “You’re worried about your parents, and that’s making this worse, but they’re gonna be alright. They’re gonna find that magic little baby tree thing and defeat the Evil Queen.”

“They’re gonna find that magic little tree thing.” Emma repeated, hoping it would calm her down.

“Right.” Nicholas nodded.

“What if they don’t?” Emma asked, “What if the Evil Queen gets there first and I’m not ready for a fight?”

“Alright, come here. Sit down.” Nicholas sighed as he led his swan over to a chest to sit on, “I borrowed Henry’s book. Just in case you needed to hear a story.”

“Nicholas-”

“Shh, shh, shh. Shush, shush. It’s story time.” Nicholas silenced as he showed Emma her parents’ story, “Once upon a time, the Evil Queen vowed to kill Snow White and separate her and her prince. But no matter how hard she tried, no matter how many times she ignored her brother and continued to make overly elaborate schemes that even a Saturday morning cartoon villain would think is unnecessary, they always found each other.”

“Nice touch by the way.” Emma lightly praised with an amused look.

“Thank you. And then,” Nicholas trailed as he turned the page to show Emma as a baby, “They found you. And you inherited the strength of that love. So then, even when they couldn’t find each other, you made sure they did. I didn’t really believe in magic before I met you. But, as I’ve learned, true love can break any curse, and so can you because that’s what you are made of. You are the Savior because you were born of their love. And they’re in love today because you brought them together. You can overcome these visions. You can overcome anything. Now remember who you are. The product of true love.”

Seeing that her hand was no longer shaking, Nicholas pick it up and kissed her knuckles, hoping it would further help calm her down. Meanwhile, underneath Storybrooke where the sapling was supposedly hidden, the Charmings and Regina made their way through the tunnels until they found the spot.

“There it is.” David alerted.

“Get it.” Regina urged. As the couple grabbed the stalk, they both saw flashes of their history together from when they met to the present.

“What was that?” Snow asked.

“The sapling?” David asked.

“Blue said that it was created from true love. Maybe that’s just what it does; shows you your own true love?” Snow suggested, not entirely sure.

“As if we needed reminding.” David said fondly.

“This is really sweet, but can we please go and defeat someone?” Regina suggested with a strong sense of urgency, “We don’t have long.”

“So true.” Evil Queen smirked as she poofed in front of their path and summoned the sapling to her hand.

“You’ve won nothing.” Snow declared, “That sapling is made of pure love. It won’t work for you.”

“Oh, won’t it? Well, maybe it just needs a firm hand.” Evil Queen suggested before snapping it in two, “Oh, dear. Well, maybe it can be repaired. Oh. Maybe not.”

To further taunt them, the queen turned both halves into dust and let it fall onto the ground.

“Do you want to beat the rush and hand those hearts over now?” she asked with her hands open and ready for them.

“No, no. We still have some time.” David reminded.

“True.” Evil Queen admitted, “Read a book, pick a flower, rage, rage against the dying of the light. Just do it quickly. I’ll see you at the cemetery soon enough. It’s a good place for endings.” she said before poofing away.

Later on, after gathering a crowd to witness either their own ends, or the ends of the prince and princess, the Evil Queen was beginning to lose her patience as she waited for Snow and David to arrive.

“People of Storybrooke. My people. I’m so glad you accepted my invitation because this is about you.” she said to them all, “If Snow White doesn’t show up in the next five minutes, I’m going to share a little treat with you all. A taste of water from the River of Lost Souls.”

“Looks like you don’t have to worry about that blasted river water, do you?” Zelena asked Belle as they stood amongst the crowd, “Not since your husband struck a deal with the Evil Queen.”

“I don’t care about the deals that my husband makes.” Belle coldly responded.

“Are you sure?” Zelena asked, “I mean, wouldn’t you like to know the rest of what those two have been up to?”

“You ready?” Regina asked Emma.

“I actually am.” Emma nodded, “Let’s do it.”

“Wait!” Snow shouted as she and David made their appearance.

“Well, well, well. Look who’s right on time. I should’ve known you’d show up. Even without your precious sapling.” Evil Queen sneered.

“We don’t have the sapling, but we don’t need it. It’s done its work.” Snow bravely said, “We know our love is more powerful than anything you can throw at us.”

“And to save the people of Storybrooke, we’re willing to do what you ask. It’s a sacrifice we need to make.” David added.

“We’re going to do the right thing.” Snow said.

“Dad, Mom?” Emma asked as her voice choked in sadness.

“Emma, most people go through life never knowing where their paths will take them, but somehow we always do. It’s always to each other and then back to you.” Snow said looking at her daughter with love.

“Are you sure?” Regina asked.

“Yes.” David nodded, “Lift the protection spell.”

Respecting her friends’ wishes, Regina did as they asked and made them vulnerable to the queen’s magical claws.

“Nicholas,” David said to his daughter’s lover with a look of respect, “Take care of them.”

“Till my dying breath.” Nicholas nodded in respect.

With their hand in each other’s, Snow and David faced their mortal enemy and accepted their fate. Savoring the moment, the Evil Queen reached her hands back and drove them into the couple’s chests before finally, after so many years, ripping them out.

“…I’ve dreamt of this moment for so long, Snow White.” she said as her voice trembled in her own dark joy, “I’d wake up still feeling the grit of your crushed heart clinging to my palms. But that ending isn’t poetic enough, is it?”

“Here we go.” Nicholas dryly thought as his earlier statement to Emma made itself relevant.

“I want to give you my pain; the pain of being alone.” she spat as rage consumed her, “And since I couldn’t quite accomplish that by killing you, I’ve come up with something much more cruel.”

After coating the hearts with her magic, the queen shoved them back into Snow and David’s chests. As soon as the hearts were beating again, Snow collapsed onto the ground unconscious.

“A sleeping curse?” David chuckled in defiance, “That’s never kept us apart before.”

“This one has a little twist.” Evil Queen softly informed before making Snow disappear, “You say you always find her. Well, start looking, shepherd. And let’s see what happens when you do.”

With a wave of her hands, the queen, once again, vanished in a cloud of purple smoke, leaving everyone confused and worried. As this happened, after sneaking away during all the commotion, Belle headed back to the pawn shop to confront her estranged husband. As she walked in, she saw him fondly smiling at the sonogram picture she gave him of their unborn son. Once he heard the bell ring, Rumple looked to her with a happy smile.

“Belle. I’ve been meaning to thank you for this.” he said, holding up the photo.

“Zelena told me about you and the Evil Queen.” Belle said cutting right to the chase causing his smile to drop.

“Well, then. I know it’s trite to say it doesn’t mean anything.” he said.

“Oh, I-I don’t care about what you do right now or with whom you do it. But she also told me about the shears. Now that? That I do care about.” Belle informed, clearly upset, “She said that you’re going to use them on our son the first moment you can, the moment he’s born to cut him off from his future. Well, I won’t allow that. You don’t get to tamper with his life just to keep him from hating you. I forbid it.”

“Look. The things I do, they’re driven by the love of my son.” Rumple said, looking and sounding desperate.

“That excuse,” Belle cut off, “That-that doesn’t work anymore. If you were pure evil, like the queen, then maybe I could forgive you because that’s all you could be. But you? You do feel love, and you could be a good man if you tried. You want your son’s love. Don’t take it. Be worthy of it.”

“…And what if I fail?” Rumple asked so softly Belle could barely hear him.

“Listen to yourself. That’s just you all over, isn’t it? Afraid of failing. That’s worse than being evil. That’s-that’s just being too weak to be good.” Belle said in disappointment before leaving her heartbroken husband.

“Zelena.” Rumple snarled in hatred after Belle left. It was then the gears in his dark head began to turn as he formulated a plan.

As David led the search party for Snow, they eventually decided to look through the woods, expecting Snow to be as she was the last time the queen put her under a sleeping curse, as part of her poetic justice. Sure enough, in an exact replica of the glass coffin the dwarves made for their princess, Snow was lying inside, sleeping as though she was dead.

“Dad!” Emma hollered as she and the others joined up and saw Snow’s condition.

“I don’t think a kiss is going to work this time.” Regina warned.

“Just let him try.” Emma pleaded.

With all the hope and love he could muster, David bent down to kiss his wife. Just as it happened over thirty years ago, a wave of magic erupted from their joined lips and Snow woke with a gasp. However, before they could even lock eyes, David fell unconscious and collapsed.

“David?” Snow asked as she gained her bearings, “David? What happened? What did she do?”

“She cast a sleeping curse on your heart, the heart that you share. So now you share the curse. When one of you is awake, the other will be asleep.” Regina explained, “So, as long as the curse is unbroken…”

“We can never be together.” Snow finished in misery.


	89. I'll be Your Mirror

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG. WARNING: There is a brief scene of ATTEMPTED child rape; again, attempted, NOT actually committed

Once night had fallen, after transporting David back to the loft, Snow laid on the bed next to him hoping to somehow, someway, reach out to him as he slept. The irony of both of them being under a sleeping curse once again made this recent defeat all the more bitter; especially since true love’s kiss, the cure-all solution to magic, did absolutely nothing for them this time.

“Hey, Charming.” Snow softly said as she took her prince’s hand in hers, “Remember when I said I wanted things back to normal? Well, look at us now. Maybe this is our normal.”

“This is all my fault.” Regina said with guilt as she watched her friends’ miserable situation.

“Yes, it is.” Nicholas bluntly agreed, “So, what are you gonna do about it?”

“Not let them suffer for it, that’s for damn sure.” Regina said as she stormed towards the door only to be cut off by Emma.

“Regina, where the hell are you going?” she asked.

“To stop the queen. I can hurt her. I’m the only one who can hurt her. Anything that happens to me will happen to her.” Regina reminded.

“No. I am not letting you sacrifice yourself.” Emma refused.

“Well, I’m not asking for your permission.” Regina challenged.

“Did you forget what’s about to happen to me? I have a death sentence.” Emma reminded, hoping that would make her friend change her mind.

“But you can fight that future, Emma. I know you. You will fight it.” Regina stressed.

“But that doesn’t mean I will win, and the only thing that makes that bearable is knowing that Henry will still have at least one mother in his life. I can’t be there, so you have to be. You know I’m right. We have to find another way to defeat her.” Emma reasoned as Snow came over with a piece of paper in her hand.

“Okay. That’s enough despair for one day. I’m going to wake him up. If you would please give this to him.” Snow said as she gave Henry the note. As she laid on the bed, ready to kiss David awake, Snow hesitated as she stared at their reflection in her standing mirror.

“You okay, Snow?” Nicholas asked in confusion.

“No.” Snow growled in anger before throwing a decoration at the mirror, “She’s watching us!”

Sure enough, out in the woods, the queen was indeed watching them through her own mirror with a triumphant grin. For the next week, Snow and David did their best to maintain their lives by writing each other notes when they were awake, leaving surprises for when the other woke up, and videos on their phones with their son letting the other hear their voice as they slept. Still, it wasn’t the same as actually being with each other and it was already starting to lose its effect. So, in order to fix her parents’ problem, Emma checked to see if either Mills sibling had a solution, starting with Nicholas.

Burrying himself in their basement, Nicholas had been working practically non-stop to create an alchemic solution that would lift the curse. When Emma went down to check on him after getting dressed and ready for the day, she found a concerning sight.

“How’s it going down here, Nicholas?” she asked as she came down the stairs. As she did, she gasped in shock, and slight disgust at her boyfriend.

His eyes were sullen and had layers of bags sagging underneath them as he had his pipe hanging from one side of his mouth while he had the double straws from a sporting hat on his head with two cans of Monster Drink in the cup holders. In addition to that, he even had a bristly beard growing on account of his lack of shaving, something Emma had never known him to miss. In a nut shell, Nicholas looked like crap.

“Dead-end after dead-end.” he replied hoarsely from his work table.

“What the hell?” Emma asked rhetorically as she came over to him, “What happened to you?”

“…What?” he asked in a daze, clearly unaware of what she just said.

“Nicholas, have you not slept at all since the Promised Day?” she asked in concern.

“I think I had a ten-second-long blink last Tuesday.” he replied not even able to make eye-contact with her.

“Babe, it’s been like two months since that happened! Even for you, that is not healthy.” Emma exclaimed as he panted in exhaustion, “Go upstairs and get some sleep-”

“No! No sleep!” he shouted fearfully as he trembled. While Emma knew Nicholas had a reluctance to sleep, she had never seen it get this bad before. Quite frankly, she and everyone else who knew about his intentional insomnia had expected, or at least hoped, he would finally stop doing it after the Promised Day.

“I can’t go to sleep.” Nicholas said in fear, “I-I-I can’t. Too scared.”

“Nicky,” Emma said as gently as she could as she took off the hat and took his hands in hers, “It’s over. They’re all gone. There’s nothing for you to be afraid of. You beat them.”

“I was never afraid of them.” Nicholas corrected before tapping his head, “Everything I see in here when I go to sleep has nothing to do with them. It’s all the other horrors I went through that haunt me. Everything those sick bastards did to me to the night he destroyed everything and the morning after. I relive it all! Every single time. I can’t keep going through that, Emma, I just can’t! I can’t. I know they’re gone, but what if nothing’s changed? What-what if I can never sleep without seeing all that stuff again for the rest of my life? And that’s a long time for me, Em! I can’t die.”

“Have you talked about this with anyone? Maybe Archie can help.” Emma suggested.

“Puh!” Nicholas scoffed in resentment, “Yeah, right. After what happened the last time I tried therapy with that jerk? How he blabbed to everyone about what we talked about? I’d sooner tell a sock puppet my troubles.”

“Okay, fair enough. You don’t trust Archie.” Emma relented, “But I really think you need to confront this. I’ve know you for quite a while, Nicholas. In all that time, you’ve never run away from anything. But this? You’re running away from it. You’re afraid and you don’t want to confront this. You’re not that powerless little slave anymore, babe. You’re the most powerful alchemist to have ever lived. You beat someone with the powers of a god with your bare hands after getting the shit beaten out of you. So, why are you running?”

“…Because every time I go back into those dreams, I go back to being that powerless little slave.” he argued.

“But you’re not.” Emma reminded as she cupped his left cheek, “You’re an Extraordinary Gentleman, and you’ve been that a hell of a lot longer than you ever were a slave. I can’t even begin to imagine what you went through back then. But you have to confront it and accept it. It happened and it’s over. Don’t let them beat you after everything you’ve accomplished.”

“…This is payback for that cheesy pep-talk I gave you last week, isn’t it?” he asked with a dry, tired look.

“Hmm, kinda.” she teased before rubbing his hand, “But it’s also something you need to do. Otherwise, you’ll never be at peace.”

“Alright. I’ll try.” Nicholas sighed, “But, um, will-will you…”

“Babe, you don’t need to ask. I’ll be with you every step of the way.” Emma assured as she gave him a much needed hug.

“Thanks, hon.” he whispered before they separated, “Well, I better get to the mansion, then.”

“Um, okay. Why?” she asked.

“Because what I’m more than likely about to go through is not gonna be pretty, it’s not gonna be without me making a giant mess, and I’m probably gonna need some of the guys to hold me down when I go crazy and I don’t think you want me to do all that to our room.”

“Fair enough. But you take your time with this, okay? You don’t need to rush anything. I’m gonna be with Regina at the vault to figure out a way to deal with the queen, so if you need me, give me a call, alright?”

“Got it.” he nodded.

After the two went their separate ways, Emma poofed in front of the Mills’ family tomb and made her way down to the vault. After coming down the stairs, she saw Regina forcefully swipe the curtains closed over her mirror in frustration.

“How are your parents?” Regina asked getting straight to the point.

“I can’t stand seeing them like this, so please tell me you have something.” Emma pleaded, “I’ve been trying to track down the Dragon in New York, but no luck.”

“Well, that’s a hell of a long shot.” Regina quipped.

“That’s all I got. He helped August. He has magic in a world without magic. Maybe he can break my parents’ curse. Of course, it would help if he had, you know, like, a name.” Emma said in frustration.

“But we do know someone he knows.” Regina said as an idea dawned on her face, “Nicholas.”

“What about him?” Emma asked.

“When Rumple and I met the Dragon in New York, he said that he knew about the battle inside me and that it was similar to the one Nicholas waged inside him long ago.”

“So, what? You think he’s in the League, too?” Emma asked.

“Seems like anybody mysterious we meet nowadays is.” Regina lightly chuckled, “Let’s get Nicholas and see if he can get in touch with him.”

“We can’t.” Emma immediately said as she stopped Regina from head up.

“Why not?” she asked.

“It’s, uh, it’s his sleeping day.” Emma partially lied.

“Of course it is. Well, anyway, when Snow broke that mirror, it gave me an idea. Now, we can’t hurt the queen, but maybe we can trap her.” Regina suggested as she pulled out an old hand-mirror from one of her chests.

“In a mirror?” Emma skeptically asked.

“In the world behind the mirror.” Regina clarified, “Anyway, I can enchant it to imprison her.”

“We have to find her first.” Emma pointed out.

“So we dangle out bait. Something she cares about.”

“Like what?” Emma asked.

“Like me.” Henry answered as he joined them.

“No.” Emma refused, “It’s too dangerous.”

“She’s not gonna hurt me.” Henry assured.

“And since Nicholas is apparently snoozing, what other choice do we have?” Regina rhetorically asked.

“And, anyways, I need a distraction today.” Henry added.

“From what? From school? ‘Cause school tops this.” Emma lectured.

“The fall formal.” Henry answered, “Grandma’s making me go. She says we need to get back to normal.”

“That’s what you’re worried about; a school dance?” Emma asked.

“A dance with Violet.” he clarified.

“I thought things we’re going well?” Regina asked, slightly concerned.

“Yeah, they were until she stood me up for John Hughes movie night, twice.” he admitted, “We did Breakfast Club, and I was gonna do Sixteen Candles next, show her my fun side, but I don’t even know if she likes me anymore. I don’t even know how to act around her.”

“You act like yourself.” Emma firmly reminded, “Never compromise who you are. Got it?”

“Okay.” Henry agreed.

“Now, I’m not always gonna be here for this stuff, so you got to hang on to these gems.” Emma chuckled.

“Mom.” Henry stressed.

“Yeah, I know, kid. I know.” Emma smiled, assuring him.

“How about we go defeat a queen?” Regina suggested with a smile at their son, “Hmm? What do you say?”

Not long after, in accordance with the plan, Henry stood out at the beach, alone, as he waited for the queen to take the bait.

“You wanted to see me, Henry?” she asked after poofing near him, “Let me guess. You’re upset about your grandparents.”

“Of course I’m upset.” he flatly stated.

“Well, someday you’ll understand it; what it means to make hard choices.” she said, “Do you remember when Nicholas and I used to bring you here?”

“We’d feed the sea gulls.” Henry nodded, not at all as nostalgic as the queen was.

“You were always so afraid of them.” Evil Queen chuckled at the fond memories, “And I wondered, ‘How did I raise such a scared little boy?’ I don’t know, maybe it was because of Nicholas; he did always try to be the ‘fun’ uncle in your life.”

“Well, guess what. I’m not scared anymore. Certainly not of you.” Henry informed before Emma poofed him away in a whirl of white smoke.

“Now, that is a new low; using my own son against me.” Evil Queen growled at the two women off to the side.

“Henry is not your son.” Regina barked.

“That’s exactly what you used to say to Emma.” she countered smoothly, “You both fought so hard to be Henry’s mother, but neither of you got the job done.”

“This conversation is over, and you’re about to go on a very long trip.” Regina said triumphantly before flashing the mirror at her doppelganger. Unfortunately, nothing happened.

“Sorry. But that’s not the mirror you enchanted.” Evil Queen informed before summoning the real mirror, “This is.”

“You switched them.” Regina gasped.

“Well, of course I did. Don’t act so surprised.” she chuckled before sadistically singing, “ _Anything you can do, I can do better. I can do EVERYTHING better than YOU!_ ”

Thrusting the mirror towards them, the queen unleashed tendrils of violet smoke at the duo and sucked them into the prison intended for her. Smiling and laughing at the mirror in her hand, the queen made the glass crack and shatter before dropping the shards onto the sand.

Inside the mirror world, Emma woke with a loud gasp. As she gained her bearings, she saw a circular mirror sitting on the ground in front of her showing clouds of violet smoke. Out of curiosity, she gently touched the glass and was shown a part of main street through a traffic mirror on a telephone pole.

“Whoa.” she breathed after it disappeared once she removed her hand.

“Regina?” she called before noticing her new surroundings. Surrounding her on either the ground, the stone wall ruins, or on the branches of dead trees, hundreds, or even thousands of mirrors with violet smoke littered the strange realm as the light of an unending dusk lit the sky.

“Oh, God.” she sighed.

With no other options in mind, the Savior went over to touch another mirror and saw an image of Granny fixing her hair at the diner.

“Granny! Can you hear me?!” Emma shouted as she smacked the mirror to get the woman’s attention, “Granny!”

“Don’t bother.” Regina interrupted as she joined her friend, “All she sees is a mirror; and that tragedy of a dress.”

“How do I get through to her?” Emma asked in desperation.

“You don’t.” Regina replied, “This is a world of one-way mirrors, Emma. All you’re doing is giving me a headache.” 

“Oh, stop being so melodramatic.” Emma dryly scolded, “We’re gonna find a way out.”

“There is no way out. We don’t have magic here. We have no way to communicate with home.” Regina listed off before snarling in frustration, “Oh! This was the perfect prison for her. Which means it’s the perfect prison for us.”

“No. No. It’s different for us, for you. You have something she doesn’t.”

“And what’s that?” she asked.

“People who care about you.” Emma reminded, “We may not be able to break out, but maybe they can break in.”

“Henry.” Regina realized, “That’s it. He’s the way out.”

Back outside, in the real world, the Evil Queen decided to pay the other members of Storybrooke’s band of heroes another disguised visit. Only this time, all it took was a haircut and change of clothes. With the same look Regina had before getting sucked into the mirror, the queen opened the door and found Hook helping Henry get properly dressed for the evening dance.

“Mom. Did it work?” Henry asked, completely oblivious to the truth.

“It worked.” she said with a happy, triumphant smile, “Henry, it worked. And I cannot tell you how good it feels. It’s like I’m finally free.”

“I knew you could do it.” Henry smiled as he gave his mother a hug.

“And Emma, is she alright?” Hook asked in concern for his friend.

“Oh, yeah, she’s fine.” the queen lied, “She’s driving to New York to look for the Dragon.”

“By herself?” Hook asked.

“Why?” Ariel asked from behind the kitchen island.

“She left us all a group text.” Evil Queen lied as she discreetly made a fake text show up in everyone’s phones.

“So, you really did it?” Snow asked, “You got rid of that monster?”

“Oh, well, I’m not sure she was a monster.” Evil Queen defended on her own behalf.

“Oh, yes, she was, Regina.” Snow disagreed with a smile, “I know she was a part of you, but she was the first part, and I am so happy that you ripped her out and threw her away. I am so proud of you.”

“That’s so nice to hear.” Evil Queen lied as she did her best not to murder the princess holding her hands, “But we have someone else to worry about. Henry.”

“Me?” her son asked.

“You have to get dressed for a dance.” she smiled as she picked out a black tied for him to wear and proceeded to tie it for him, “Here. You can never go wrong with black. Since your uncle isn’t here to help, and pick out something like ‘Plum Purple’ or anything red, we’ll have to use my expertise. Where is he, anyway?”

“He’s asleep at the mansion, love.” Hook reminded finding it odd that she would ask.

“Oh, right.” she nodded trying to keep up her act, “Now, I know you’re nervous about this dance, Henry, but you don’t have to be. I’m going to make sure everything works out for you. In fact, since this is a special occasion, I think we ought to borrow something from your uncle to sweeten the deal.”

“Like what?” Henry asked.

“Oh, just a little something to make you even more irresistible to that Violet girl. Let me just poof to the house for a sec and we’ll get you settled.” she said, “I might even stop by the mansion to check on him, as well. I think I have something that could help him out.”

Meanwhile, Belle had decided to check in on her estranged husband again only to find something alarming; his pawn shop was closed and empty. With no one else to turn to, the local librarian drove over to the farmhouse to speak to her newest “ally”.

“He’s closed the shop!” Belle exclaimed, “I mean, he hasn’t left in days. I know he’s up to something in there.”

“He’s the Dark One. He’s always up to something.” Zelena nonchalantly shrugged.

“Yeah, well, this time, he’s after my baby.” Belle reminded, “You told me about his plan. You have to get me out of it.”

“Yeah, I don’t quite see the logic in that. It was just the one favor.” Zelena replied as she sipped her afternoon tea,

“Right.” Belle muttered before getting up close and personal with the Wicked Witch, “I’m not gonna leave until you help.”

“Why would I help you?” Zelena asked.

“Because as much as it pains me to admit, you and I are somewhat alike.” Belle reluctantly admitted.

“Why?” Zelena giggled facetiously, “Because we’re both mums?”

“Because we both know what it’s like to care about someone who always lets us down; your sister, Gold. Right? I will not let my son go through all this, okay? You can get us out of Storybrooke. I have seen you make portals before.”

“Even if I said yes,” Zelena began, standing her ground to the woman demanding her in her own home, “I can’t help without the sorcerer’s wand, and your scaly husband has it under lock and key.”

“Well, then it’s a good thing I know just the person to get it from him.” Belle retorted. Not long after, the two women met up with the person in question at Granny’s; Aladdin with Jasmine at his side.

“Are you serious?” the princess asked in disbelief, “You want us to steal a wand from the Dark One?”

“No. I want _him_ to steal a wand.” Belle corrected as she gestured to Aladdin, “He is supposed to be the best thief in town.”

“Best thief in any town, just to be clear.” Aladdin proudly corrected.

“You can’t do this.” Jasmine argued, “You need to help me find Agrabah, our home. This is a suicide mission which has nothing to do with you.”

“Actually, it’s got everything to do with him.” Zelena corrected.

“Sorry. Who are you?” Jasmine asked.

“See, those golden shear thingies? The only reason they’re even in Storybrooke is because of your boyfriend.” Zelena reminded as they fumbled with their word to try and correct her, “Yeah, I don’t care. See, when you tried to play hero giving them to Emma, like most acts of idiotic heroism, it failed, and now Rumple’s got them.”

“Okay, I don’t like this one.” Aladdin dryly smirked in annoyance, “You really think that this is my fault?”

“Yes. And I won’t be the only one.” Zelena replied, “As it happens, Emma and my darling little brother are in a very serious relationship right now but they can’t enjoy it to the fullest because of the looming threats over their heads; your scissors being one of them.”

“You know, you really don’t strike me as the doting and lovable big sister type.” Aladdin remarked.

“Well, I happen to love my brother very much and I want him to be happy.” Zelena corrected with a fake smile, “And I also happen to know, for a fact, that he has an even bigger temper than I do and has a tendency to kill anyone who is even the slightest threat to the people he cares about. So, if anything were to happen to Emma, anything at all that involve those shears you gave her, and it ruins my little brother’s happiness, I’ll just simply point him in your direction and watch him dismember you, piece by bloody piece, as I enjoy a box of Junior Mints on the sidelines. So then, is the ex-Savior going to help us, or will he risk an agonizing death at the hands of the Immortal Alchemist?”

“…Well, when you put it that way.” Aladdin joked and sweated nervously. Back in Gold’s shop, the Dark One was making preparations in the back of his shop as the Evil Queen stepped in to join him.

“Never thought I’d see you in a pantsuit, Your Majesty.” he said dryly with his back turned.

“Guess you can’t trick the Dark One.” she chuckled as she strolled up to him and whispered in his ear, “But, we can pretend I was Regina, if you want to.”

“Not today. I have work.” he said, not even bothering to look at her.

“Fine. Back to work, then. As soon as I get what I need. And I can assure you, it’s not the pillow talk.” she said, “The Hammer of Hephaestus and a certain box that belonged to my mother. Know what I’m talking about?”

“Well, that’s curious. The hammer’s magic is useful to those who have none. And if the box you speak of is what I think it is, you and Regina have had years to pick it up. Why would you need either of them now?”

“I’m in a bit of a gift giving mood. One’s for my son. The other…well, I think you know who I have in mind.” Evil Queen replied.

“And why would I let you give it to him?” Gold scoffed.

“Because as much as you hate Nicholas, you still have a soft spot in that lump of coal you call a heart for Cora. And you want to be rid of it.” Evil Queen smoothly reminded with a smirk.

“Helping your son and little brother. Sounds like you want a family. Was the curse not enough to make you happy?” he rhetorically asked, “I’d be careful with that. You know, villains don’t get happy endings.”

“I’m not looking for an ending. I’m looking for a beginning.” she corrected with an open, awaiting hand. With a sigh, Rumple relented and retrieved the items the queen wanted from his cabinet.

“Alright, then. To new beginnings.” he said as he placed the hammer and a black box with a glass lid on the table. Before the queen could take them, he rested a hand on each item to stop her. “Now, what do you have to offer me?”

“What I have to offer you is, now we’re on the same team.” she replied, “Aren’t we?”

“…Just remember your mother’s lesson; love is weakness.” Rumple reminded as he removed his hands and allowed her to take the items.

“Love can be weakness, but it can also be a weapon.” Evil Queen challenged, “And I’m about to use that weapon on my son.”

“And the alchemist?” Rumple asked, “Is that what the box is for?”

“Let’s just say…the contents of this box are long overdue to be given to my baby brother. And it’s something I can only give him now, when he’s at his weakest.” Evil Queen cryptically replied with a devious gleam in her eye.

On the other side of town at the beach, the same area where Emma and Regina were sucked away, Hook and Ariel were trying to get ahold of the Savior for the dozenth time that afternoon. Ever since “Regina” left the loft, neither spouse felt at ease. Something was putting them on edge and they were concerned that they were unable to get into contact with their friend.

“Emma, it’s me again.” Hook said, leaving another message, “We’re sorry for leaving so many messages, but from what Ariel and I can recall, phones still function in New York City. Please use yours and get back with one of us. Something doesn’t feel right and we can’t bloody well go to the mansion because Nicholas is sleeping.”

“What the?” Ariel muttered as she noticed the sun shining on several broken mirror pieces on the ground. Not a moment later, the sound of a phone beeping filled the couple’s ears.

“Killian, look.” Ariel said with worry as she picked up Emma’s phone and saw all the messages they had left that day.

“The two of you are pretty clever, for a pirate and his mermaid.” the Evil Queen praised, still appearing as Regina.

“What have you done with Emma and Regina?” Hook demanded.

“That’s an excellent question, but one I’m not going to answer.” she replied before flinging them away with her magic and knocking them out. Back in the mirror world, Emma and the real Regina were still struggling to find a way to contact someone.

“Anything?” Emma asked.

“Uh, no. Not yet. You?” Regina asked.

“Nothing.” Emma sighed, “Even if we find someone what does it matter if we can’t talk to them?”

“It’s like you said. Henry; he won’t give up.” Regina reminded, “He will figure this out. And when they try to break us out, we have to be at the exact right mirror at the exact right time. Ugh! Why isn’t anyone useful looking into a mirror right now?”

“The mansion.” Emma spoke up.

“The mansion?” Regina asked.

“Who else would stand a better chance at noticing something abnormal than the most abnormal people in town?” Emma rhetorically asked, “See if you can find a mirror with anyone from the League on the other side.”

“Alright.” Regina nodded before touching one, “Oh! Over here! I found Mina. She’s-whoa!”

“What? What is-whoa!” Emma exclaimed in disbelief. To clarify their reactions, the mirror Mina had been standing in at that exact moment was her bathroom mirror and the voluptuous vampire had just gotten out of the shower. As she was drying herself off, Emma and Regina got the full view of her.

“Damn, those are huge.” Emma said feeling slightly self-conscious and irritated at the well-endowed woman who was extremely close to her boyfriend.

“Ugh, her poor back.” Regina cringed in sympathy, “Let’s try another mirror.”

“Good idea.” Emma agreed before noticing something on a nearby rock, “Wait a minute. I recognize these.”

Just like all the replica mirrors, Emma found an identical pair to Skinner’s black, mirror-like sunglasses.

“Maybe we can see what Skinner’s seeing with these.” Regina wondered.

“Ew. Do we want to?” Emma asked slightly disgusted at the thought.

“Worst case scenario, we see the vampire’s tits again.” Regina offered before they looked into the lenses.

As if seeing through Skinner’s own eyes, the two women saw the reflections of everything Skinner was looking at as he walked through the halls of the mansion. As an added bonus, they were able to hear everything, as well. As Skinner was walking, he opened a door to what looked like an observation room overseeing another room through one-way windows. Sitting at the control console was Sawyer and Nemo while Jekyll stood behind them with his arms crossed.

“How’s this session going?” Skinner asked the submarine captain.

“So far, he’s yet to show us the next scenario.” Nemo replied, “I think he’s in the process of making the transition to the next memory.”

“What the hell is this? ‘Assassin’s Creed?’” Emma asked.

“Did we get any results with the last one?” Skinner asked Sawyer.

“Uh, just a small one.” he replied as he looked over a notebook he had written in, “We were able to identify, possibly, his first traumatic experience with whips. But I’m not sure if that was the one that really sealed the deal with his mastigophobia.”

“What the hell are they talking about?” Regina rhetorically asked. As she did, Skinner turned to look down through the windows and into the room they were observing. In a room completely white, Nicholas was unconscious, lying on a bed with sweat soaking his pillow as he gritted his teeth in pain.

“I’m here.” Mina said as she barged in as she dried her hair with a towel, “Are we ready for the next one?”

“Yeah, I think he’s just about ready to transition to the next memory.” Sawyer nodded.

“Okay, Nicholas. Can you hear me?” Mina gently asked into a microphone. In the other room, Nicholas nodded his head and he tightly gripped the sheets of his bed.

“Okay, what is it you are seeing now?” she asked in a soothing voice. 

Rather than a verbal answer, Nicholas used his transformation ability to have his entire body engulf the room and completely change the setting. Instead of the white room, it looked like a rundown shack made of old brick and covered with hay as substitutes for beds. With the moon shining through the windows, everyone could see a younger version of Nicholas, #23, wearing rags, shivering in the cold of night.

“Setting is the Xerxian slave quarters.” Sawyer said as he wrote down his words, “Subject is approximately 4-5 years of age. Estimated time span: at least within the first year of enslavement.”

“Poor thing’s shaking like a leaf in that cold.” Giles said next to Skinner.

“Hang on, we’ve got a second party.” Nemo alerted.

Sure enough, an older, fat man dressed in similar rags came into view as #23 shivered. He was missing several teeth and was eyeing Nicholas with a hungry gaze as he drooled and chuckled to himself.

“Nicholas, who was that?” Mina asked.

“Number 14.” the monotone voice of Nicholas said from the room.

“Oh, no.” Giles said in horror, “Not that. Anything but that.”

In the room, young Nicholas looked up to see #14 lick his lips at him with a disgusting look on his face. He said nothing, but what he did next made his intentions clear. The fat slave undid his sash and stripped himself completely.

“Oh, God, I can’t watch.” Regina said as tears brimmed in her eyes as she tried not to throw up. But Emma kept watching.

As #14 tried to force #23’s clothes off, the boy did his best to kick him away and stop him from doing the unspeakable. As #23 was forced on his stomach, and his clothes were torn off, he saw a stray brick next to his hand. Without a moment’s hesitation, the boy grabbed the brick and slammed it as hard as he could to the side of #14’s face. In the process of doing so, a corner of the brick cut through the bastard’s eye.

While the naked slave rolled on the ground in pain as he covered his bleeding eye, #23 proceeded to hit #14’s head with the brick over and over until it broke. With blood soaking the sand and straw covered floor, the boy grabbed a nearby pitchfork and impaled #14’s throat, killing the sick monster who tried to defile him.

“Confirmed memory of subject’s first kill.” Sawyer deeply sighed as he wrote the information down and rubbed his hand over his face.

“Nicholas?” Mina asked into the microphone.

“He tried to defile me.” #23 growled as he glared down at the golden haired corpse.

“Yes. He did.” Mina agreed, “But you did not let him. You stopped him from doing that to you. And you stopped him from ever doing it to anyone else forever. Why does this haunt you?”

“I shouldn’t have been in that situation to begin with.” the younger version of Nicholas snarled, “I should have been on the other side of the world sleeping peacefully and warm in my own bed in my own room in my family’s estate. Instead, I was a nameless slave who had nearly been raped and had to kill a man to keep it from happening. I didn’t deserve that life.”

“No. You did not. But it was the life you had. You have only regretted one kill in your life. Do not let this one haunt you as that one does. It was necessary. He deserved to die.” Mina coached.

“Yeah.” he nodded before he and everything else turned back to the way it was as he sat on the bed, “He deserved it.”

“And sleep.” Mina said causing him to fall unconscious on the bed.

“What the hell was that?” Regina snapped.

“I think that might have been the LXG version of therapy.” Emma suggested as she stared at the glasses, “It looked like Mina hypnotized Nicholas in order to get him to sleep and reenact all the memories he sees in his nightmares.”

“Please tell me it didn’t happen.” Regina begged as she pressed her hands together and closed her eyes.

“Well, _that_ didn’t happen, thank God.” Emma replied, “But Nicholas did kill him. And Sawyer said it was his first one.”

“Why on earth were they doing that?” she asked, “Did you tell him to confront his fears?”

“Regina, open your eyes! He hasn’t slept since he passed out from exhaustion on the Promised Day. He is so terrified of his past he’s even afraid to sleep. He needs to confront this or it’s gonna get worse.” Emma ranted, “It’s not like he can take drugs for this kind of stuff.”

“I know. I know.” Regina waved off in exasperation, “His body breaks them down and repairs whatever part of his brain the drugs would affect. He’s told me all that a dozen times. Still, this is too extreme.”

“What do you expect? It’s not like he feels comfortable talking about this with anyone outside the team. He doesn’t trust Archie anymore. There’s no way in hell he’d ever tell my parents. He’s not gonna make Killian and Ariel worry about him by telling them; same reason he won’t talk to me or Zelena. And after what you said to him, he’s definitely not gonna talk to you about it. He’s still really pissed at you, Regina.”

“Let’s just try and find Henry in one of these mirrors.” Regina waved off, “Let’s look at the one from Granny’s you found earlier. He said he was taking Violet there before their dance.”

After finding the mirror to Granny’s the two mothers saw their son trying to make himself look presentable in his suit and fix his hair. To the both of them, it was a bittersweet moment as they looked at their little boy becoming a man.

“He looks so grown up.” Emma lamented.

“He’s terrified.” Regina noticed.

“Okay, what’s next?” Emma asked.

“Try anything.” Regina suggested before they started tapping the mirror and shouting at their son. 

Unlike last time, their thumping managed to resonate through to the other side and caused the mirror to shift. So much, in fact, Henry was able to notice and looked at the mirror in confusion.

“Henry! We’re right here!” Emma shouted in hopes that he could hear her. Unfortunately, his attention was diverted.

“Henry, are you back here?” the queen asked.

“Uh, yeah. Hey, Mom.” he said as the queen entered the mirror’s proximity.

“Hey. I thought you might need to talk.” she said kindly.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Regina deadpanned, “He really thinks that’s me.”

“He has no idea we’re even gone.” Emma realized.

“Tell me; what’s wrong?” the queen asked Henry.

“It’s Violet.” he said, “I don’t think I’m good enough for Violet.”

“Henry.” she scoffed, “Violet might be a nice girl, but she’s a commoner, and she’s lucky to have a prince like you.”

“I’m not a prince.” Henry replied, thinking it was joke, “I’m just middle schooler wearing Grandpa’s tie.”

“Now, don’t sell yourself short, Henry. Never do that. You will always be royalty no matter what world you live in. And who knows? Someday we might go back to my castle. And you might be king.”

“I kind of think I need to finish high school first.” he chuckled.

“Well, of course you do.” Evil Queen smiled, “But acting royal isn’t about castles, Henry. It’s about the way you carry yourself. It’s about a strength of character and conviction. People notice these things. Girls notice them.”

To emphasize her point, the queen presented a white rose for Henry to give to his girlfriend.

“Now go out there and act like the prince you are.” she urged with pride.

“Thanks, Mom.” he thanked before heading back to his booth.

“And stop slouching, Henry. Posture is self-respect.” the queen added, causing him to halt in realization. Knowing that the duo she trapped was watching, the queen gave them an arrogant smirk before the mirror showed them nothing but smoke again.

As Henry contemplated what he needed to do, he saw his pretty girlfriend sitting at their booth looking breathtaking as she waited for him.

“Hey, Violet.” he said as he gave her the rose.

“This is beautiful. Thank you.” she said happily as Henry noticed the queen watching him from the back, “So, this homecoming dance, it’s like a ball?”

“Yes. But that doesn’t matter anymore.” he said keeping his back to the queen, “Don’t look away. There’s something much more important happening right now, so whatever I say, just keep your eyes right on me and smile, okay?”

“Okay.” Violet said, confused, but smiling nonetheless.

“The woman behind me; that’s not my mom. That’s the queen, the evil one.”

“What happened to your mom?” Violet asked.

“That’s what I got to find out, but she’s watching us, so you got to come up with a reason for us to leave. Can you do that?” he asked.

“Do you like this dress?” she asked loud enough for the queen to hear, “I think it’s kind of plain. Can I show you the one I really wanted? It’s right in the dress-shop window. Come on. Please?”

Seeing that this was her distraction, Henry played along and told the queen they would be back shortly. Very impressed with his girlfriend, the young author wrapped his arm around her waist and led her out as he praised her.

“You’re a natural liar.” he grinned.

“Why, thank you.” Violet smiled.

“Let’s go find my moms.”

Back in the mirror world, both of the boy’s mothers were beginning to worry about their son and what the queen might do to him. Given how easily they saw him believe in her farce, it made Regina the most uneasy.

“She’s going after him when he’s his most vulnerable.” Emma worried.

“You don’t think I know how bad this is?” Regina sarcastically asked, “I fought the worst parts of myself for years, and I failed. Henry doesn’t even stand a chance.”

“Shh.” Emma interrupted, “I think someone else is here.”

“There is no one here, okay? It’s just you and me.” Regina dryly reminded.

“Well, that is not true exactly.” a familiar voice corrected.

Coming around from the rubble, dressed in his usual red robes, the friendly, elderly face of the Dragon came into view.

“Dragon?” Regina asked, absolutely shocked.

“How the hell did you get in here?” Emma asked.

“After the Promised Day ended, the Evil Queen paid another visit to my shop and trapped me in this prison.” Dragon replied.

“Well, I guess that makes us a club.” Regina remarked.

“Back in New York, the battle I spoke of deep within your soul was supposed to remain there. But you let it out.” Dragon scolded.

“I didn’t take a one-way trip for you to pick me apart, thank you.” Regina retorted.

“Perhaps not. Everything is about balance; the light and the dark. This is a lesson sometimes learned at great costs. Surely, your brother would have made this quite clear by now.” the old man lectured.

“Yeah. Well, we’re about to lose our son.” Regina informed, hoping to get the heat off her back.

“I sympathize. A long time ago, I lost a daughter, and I paid the price for my ignorance.”

“I’m so sorry.” Emma said, “So you understand. We have to get back to our son.”

“Please, please tell us you’ve found a way out of this prison.” Regina begged.

“Indeed, I have.” Dragon nodded with a wise smile, “I found, what you call, a back door. Follow me.”

As the two women followed the mysterious elder, Emma finally decided to ask him the questions that been bouncing around in her head since they first met.

“So, uh, how is it that you know Nicholas?” she asked.

“He has not told you?” Dragon asked with a grandfatherly smile, “Shame. But, his generation does feel the need to keep us a secret. To answer your question, Emma, I was the one who gave young Nicholas his coin.”

“So, you _are_ in the League.” Regina stated, causing the man to chuckle.

“Oh, ho, ho. Yes, I suppose you could say that.” Dragon laughed, “In a manner of speaking, I am retired from that line of work.”

“I didn’t think you could retire from the League.” Emma snorted.

“Those of us with…certain positions can.” he cryptically replied.

“Were you in a branch?” Emma asked.

“Yes. I was.” he replied kindly, but shortly.

“Are they retired like you are?” Regina asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Sadly, half the members of our old team have passed away. The rest of us, we just do as we please. But I have not seen my old friends in a very long time.”

“Sounds like you miss them.” Emma said with sympathy.

“…We were a family. Even if we may never see each other for the rest of our lives, the bonds we made will never sever nor die. And who knows? Maybe, one day, I may see my friends, again. Ah! Here we are.” Dragon alerted as they came to the ruins of a circular chamber.

“Nice nest. My house barely has a couch.” Emma remarked.

“Sidney did this.” Regina deduced.

“Your magic mirror?” Emma asked.

“This must have been his home.” she guessed as she looked at the furniture her former servant/admirer set up to make his prison more bearable. As she did, Emma went back to speaking with their new friend.

“You know, I was looking for you before we got trapped here. My parents, they’re-”

“I know. Unfortunately, I cannot help them break that terrible curse.” Dragon sadly informed, “I’m afraid that it’s beyond even my abilities.”

“Oh.” Emma sighed.

“Oh. But that does not mean I cannot help you.” he chuckled, “Now, this Sidney you spoke of, he was working on a way out.” he said as he gestured to a pile of broken mirror shards.

“Another mirror?” Emma asked.

“Oh, more than that.” he corrected, “If we can put it back together again it could create a portal leading out of this place. I’ve been trying since I arrived. A Sisyphean task. But, together, hopefully it is possible.”

Taking the chance to get back home, Emma and Regina began to piece together the shards and place them in their rightful spot on the broken mirror. On the other side of the mirror Regina kept in her vault, Henry unveiled its curtains and began to speak to it.

“Moms?” he asked, “I hope you aren’t in there, but I saw something in the mirror at Granny’s, and if the Evil Queen’s out here, then I’m worried the tables have been turned. So if you’re in there, please say something.”

“It’s not like leaving a voicemail, Henry.” the Evil Queen informed from behind, now dressed in her usual, regal attire, “Mirrors are much more complicated than that.”

“You trapped them in there. Didn’t you?” he asked with a glare.

“I thought your uncle and I taught you; a gentleman never ditches his date.” she teased.

“I didn’t ditch Violet. She’s somewhere safe. Because I knew my ‘mom’ wasn’t my mom.” Henry snapped back.

“See, that’s where you’re wrong.” Evil Queen disagreed, “Do you remember the second grade when you were afraid of the monsters under your bed, or the dark, or that old creaking oak tree? Who made you face your fears? Who didn’t tolerate your crying and toughened you up?”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Henry asked in irritation.

“That was _me_ , the one with the spine. Not that weak-tea version or Nicholas, for that matter. It was all _me_.” she clarified, “All I want is for you to be great. You can be king. You can have everything you want, but not if you’re always hiding behind Emma, my less half and your uncle, always dealing with their problems, but never given any real decisions.”

“Nice try, but you can’t Darth Vader me.” Henry scoffed, “I’ll never join you.”

“Oh, Henry. We watched those movies enough to know that Darth Vader wasn’t so black and white. Now, was he? And I’m not really evil, despite the name. Now, I may not be a hero either. But I am a leader.” she defended as she pulled out a heart from one of her boxes, “And leaders do what’s necessary. Much like what Nicholas and his gaggle of friends did on the Promised Day.”

On the other side of the mirror, as Emma and Regina continued to put together the pieces, the Dragon seized up as his eyes glazed over.

“Enjoying your little puzzle?” he asked darkly, causing the two to stop and look at him in fear and realization, “Oh, don’t worry. Henry is safe with me. In fact, he is better off.”

“It’s you.” Regina glared.

“The queen.” Emma spat.

“I may have put his body in the mirror. But I kept his heart.” he/she said before the mirror revealed the other side.

“Henry?” Regina asked in concern as they rushed to the mirror.

“Mom. Mom!” he exclaimed.

“It’s alright. It’s gonna be okay!” Emma assured.

“We’re coming to get you, Henry.” Regina added.

“Are you sure about that?” Evil Queen asked as she held the heart and made it where only she and Henry could see them. Behind them, Dragon began to gasp in pain as he clutched his chest.

“What’s wrong? Did she hurt you?” Emma asked.

“No, don’t come any closer.” he warned, “I’m sorry. I…I don’t want to do this.”

“Do what? What has she done?” Regina asked, but her words fell on deaf ears.

“Ali, my friends, please forgive me.” Dragon whispered in shame as his eyes began to glow and red smoke began to surround him, “I am about to break my promise. Gah- ** _orrgha_**!”

As his cry of pain changed into something ferocious, Emma and Regina backed away in fear as the watched the kind, mysterious old man transform into a large, terrifying, crimson, Chinese, dragon, flying in the air despite his lack of wings.

“Seriously?” Emma asked rhetorically, yet fearfully.

“Kill them.” the queen ordered before it roared at them and took to the sky, raining fire down at them.

“Why are you doing this?” Henry demanded.

“Because unlike them, Henry, I’m giving you a choice. You may not have magic,” she explained as she gave him the hammer and summoned a pedestal for the heart, “But this does, and you can save them with it by smashing the dragon’s heart.”

“But he’s an innocent.” Henry argued as he thought back to Maleficent and his uncle’s words, “Darkening my heart, it won’t make me yours.”

“But you’ll be that much closer to understanding who I am.” Evil Queen reminded as she spun him to face the heart, “Your mothers need you, Henry.”

“But if Regina dies, so do you.” he reminded hoping that would stop her.

“That’s how certain I am you’ll make the right choice.” she smiled. 

Back on the other side, Emma and Regina were doing their best to avoid the Dragon’s fire. As he flew around looking for an opening, they hid themselves behind two stone columns.

“That mirror was our only ticket out of here. Any ideas?” Emma asked as she panted.

“We don’t have magic, but the Dragon does. If we can aim his fire at the mirror…” Regina hypothesized.

“Can we blast our way out of here?” Emma asked.

“It’s worth a shot.” she shrugged before they ducked to avoid another blast of fire, “One of use should stay here, just in case.”

“Right. In case the other one gets fried.” Emma dryly joked, “I’ll go.”

“No. I’ve got this.” Regina denied.

“Why do you keep trying to martyr yourself? I’m the one with the death sentence.” Emma reminded.

“Emma, just listen.” Regina began before they dropped to the ground to avoid the fire, “I’m afraid to raise Henry alone.”

“What?” Emma asked, “You’ve done great.”

“Yeah, when I had Nicholas helping me. And every time I see him with Mommy Dearest over there, it’s just a reminder of the horrible mother I could have been.” she stressed.

“Well, you’re not, ‘cause I’m here, too. We always do what’s right for Henry, so you’re not sacrificing yourself, and neither am I.” Emma said, practically ordering her friend.

“So we do this together?” Regina asked.

“Damn right.” the Savior nodded before they made a break for the mirror. After gaining the beast’s attention, they quickly dodged his attack and let the fire strike just at the base of the mirror.

“Ooh.” Evil Queen playfully taunted, “Tick-tock, Henry. Tick-tock.”

“If you are my mom, please, don’t make me do this.” Henry begged.

“Well, as my own mother proved, sometimes all you need is a little push.” she coldly replied.

Having enough of playing with his food, the Dragon finally backed Emma and Regina against the wall and prepared his final attack. As if sensing his intention, Emma and Regina panicked and helplessly smacked the mirror as they called out for their son to save them.

“Do it, Henry.” Evil Queen urged, “Do it now! Do it!”

“Henry!” they shouted in fear as the Dragon roared and reared back his head; fire building up in his throat as he did.

Just at the last second, instead of giving into the dark half’s temptation and desires, Henry chose his own way. The young man cried out as he used the magical hammer to smash the mirror, weakening the spell trapping the others. As the glass rippled into fragments, the Dragon finally unleashed his fire and struck the mirror directly. Before the fire could break through and incinerate the other side, Henry grabbed the old man’s heart and took cover before he lost his arm. Once the fire died down, Emma and Regina were hurled through and landed across the vault on the floor.

“Henry?” Regina called out in concern. Not wasting a moment, the boy rushed to his mothers and gave each a tight hug.

“You!” Evil Queen snarled as the Dragon reinserted his heart behind her, “You made him soft!”

“You stay away from our son.” Regina ordered.

“Hiding behind your moms, again, I see.” she bitterly said to Henry.

“I’m not hiding.” Henry corrected in defiance, “You may not see it, but I am strong, because my moms taught me that family makes you stronger than you’ll ever be by yourself. And that’s something you’ll never have, because you’ll always be alone.”

Hearing those cold and cruel words from her little boy knocked the wind out of the Evil Queen. It brought tears to her eyes having to hear the person she loved most say such things. It broke her heart.

“I wanted to give you a choice. But it appears you weren’t ready yet.” she said as she tried to make a move towards them. However, as soon as she was in the moonlight shining down the stairs, a single revolver was pressed against her temple.

“Now unless you want to be the second Mills sibling to know what it feels like to have a bullet pass through your head, I suggest you mosey on out of here, Your Majesty.” Sawyer coolly threatened.

“I’m your mother, Henry. And I only want what’s best for you.” Evil Queen said tearfully before poofing away.

“Thanks for the save, Sawyer.” Emma exhaled, “But what the hell are you doing here?”

“What the hell am I doing here? What the hell are you doing here?” he asked in annoyance, “We’ve been trying to get ahold of you two knuckleheads all evening. Skinner, Bluey and I come over here, we hear an explosion and I find the Evil Queen on the verge of tears. What have you guys been doing all day?”

“Apologies, Agent Sawyer.” Dragon softly said as he dusted off his robes, “The explosion was, partially, my fault.”

At that moment, when Sawyer turned and made eye contact with the Dragon, the seasoned LXG agent inhaled a shrill gasp as he dropped his revolver. While the three family members behind him looked at him in confusion, Dragon simply gave him his usual, warm smile.

“AAAAAGH!” Sawyer cried out in absolute panic before dramatically falling to the ground, face first, and bowing at the old man’s feet.

“Sawyer!” Skinner shouted in alarm as he came down the stairs.

“What? What is it?” Giles asked as they hurried down to see what was going on.

“What happened?” Skinner asked as they came down, “Is everything al-OH, MY GOD!” he shouted at the top of his lungs.

“L-L-L-L-L-L-Lo-Lo-Lor-Lor-Lor-Lord-Lord-” Giles stuttered as he pointed his shaking finger before they both shouted in surprise.

“Lord Dragon!” they cried before seizing up and bowing their entire bodies in respect.

“Yay, we praise thee, noble person! With all our pleases and our thank yous! Oh, Lord, are we spouting nonsense in unison?!” they both exclaimed as they sweated and spoke simultaneously.

“It’s-it’s really him! Whaaah!” Sawyer sobbed with tears of joy as he raised his torso to speak to his comrades and waved his fists around near his chest like he was shaking a pair of maracas.

“What the hell is going on now?” Regina flatly asked with a flabbergasted look on her face.

“I have absolutely no idea.” Emma deadpanned, shaking her head.

“Um, really, my friends, this is unnecessary.” Dragon politely waved off with an awkward smile.

“He called us his friends!” Sawyer sobbed comically, “This is the proudest moment of my career!”

“I will never forget this day!” Skinner sobbed into his hand while Giles was off to the side saying a prayer in thanks.

“What are you three idiots screaming about?” Nicholas asked as he came down the stairs to join them.

“Nicholas?” Emma asked in shock.

“There you guys are. Where the hell have you been all day?” he asked.

“Never mind that. Are you okay? Why are you up and around so soon?” Emma asked in concern as she held him tightly.

“What are you talking about, Em?” he asked in confusion. Over his shoulder, the three agents were making gestures and mouthing to the Savior her lover had no memory of what he went through earlier. It was most likely due to Mina’s hypnotism.

“I think your lovely savior is just showing her affections for you, Nicholas.” Dragon kindly intervened.

“Lord Dragon.” Nicholas bowed with respect, and less dramatically than his friends, “It’s been a long time.”

“Too long, my young friend.” Dragon smiled.

“Okay, not to sound rude, but why the hell do they keep calling you Lord?” Regina bluntly asked impatiently.

“Oh, shit. Did we not tell them?” Sawyer asked.

“I know I didn’t.” Skinner replied.

“Um, guys, why don’t you take Lord Dragon back to the mansion?” Nicholas suggested to the others, “I’ll explain things here.”

“Actually, I need to get going, too.” Henry spoke up, “Violet’s waiting on me back at Granny’s.”

“I’ll drive.” Regina smiled as she wrapped her arm around her son in a side hug.

“Uh, just a sec.” Nicholas said as he grabbed Henry’s arm as Regina went up the stairs. Being discreet, the alchemist acted like he was shaking Henry’s hand but was instead giving him something in the trade off. In a split second, Henry’s eyes widened when he realized what he had been given.

“Better have and not need it than need it and not have it.” Nicholas muttered so Emma could not hear, “If you use it, be careful. If you don’t, then your mothers won’t kill us.”

“Henry, let’s go.” Regina called from upstairs.

“Okay, Emma, I think it’s about time I tell you a little bit more about the League.” Nicholas sighed. Without so much as a warning, he pulled out a transport rock and used it to take them to the Hall of Portraits in the mansion. After the dust cleared, they were standing right in front of the very first portrait at the end of the hall.

“Recognize him?” he asked as he pointed at the young, Chinese man in the painting.

“Yeah, it’s the Dragon. Nicholas, he already told Regina and I that he was in the League.” Emma informed, causing her boyfriend to laugh, “What?”

“Emma, he wasn’t just an agent like me and the others. He’s one of the seven co-founders of the LXG; one of the original seven gentlemen.” he corrected.

“Seriously?” Emma asked as her eyebrows shot to the roof.

“Oh, yeah.” Nicholas nodded, “He was the original seventh seat; same position Sawyer has on our team. That’s why he, Bluey and Skinner were freaking out. He’s a living legend. There’s the rest of them, right here.”

“Who were they?” Emma asked as she stared at the painting in wonder.

“Well, here’s the official story and line-up.” Nicholas began, “A long time ago, there was this catastrophic threat that endangered all of the known realms. These guys were the ones who put a stop to it. The original seventh seat; The Red Dragon, Mushu. The original sixth seat; Maui, demigod of the wind and sea. The original fifth seat; The Queen of Voodoo, Madame Odette. The original fourth seat; Tarzan, lord of the apes. The original third seat, and my personal favorite; Bilbo Baggins. The original second seat, and the first deputy director; Rip Van Winkle, the Lord of Dreams. Finally, the original first seat, and the first Director of the LXG; Alibaba Saluja, the King of Thieves.”

“That’s the guy I saw in my dream!” Emma exclaimed as she pointed at Van Winkle.

“Yeah.” Nicholas sighed.

“Wait, you knew who he was?” she asked.

“Yeah, I did.” he groaned, “I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want you to worry. Plus, I wasn’t sure what that meant. He’s very selective about who he visits.”

“What?” Emma asked in confusion.

“I know. That doesn’t make sense. It’s…it’s complicated; even I don’t fully understand.”

“So, are all these guys still alive?” Emma asked.

“Sadly, no. As far as we know, less than half of the founders are still alive.” Nicholas replied.

“As far as you know?” Emma asked.

“Yeah. See, Director Saluja, ironically, was the first of the founders to die. He died of old age hundreds of years ago. After he died, Lord Tarzan was the next to go. He also died of old age. As for Deputy Director Van Winkle, his death is…debatable.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked.

“He had a rather unique kind of magic. See, his magic was intensely connected to his imagination. Anything he could imagine, his magic allowed it to be. Since dreams are created by imagination, whenever he would sleep, his magic would become even more powerful. It allowed him to travel into other people’s dreams, and he would often use his powers to give children peaceful dreams. Since his magic always looked like magical dust, or sand, people started calling him ‘The Sandman’. When he died, his magic did something unexpected. You know how some people refer death as the eternal sleep? Well, his magic took that quite literally. Instead of moving to whatever afterlife he would have gone to, he…stuck around. He became this corporeal spirit that travels around spreading good, peaceful dreams to those suffering from nightmares. I’m not gonna lie, I was a little jealous when you told us he visited you. But you made it quite clear he wasn’t there to give you good dreams.”

“Has ever done that for you?” she asked.

“…No. Not once.” Nicholas replied as he pressed his lips in irritation, “I kinda resent him because of that. But, for the most part, he doesn’t typically visit LXG members unless it’s to guide them; like he did with you. As for the other founders, Lord Baggins, well, he’s considered dead. He’s already in the Grey Havens with Frodo, Gandalf and the elves of Middle Earth. That place is unreachable, even for us, so no one knows if he’s already died of extreme old age, yet. Madame Odette is still alive, but she doesn’t involve herself with the League like the Dragon does. As for Maui, no one knows what happened to him.”

“What do you mean?” Emma asked, again.

“Not long after the…third or fourth director died, I can never remember, he disappeared. One day, he was in Shamballa, the next: poof! Gone without a trace. No one knows where he went. No one even knows if he’s still alive. It’s the greatest mystery of the LXG. Countless agents have dedicated their entire lives to find out what happened to Maui. They’ve scoured practically every realm and have found nothing.”

“But why?” Emma asked.

“Nobody knows that, either. Some people think he got bored and went off to go back to what he used to do before the League was founded. Others think it was because he couldn’t stand to continue working in the League anymore. I think that theory was made because Maui was close to one of those directors I mentioned. And others think it’s because all his friends were either retired or dead, so he had no reason to keep working as an agent. One thing’s for sure, if Maui disappeared on his own, he’d have made to where no one could ever find him. I don’t think we’ll ever know.”

“Okay, not that this isn’t a fascinating history lesson, Nicholas. But why are you telling me all of this?” Emma asked.

“You’ve met two founders of the LXG, Emma. It’s rare enough for even an agent to meet _one_. Your only connection to the League is me, and yet you’ve been visited by the League’s first Deputy Director, and have now come into contact with the Dragon twice. It’s just very concerning to me that you’ve met as many founders as I have. And the only reason I met Lord Baggins was because I was sent to help destroy the One Ring. You remember when I said members of the League would look at you differently because you used to be a Dark One? Imagine how much more attention you’d get if word got out that you’ve met two of the founders; one of them being _the_ most picky out of what’s left of them. I’m just worried for you, okay?”

“Yeah, okay.” Emma nodded before he pulled her in for a comforting hug, mostly for his sake.

Meanwhile, back at the farmhouse, after Aladdin had successfully pinched the Dark One of the Apprentice’s wand, Belle was anxiously waiting for Zelena to use it to send her away.

“Can we, uh, can we hurry a bit?” Belle asked as Zelena marveled at the wand, “I really want to be safe in the Enchanted Forest before Rumple discovers it’s gone.”

“Too late.” Rumple said from the corner of the kitchen as he summoned the wand to his hand.

“Rumple!” Belle said in shock.

“I knew that street rat wasn’t digging around my shop for himself. And I cannot let you take our child away from me.” Rumple informed as he tucked the wand away and placed a gold cuff on Belle’s wrist, glowing with his magic, “So now, no matter where you go, I’ll find you.”

“You really are a beast.” Belle softly spat.

“Call me what you will, but it comes from love; my love for our child and you.” he softly corrected.

“You call this love?” Belle shouted, “You’re scared, Rumple. I almost won today. Next time, I will run so fast and so far, that you will never even set eyes on this child.”

“Let remind you, _dearie_ , that Rumplestiltskin _takes_ children, not the other way around.” Rumple threatened.

“Tell that to your firstborn.” Zelena taunted.

“You do not get to speak.” Rumple hissed as he shot his hand up to choke the witch. However, as he did, it was he who had trouble breathing.

“What-what’s happening?” Belle asked as her husband staggered and clutched his heart.

“That is called a heart attack.” Zelena smiled triumphantly, “See, I don’t need Nicholas’ deal with you to keep you from harming me. Ever since New York, when I saved your life, I’ve had all the protection from you I’ll ever need. So whenever you hurt me, you’re only hurting yourself.”

“…As I have already told your arrogant brother, Rumplestiltskin is a master at finding loopholes. We are far from done, dearie.” Rumple warned before poofing away.

After everyone had returned home, and as Emma was locking up the house and getting ready for bed, Nicholas noticed something resting on their bed. With a red bow and note card sitting on top, the black box the Evil Queen received from Gold was sitting there, waiting for him. Picking up the card, Nicholas read what it had to say.

“ _Our mother had this specially made for you when we were children. It was meant to be a gift on your next birthday before you were taken. I know this is long overdue, but I hope it finally gives you some peace. Love, your real sister._ ”

Taking a closer look at the box, Nicholas could finally tell what it was. It was a bell music box with beautiful carvings of trees and flowers etched into the black wood around the glass showing the shined, brass bells inside. Rather than a key for him to turn, Nicholas was surprised to find a switch on the bottom corner of the box to activate it. Curious to know what song it would play, he sat his gift on the nightstand, flipped the switch and listened to its melody.

As the gently chiming of the bells filled the room, Nicholas could feel his heart flutter and ache at the same time. The song the box played was none other than a special lullaby he vaguely remembered Cora singing to him when he was very young. He hadn’t thought of that song in decades, probably even forgot about it, but the memories came to him as though they were yesterday. He could see his beautiful, younger mother smiling down at him from the side of his childhood bed as she sang. A stray tear fell from his eye as he listened and remembered. He felt at peace.

“Okay, the house is locked up and after the day I’ve had I am ready for some shut eye.” Emma said down the hall before noticing the music, “Babe, what’s that sound?”

But Nicholas could not answer. When Emma walked in, she stopped in the doorway and gasped. There, laying on their bed, her beloved alchemist was fast asleep with a small, peaceful on his face; something he hadn’t had while sleeping in so long. 

Emma was beyond happy for her true love. After turning off all the lights, letting only the music fill the air, she got under the covers and pressed her lips on his with a kiss before draping her arm over him and snuggling up to his side.

“Sweet dreams, Nicky.” she whispered.

As the happy couple soundly slept, Gold was still licking his wounds in his pawn shop as he stared at the sonogram of his unborn son. As he was mulling over the fate of his child, the Evil Queen allowed herself in.

“The things we do for our children.” she sighed.

“Yes, I heard Henry didn’t exactly make his mother proud today.” Rumple said as he continued to look at the picture.

“All children rebel. That’s their job.” she scoffed, “And ours is to do what’s best for them to make them strong. Henry will realize that someday.”

“How far are you willing to go to get this, uh, new beginning of yours?” Rumple asked as he came up to her.

“Oh, you know me.” she chuckled, “I’ll do anything.”

“Then perhaps we can both get that, uh, happy ending.” he said before pulling her in for a kiss.

“So, we _are_ on the same team.” Evil Queen breathed passionately before kissing him again, only for Rumple to pull away.

“For now.” he informed, “You know how teams work, don’t you? You need a little give and a little take.”

“Oh, that sounds like a proposition.” she softly smiled.

“You know, there is one more thing we have to take care of.” Rumple added as he held her close.

“Hmm?” she asked.

“Zelena and Nicholas. They’ve become a bit of a problem.” he said while stroking her cheek with his thumb.

“And you want me to give them a stern talking-to?” Evil Queen playfully asked.

“No. I want you to kill them.”


	90. Changelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

In the depths of the industrial system of Storybrooke, a frightened fairy/nun was running for her life. As she rounded the corner of the hall she was sprinting through, she came to face the very monster pursuing her.

“There’s nowhere to hide from me, dearie.” Rumple darkly warned.

“Whatever you’re doing, the Mother Superior won’t let you get away with it.” the frightened girl threatened. With a dark smirk and a wave of his hand, Rumple moved the girl in a cloud of smoke to be bounded to a support beam behind him.

“That wingless glowworm won’t stop me. None of you will.” he said with confidence before an unexpected third party showed up.

“What is it between you and fairies?” the Evil Queen asked, “You never have told me why you despise them so much.”

“What are you doing here?”

“Oh, isn’t it obvious?” she chuckled, “I came to join in the fun. Oh, I thought you’d be happier to see me.”

“And I will be, once you’ve taken care of that problem we discussed.”

“Oh, you mean Zelena and Nicholas.” she recalled before laughing in disbelief, “You don’t really expect me to kill my own flesh and blood for you?”

“Well, that depends on how serious you are about these new beginnings you say you want, because I think one of them involves me.” Rumple countered.

“Why should I believe you’ve at long last gotten over Belle?” Evil Queen asked.

“Because I’ve finally come to my senses. Belle won’t accept me for who I really am.” Rumple answered, “I know you never really wanted to rule alone. Well, you no longer have to. There’s just two little things in your way.” 

“And just how do you expect me to kill the Immortal Alchemist?” Evil Queen asked.

“Oh, I believe you know the answer to that better than anyone. That being said, if you don’t mind, I have my own problems to attend to.” he said as he returned his attention to his captive.

“Which is what, exactly?” Evil Queen asked.

“I’m gonna send a message via fairy.” he replied as he uncorked a vial of bronze dust and tossed it on the poor girl. In a matter of seconds, the girl rapidly aged to an old woman, courtesy of the dust.

After the unfortunate woman was found by the other nuns, and giving Mother Superior the rundown of what happened, she was wheeled off to rest. In the meantime, the leader of the fairies informed Emma, Regina and Hook who was filling in for Nicholas.

“It was the Dark One with the Evil Queen. They’re together.” Blue confirmed.

“Nicholas used the same magic when we were dealing with Nimue to speed up Zelena’s pregnancy.” Emma recalled.

“This is about me!” Belle exclaimed. The librarian had tagged along when she heard what happened, mostly due to her belief that Rumple was behind it from the start. “Rumple’s going to do the same thing so that he can use the Shears of Destiny to cut our son’s ties to his fate. And then, when that happens, he can take him from me, he can corrupt him, or even worse.”

“If that truly is his plan, why would he announce it to us?” Hook asked.

“Because he wants me to know what he’s doing.” Belle scoffed, “He’s trying to scare me so that I’ll go back to him, which I won’t do, I can’t do. There has to be a way to stop him.”

“Indeed, there is.” Gilles intervened. Since he decided to stay in Storybrooke, the LXG agent had taken the liberty of filling in for the open position of the town’s pastor. He may not have been friends with Blue, but he was well received from the other nuns.

“What do you have in mind, mate?” Hook asked.

“I believe our lovely sheriff remembers this.” Gilles said as he drew one of his guns.

“Yeah, I remember you shooting me with that thing.” Emma bluntly nodded as she crossed her arms, “Gilles, I see where you’re going with this. You wanna shoot Gold with those pellets of yours?”

“It worked on you, didn’t it?” he nonchalantly asked, “Granted, it won’t last as long thanks to his new powers, but still.”

“Even so, while he’s stunned, we can take the shears from him.” Hook pointed out, “Question is, how do we dose him? He’s likely to have his guard up.”

“I can do it.” Belle volunteered, “He’s doing all of this because he thinks it’ll force me back to him, and if that’s what he wants, then that’s what I’m gonna make him think I’m doing.”

“Sorry, Belle, but no.” Emma gently refused, “It just gives Gold an opportunity to use his magic to speed up your pregnancy.”

“She’s right, love.” Hook nodded, “Leave the rest to us. Besides, the crocodile can’t hurt us thanks to Nicholas.”

“Where is Nicholas, anyway?” Gilles asked as he looked around for his friend.

“He took Zelena and the baby out for lunch.” Emma replied.

“Oh, um, there was one other thing.” Blue sheepishly added as she came back after hearing Nicholas’ name, “Gold apparently wants the Evil Queen to kill Zelena and Nicholas. From what I was told, she seemed willing to do it.”

“You might’ve mentioned that sooner, don’t you think?!” Hook snapped as Regina scoffed, rolled her eyes and poofed away to rescue her siblings from her evil half. Over at the farmhouse, the two siblings and baby just entered the kitchen to put Robin down for her nap.

“Ugh!” Nicholas groaned as he cradled his stomach, “Do me a favor, the next we eat together at Granny’s, if I think eating her attempt at Chinese food is a good thing, thump me on the head. I am very much regretting eating that stuff.”

“Trust me, after smelling those clear signs of intentional distress you were making on the ride back, you won’t exactly have to worry about me telling you otherwise.” Zelena chuckled.

“It was only one. Two at the most.” Nicholas defended.

“They had layers and you know it.” she deadpanned.

“Kinda proud of that, actually.” he smirked mischievously.

“Your uncle is gross, isn’t he, sweetpea?” Zelena playfully cooed at the baby.

“Hey!” he whined as the Evil Queen entered the room.

“Knock-knock.” she greeted.

“You!” Nicholas growled as he readied his spears.

“No, Nicholas, it’s okay!” Zelena reassured with a smile at the sight of her sister as she bounced her daughter, “It’s just Auntie Evil. Would you like to hold Robin? I think she misses you.”

“Oh, no. That’s okay.” Evil Queen politely declined, even though her body language made Nicholas tense, “In fact, I was hoping to catch you during nap time.”

“Why’s that? Why are you here?” Zelena asked.

“Gold sent me.” she simply replied making the meaning quite clear. Tension raised in the air as the two siblings looked at their new enemy.

“Guess he was able to exploit that loophole after all.” Nicholas dryly quipped.

“So, what now?” Zelena asked.

“Oh, I suggest you put the baby down.” Evil Queen suggested. Seeing that there was no other alternative to a fight, Zelena relented and placed her baby girl in her crib and kissed her soft, little head.

“Mommy loves you.” she whispered.

“So, this is it.” Nicholas glared, “After what you’ve done for us, you just up and decided we weren’t worth it? All that glitters isn’t _gold_ , you know?”

“How about we take this outside?” Evil Queen suggested before poofing them all to the yard, “Enough games. Let’s finish this!”

“You really think you can beat _me_? I’m immortal, remember?” Nicholas scoffed as he hardened his shield, readied his spears, and pooled his shadows to emphasize his point.

“Oh, I’m aware of that. Among other things.” she darkly smirked as she did something neither she, nor Nicholas thought she would ever do. Reaching out with her magic to summon it, the Evil Queen gripped a long, black, leather bull whip into her hand. At the sight of his greatest, physical fear, Nicholas unconsciously dropped all his defenses and looked at her with utter fear, betrayal and heartbreak.

“You wouldn’t.” Zelena gasped as Nicholas whimpered and trembled.

“Think so?” Evil Queen smiled as she cracked the whip, causing Nicholas to jolt in fear as he fell to the ground and crawled back a few paces. Next, she summoned a powerful ball of fire and tossed it at Zelena, sending her flying at her shed, causing her head to bleed.

“Please.” Nicholas begged in fear as tears threatened to fall, “Don’t do this.”

“You’ve gotten in my way far too many times, little brother. No longer.” she coldly said before lashing him. 

Each strike hurt Nicholas in more ways than one. Even though he knew it was not really Regina who was lashing him, seeing the face of his big sister as he was reliving the worst memories of his life. Even if his wounds were healing, the mental pain the whip was causing him reduced him to tears. Despite the pain Zelena was in, she mustered the strength to defend her baby brother and held him in her arms to shield him.

“Looks like evil does beat wicked and extraordinary.” Evil Queen taunted as she readied the final blow, “Goodbye, brother and sister.”

But instead of finishing the siblings off, the Evil Queen doubled over in pain as she clutched her chest. “No. My heart.” she grunted.

“Not your heart. Mine” Regina corrected sharply from behind. In her hand was her own heart, just waiting to be crushed, literally by her own hand.

“Regina.” Zelena exhaled as she held the trembling alchemist.

“You can’t control me with that.” Evil Queen spat.

“Oh, I don’t have to. All I have to do is crush it.” Regina threatened.

“You wouldn’t.”

“Think so?” she asked before squeezing the heart, causing them both to double over in pain, “So, now that you know I’m serious, you’re going to tell me why you’d do this.”

“It was Rumplestiltskin.” Zelena answered, “He said it was either the two of us or him.”

“Did he now?” Regina mocked.

“Oh, you’re just jealous!” Evil Queen barked.

“You think he cares for you?” Regina asked, “Don’t you get it? He lied to you because _he_ couldn’t hurt them. He knew revenge wasn’t enough for you, so he tricked you into disposing them. You still have a hole in your heart, just like I did when I first came here.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” Evil Queen defied.

“And you’re so desperate to fill it, you actually believed him.”

“You’re wrong!”

“Am I? Go ask him and find out. After all, we’re done with you here.” Regina declared. Without another word, the queen threw up her hands and poofed away. On the other side of town at the pawn shop, Hook entered the cluttered lair of his mortal enemy without a trace of fear.

“Well, look who it is. The Savior’s lap dog.” Gold dryly greeted, “Come to pick out a new collar, have we?”

“Actually, I’ve come to try and stop you from ruining another one of your son’s lives, just like you did with Bae.” Hook corrected just as dryly.

“Is that a fact?” Rumple asked, not taking kindly to the insult, “What made you think it was a good idea to provoke the Dark One?”

“You mean, aside from the fact that you can no longer hurt me? This, for one thing.” Hook smirked before Emma came in from the back and shot Gold in the face with Gilles gun.

“Standard issue.” Emma quipped as she watched Gold seethe in pain like she did the first time she was shot with mixture, “Let’s get searching.”

“I’ll remember this, pirate.” Gold hissed in anger as they searched his paralyzed person.

“He’s not carrying the dagger or the shears.” Hook informed.

“Okay, you look up here. I’ll search in the back.” Emma nodded before heading to the back of the shop. As she searched, visions of the hooded figure and mysterious beast attacked her mind and sent her to the floor as her legs gave out.

“Emma?!” Hook called as he rushed past the curtain after hearing his friend collapse. As he did, Emma’s vision revealed key details in her fight against the hooded figure; specifically, the sword that stabbed her.

“Are you okay? What happened?” he asked in concern.

“I saw another vision.” she said weakly.

“What? I thought those had stopped.” he said with worry.

“I thought so, too.” she said as she struggled to stand. As this happened, the effects of the squid ink wore off and Gold was free. However, instead of going to the back, he calmly walked out the front door.

Moving as quietly as death, the Dark One made his way inside the library where he found his estranged wife searching through books. Despite the tension between them, he felt warmth bloom in his chest as he watched her in her element. Unfortunately, as soon as she noticed his presence, she had no warmth inside her. Only fear.

“No.” she panicked, “No, no. How did you-”

“You really think squid ink can hold me?” he asked, “I’m far too powerful for that now.”

“Look, I know you want me back, Rumple. But it’s-it’s never gonna happen.” Belle said in fear.

“I know.” he darkly whispered, “But I cannot lose another son, Belle. I won’t. Not if I can stop it.”

Making his intentions clear, he revealed the same dust he used earlier on the nun. 

“No.” Belle whimpered before stumbling back into the elevator, “Why? Why are you doing this?”

“After all this time, you must know. I will never be the man you think I can be.” Rumple replied.

“It doesn’t have to be like that.” she stammered.

“I’m afraid it does. When we met, I told you I was a difficult man to love. But more than that, I think…I think I’m a man no one can love. But this son, with him, I can start over. Maybe he can love me.” Rumple explained.

“Not like this.” Belle said in defiance, “Don’t give up, Rumple. I-I never wanted you to be perfect. I just wanted you to try!”

“I have. And look what’s happened. I’ve only ever pushed you away.” Rumple said in sadness, “No, I’m afraid all I really have…is just magic.”

“And it may get you your son. But you know there’s a price. You won’t just push me away again. You’ll lose me forever. Is that a price you’re willing to pay?” Belle asked.

Whether it was because he did not have an answer, or he did not have the strength to give one, Rumple simply walked away and left the library and his wife. Meanwhile, Regina was tending to her battered siblings inside the farmhouse. For Nicholas, all he needed was about a dozen of his plums to calm him down. Zelena, on the other hand, needed magic to heal the wound on her head. So, feeling obligated, Regina supplied them with both.

“Thank you.” Zelena said after Regina healed her while Nicholas was slurping on his plums, “After a scrap like that, I don’t think I could magic a glass of warm milk, let alone heal myself. We’re lucky you happened by.”

“Yeah, about that.” Regina awkwardly began.

“No, listen. Let me go first.” Zelena interrupted, politely, as she stood up, “I should have been the one to reach out and find you, to apologize.”

“I didn’t come here to apologize.” Regina corrected, “Truth is, I thought I’d find some magic here to help reverse an aging spell Gold used.”

“You mean you came here to steal from me?” Zelena snapped.

“Well, was I supposed think you’d share?” Regina asked, clearly convinced she had done nothing wrong, “After everything you did to me and my friends?”

“Well, if that’s what you assumed, why even bother saving me, then?” Zelena asked hotly.

“Because that’s what heroes do, Zelena. They save people. Even the people who have hurt them in…unimaginable ways.”

“So this is about Robin Hood. You still blame me for his death.” Zelena stated.

“Yes, that’s exactly right.” Regina retorted.

“What about forgiveness? What about redemption?” Zelena asked as tears began to form in her eyes, “I mean, you’ve been forgiven! You’ve grown. You’ve changed!”

“…You’re not me.” Regina said coldly and flatly, “I can never forgive either of you. I can pity you. I can hate you. I can spare your life, Zelena. But I can never forgive either of you.”

Having enough of the hatred from her only sister, Zelena left the kitchen to be alone and cry. Nicholas said nothing. All he had done during the argument was finish his plums and stare at the large apples Zelena had in her centerpiece bowl.

After she exited the farmhouse, and walked out to the front yard, Regina let out a heavy sigh as she tried to push down her feelings of hate. While she did, she failed to notice the sound of the front door opening behind her. Then, without any warning, the mayor of Storybrooke felt something strike the back of her head, causing her to stumble and nearly fall.

When she clutched her head, she pulled bits of apple from her hair. Ready to lash out at her sister from such childish behavior, Regina spun on her heels only to see Nicholas heaving in anger as he glared at her from the porch. Based on his position, plus being the only other person outside, it was obvious that he had thrown the apple.

“Go to hell.” he growled before stomping back inside, slamming the door as he did.

Over at the loft, Snow, Henry, Jasmine, Aladdin, Mina, and Sawyer were standing around the dining room table, ready for what was about to happen. To clarify, after Aladdin had stolen the wand, he managed to find a familiar genie lamp and stole it, as well. Although they had not rubbed the lamp yet, they were about to in front of their new friends, and the LXG agents since Jasmine had hired them.

“You ready?” Snow asked her fellow princess.

“I am.” Jasmine nodded with a deep breath. As she rubbed the enchanted trinket, a small cloud of gold smoke poured from it. Unfortunately, it was not a genie that came out, but the golden, jeweled bracers that would have been on the genie’s wrists.

“Gee, that’s disappointing.” Mina dryly remarked as Aladdin picked up the bracers.

“I don’t understand. Where’s the genie?” Jasmine asked.

“Apparently, he’s been freed. Just our luck.” Sawyer said in disappointment as he clicked his tongue.

“But without a genie, I can’t use a wish to get back to Agrabah.” Jasmine stressed.

“Actually, I think you will.” Aladdin corrected as he slapped one of the bracers on his wrist.

“What are you doing? You’ll be a prisoner of the lamp.” Jasmine reminded.

“It’s not such a bad life. Sure, some genies are insufferable, but I knew a pretty great one once. And he’s been free for a while now, so maybe I can be like him. Either way, let’s say we find out.” he smirked before putting on the last bracer and getting sucked into his new home. Over at the pawn shop, Gold and the Evil Queen were having a heated discussion.

“You didn’t use it.” Evil Queen spat as she saw her lover put the vial away, “So Regina was right then. You were just using me to get rid of Zelena and Nicholas.”

“If you’ve come here looking for retribution, you’ve come to the wrong place.” Gold said in a bored tone.

“Oh, let me guess why you didn’t use the magic on Belle.” she retorted, “She gave you some speech about ‘the man in the beast,’ or whatever she claims to see in you. Even if you were the person she wants you to be today, how long will that really last? Soon enough, she’ll realize, as she always does, that’s not who you really are. But this time, she’ll have a child to protect. And she’ll do what she should have way back when. She’ll go and take the boy with her. And you’ll be alone, just as it was the first time. With Baelfire.”

“You want to know what failure looks like? Take a look in the mirror.” Rumple calmly retorted, “Do not dare question me again. Now go. We’re done.”

No longer in the mood to play games, the queen just said nothing and left the shop. After the town’s worst break up, Belle had met up with Hook and Emma over at the diner to find out if they found anything and. Unfortunately, they had not. Still, Belle was thankful that she could finally start moving forward.

“I know I should be relieved, but…” the librarian trailed.

“Well, no one’s gonna blame you for still worrying.” Emma sympathized, “Gold did the right thing today. That doesn’t mean he’ll do the same tomorrow.”

“Emma’s right.” Hook agreed, “And we have to make sure that he can’t use that magic on you, and we will.”

“Here you go. One cup of chamomile. It soothes the soul.” Granny said as she gave Belle the tea she ordered.

“Drink up, love. Helps calm the nerves.” Hook gestured before pulling Emma away, “So, are you gonna tell me what happened back at Gold’s, or do I have to guess?”

“I saw my death again.” she told her friend, “It was the same details, the same figure, the same monster. Everything was the same. Except this time, there was something new. The sword, the sword that’s used to kill me, it had a red jewel in the pommel, almost glowing.”

“What brought the vision on?”

“I don’t know. Maybe just being in the shop? Maybe there was something in there.” Emma guessed before they heard Belle gasp and her cup shatter.

“Belle?” Emma asked in concern, “What is it? Are you okay?”

“The tea.” Belle said before her stomach began to rapidly swell, “Aah! No, no! This can’t be happening! Please, no!”

“Call Gilles.” Emma said to Hook without taking her eyes off Belle, “We need to get the monastery ready, now!”

After poofing all three of them back to the monastery and informing Gilles and Blue, the nuns set up a barrier as soon as Rumplestiltskin arrived. As soon as he laid eyes on the monastery, he seethed in anger.

“I should have known the Savior would bring my wife here. Wherever there’s injustice in the world, there’s always a fairy.” he hissed before tearing through the barrier. As he did, Belle had given birth to her son.

Naming him after her favorite hero, Gideon, Belle realized there was no safer choice for her baby than to have Blue take him someplace safe. Away from her husband, the impending doom, the League, all of it. It broke her heart, but she did it for his sake. Unfortunately, by the time Rumple made it inside, he only saw Blue fly away with his second child. Vowing to find him, Gold retreated back his shop to formulate a new plan. Much to his annoyance, however, he was not alone.

“Someone lose another son?” Evil Queen asked from the dark corner she was sitting in.

“Don’t. Not now.” Rumple ordered, borderline pleading.

“Or what?” Evil Queen shot back before laughing, “Oh, I bet Belle really hates you now, huh?”

“Go.” he demanded with a jerk of his thumb.

“No. I’m going to enjoy this.” she refused, “I went to a lot of trouble for this to see what happens when you poison your love.”

“I did no such thing. You did.” Rumple accused.

“Oh, no. _You_ did. By making me an enemy.” she corrected, “Okay, yes, I did the actual dosing of the tea after I stole your magic. But you forced my hand. Oh, worry not. It’ll be easy to fix, no? Just tell her. Oh, wait. She won’t believe you, will she? Tragic.”

“I may not have crossed a line today. But you most certainly did. And I’m gonna make sure you pay for it.” Rumple threatened.

“Oh, please.” she scoffed, “If you haven’t found a way to kill the woman who killed your own son, or the man who’s practically made you his bitch, without enlisting my help, I’m not all that concerned.”

“One thing I thought you knew about me by now, Your Majesty, I play a very long game. And you? You’re nothing more than one of my pawns.” Rumple darkly warned.

Unimpressed, the queen simply said, “Good luck finding your son. Again. I hear fairies make wonderful mothers.”

Finally having enough of it all, Rumple let loose all the pent up anger and began to destroy everything in his path. Once he had finished, and left to further vent his anger, or look for his missing son, Emma and Hook returned to figure out why she had received her vision earlier after making so much progress.

“Whoa.” Emma remarked as they stepped over the wreckage, “Well, someone had a temper tantrum.”

“Do you really think you’ll find something in here to explain your vision?” Hook asked.

“I think I just did.” Emma said after finding the exact same sword she saw in her vision, “This is it. This is the sword from my vision. It’s here.”

As soon as she grabbed the grip, another vision surged through her mind, showing her exactly what she saw earlier.

“Emma, are you okay?” Hook asked as she firmly grabbed the blade.

“Yeah. I think it’s safe to say this is what did it.”

“This is the sword that killed you?”

“Will kill me.” Emma corrected.

“Why would it be in here?” he asked.

“I don’t know. But now that we have it, maybe we can finally find who’s responsible. And maybe what the thing that’s going to finish me off is, too.”

“The figure under the hood and the mysterious beast?” he asked.

“Yeah. Maybe then we can stop them.” Emma nodded with determination.


	91. Wish You were Here

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, LXG or Disney

That same night Emma and Hook found the mysterious sword in Gold’s shop, the two of them called Regina, completely unaware of what she and the Evil Queen had done earlier, to go through her vault in search of something that could understand the sword. It was pitch black out as they walked through the cemetery, but that was not what made them nervous. Having the sword destined to kill the Savior in their presence is what did the trick.

“Do you really think you have something in your vault that can destroy this thing?” Hook asked the mayor.

“We don’t want to destroy it.” Regina corrected, “We want to understand it.”

“It’s fated to kill Emma.” he reminded.

“The hooded figure who uses it, and/or that purple monster, is fated to kill me. We need to figure out who and what they are.” Emma corrected.

“And then we can worry about destroying things.” Regina added.

“In that case, we may want to show Harker the damn thing after we’re done here. Maybe the League has come across it before.” Hook offered.

“Oh, so my word isn’t good enough, then?” Regina defensively asked.

“No, it’s just that she or the others may know what it is. We’ll have to tell Nicholas either way so we might as well check.” he replied.

“Excuse me, but magic is my area of expertise. We don’t need an alchemist who’s allergic to magic.” Regina snapped.

“What is your deal? Did you two fight again?” Emma asked.

“I don’t want to talk about it.” her friend sighed in frustration before they all came to a stop.

“Bloody hell.” Hook cursed. Kneeling before Robin Hood’s grave, the Evil Queen was staring at it with a mournful expression.

“Get away from him!” Regina shouted.

“Oh, don’t worry. I’m not here to desecrate Robin’s final resting place.” Evil Queen said, surprisingly with honesty and a gentle voice, “I loved him too, you know. Loved. Past tense. Losing Robin Hood was the best thing that ever happened to us. It pushed you to liberate me, to free me from the prison of your self-loathing, to make me the best version of us.”

“Regina, don’t let her get to you.” Emma coached.

“It’s too late.” Regina flatly said as she made a fireball.

“What are you gonna do? Throw a fireball at yourself?” the queen mocked with a chuckle before waving it away, “The only way to hurt me is to hurt you, which is why your friends won’t be able to stop me. See? Love is weakness. Oh, and, Emma? Say hi to sleeping beauty. Or is it sleeping daddy? Maybe you should call your slave and check which one it is tonight.”

Making jabs at three of the people she loved most finally sent Emma over the edge. In a fit of anger, despite Hook’s shout of protest, the blonde swung the sword at the queen and sliced her cheek. The queen recoiled in pain as she covered the bleeding wound. Realizing what she had done, Emma turned to her friend with a look of regret and fear at the pain she just caused her.

“Regina, are you okay?” she asked as her friend uncovered her unmarked face.

“I’m…fine.” she answered in confusion as they all looked to the wounded queen. Even she was confused, but mostly afraid at this incident. With a wave of her hand, she tried to heal herself, but the wound remained. Realization dawned on both her and Emma and just before Emma could impale her, the queen poofed away in fear.

“We can kill her.” Emma exhaled. Back in town, the queen poofed in front of Regina’s car as she tried to understand why she was wounded, and why she couldn’t heal herself. Unfortunately, it was short lived.

“Thinking of going for a drive?” Rumple asked as he approached her.

“Rumple, I’m in no mood.” she sighed.

“Looks like the Savior’s found a weapon.” he pointed out, “Now, normally I’d be upset that someone stole from me, but in this case, I think I’ll let Ms. Swan’s pilfering slide, and I can focus on finding my son. And you can prepare…to die.”

With ease, the Dark One slapped the exact same cuff he made for Belle onto his former piece on the side. Only for this woman, it was not for the same misguided intentions he had for his wife. It was meant only to cripple her.

“Now, no matter where you go, I can find you. You see, what you did to me, to Belle, was unforgivable. So if, at the end of the day, the Savior has yet to dispose of you, rest assured that after I find my son, I will gladly finish the job. And thanks to you, and the rift Regina has caused between herself and Flamel, I may just be _twice_ as satisfied.” he threatened with terrifying, dark smile before poofing away.

While Emma, Regina and Hook went over to the loft to explain things to everyone not in the League, she had called Sawyer and explained everything so that he could tell Nicholas and the rest of the team. Down in their conference room, they all sat in silence in the respective chairs.

“If what Emma says is true, this will be the end of the Evil Queen, once and for all.” Sawyer emphasized.

“Nicholas?” Mina asked across from her friend, “Are you okay with this?”

“After what that bitch did to me today, I hope she suffers.” Nicholas spat, “And I wanna be there to see her die.”

“We know she hurt you in the worst of ways, Nicholas, but don’t let yourself fall into hatred.” Quartermain gently said.

“Up until today, I had gone over fifty years without feeling the sting of a whip crack against my skin. She may not be Regina entirely, but she was still a part of my sister, and therefore she knew what I went through. Right now, all I have for her is hatred. I want her to suffer. I want to watch her suffer.” Nicholas hissed as a few tears fell from his face.

“Lad,” Skinner comforted as he gently rubbed his friend’s back, “She’s not worth it. It’ll be over soon. You’ve finally started to forward, don’t fall back into the same hatred you forced yourself to endure for the Homunculi.”

“He’s right.” Nemo nodded on Nicholas’ left, “You can’t do that to yourself, again. Not now after you’ve come so far. If not for your own sake, then think of Emma. If what Van Winkle showed her is meant to happen, and the queen is that figure under the hood, she’ll need you at your best should the time come.”

“Besides, you’ve still got us.” Jekyll smirked, “Granted, we may not be first pick, but we’re better than nothing.”

“Heh, yeah. You guys are pretty nuts.” Nicholas softly chuckled, “But I would’ve been lost a long time ago without you guys to pick me up.”

“Giving into hatred is what the weak do, boy.” Quartermain lectured, though it was in good faith, “Don’t be weak like your sister. Be better.”

“Well, when you put it that way, that’s all the motivation I needed to hear.” Nicholas joked as he stood up from his chair, “It’s time I finally do something to put an end to the Evil Queen.”

Without another word, the Immortal Alchemist transmuted himself to the loft. When he arrived, he saw the David was awake while Snow slept and was informed that Leroy spotted the Evil Queen heading down main street. Due to the tension between Nicholas and his sister, and out of Emma’s concern for her friend, Regina was left behind. So, it was Emma, her new sword, David, Hook, Ariel, and Nicholas who marched down main street in search of their enemy. As they did, they heard the sound of a woman crying for help inside Granny’s. Once inside, they found Jasmine bound to a chair. As they tried to help, her captor, brandishing the magic lamp barged in.

“Ah-ah!” the queen warned with a fake smile, “This is about me. It’s always about me.”

“Damn right.” Emma snarled as she was about to end it, only to stop when the queen began to choke the princess with her magic.

“I can snap her neck before you get a step closer.” Evil Queen threatened, causing Emma to back down before she released Aladdin from the lamp.

“What the devil?” Hook gasped.

“No, not the devil. My genie.” Evil Queen smirked.

“When the hell did this happen?” Nicholas bluntly asked.

“I believe I have three wishes.” she said to her captive.

“Go ahead. Wish. They always come with a price.” Aladdin reminded.

“That they do.” she said, glaring at her enemies, “Which is why I’m not going to wish for something for me. I’m going to give you something, Emma. Something you’ve always wanted, something you confided about to Aladdin.”

“You heard us?” Emma asked.

“Don’t you know by now? I hear everything. You wished you weren’t the Savior. So that’s exactly what you’re going to get.” Evil Queen informed, “Genie of Agrabah, I wish that Emma Swan’s wish to have never been the Savior be granted.”

“No!” Emma shouted as she charged at the queen just as Aladdin, reluctantly made her disappear in accordance to the wish.

“Emma!” David cried.

“What happened? Where did she go?!” Nicholas shouted at the smirking monarch, “You bitch!”

In a burst of rage, he threw his spears at her head. Unfortunately, she vanished, with Aladdin and his lamp, just before she was impaled. After they left, David called Regina, who poofed herself, Ariel and Henry to the diner to hear things face to face.

“Where did she go?” Henry demanded.

“We have no idea, Henry.” Hook replied in frustration.

“But we’re trying to figure that out, right?” Regina asked, slightly sarcastic, “Because I didn’t stay behind for you to screw things up.”

“Us screw things up?!” Nicholas shouted, “Need I remind you this whole thing is your fault?! If you hadn’t let that bitch out to play, none of this would be happening!”

“You’re blaming me?!” Regina snapped.

“You’re goddamn right I am!” he shouted.

“Hey! It was the queen who did this. Not any of us. We need to stop pointing fingers and figure out where she sent Emma.” David interjected.

“Well, you’re her father. Where do you think?” Regina asked.

“Yeah, I am her father. That doesn’t mean I know everything.” David defended, “What about you, Nicholas? You live with her now. Any ideas?”

“If I had an idea, don’t you think I would have said it by now instead of wasting my time scratching my head with you guys?” Nicholas retorted.

“How do you share a home with someone and not know their secrets?” David snapped.

“Because despite all the shit that happens to us, we don’t spend our quite afternoons sitting by a fire, roasting s’mores and talking about what do when a fricking genie pops up!” the alchemist shouted.

“Stop it!” Ariel intervened, “This isn’t going to help us find Emma. We need to come with a plan instead of acting like a bunch of beta-fish stuck in the same bowl.”

“Fish metaphors aside, our little mermaid is right.” Regina admitted, “We’re doing exactly what the queen wants. She said we would tear ourselves apart, and that’s exactly what we’re doing. The Evil Queen has thrown a lot of punches today. But now I think I know a way to throw one back.”

“What do you have in mind?” Nicholas asked, no less angry.

“Nothing that involves you.” she replied.

“Oh, Regina, you are on thin enough ice with me as it is. Don’t give me a reason to use you as our way of ending the queen.” her brother warned through his gritting teeth.

“What I mean is, in order for this to work, I need to confront the queen alone. She’s already proven that she has no qualms in exploiting your one weakness. But, she can’t do anything to me without doing it to herself. That’s why I have to go alone.”

“Don’t screw this up.” Nicholas warned as she was about to poof away, “Or it will be the last mistake you’ll ever make.”

With a wave of her hands, the mayor poofed herself to the one place with the closest thing Storybrooke had to a throne; her office. Inside, as expected, she found her other half with Aladdin and an appletini in her hand to celebrate.

“Having fun in my office?” Regina rhetorically asked.

“Well, as a matter of fact, I was about to.” the queen replied as she squeezed Aladdin’s bicep and winked at him.

“Ew.” he said in annoyance and disgust.

“I’m not here for your perversions. I’m here to get Emma back.” Regina corrected.

“Oh, well, good luck with that.” Evil Queen sarcastically remarked as she sat down on her desk, “You’re not getting ahold of this lamp. But even if you did, you can’t undo wishes.”

“Sadly true.” Aladdin confirmed.

“Now take a seat. Have a drink. And give thanks where thanks is due.” Evil Queen said in triumph.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Regina asked.

“Don’t forget, I know you better than anyone, Regina. I _am_ you.” she giggled, “And there was a time when all you wanted was to tear Snow and Charming apart and kick Emma Swan out of your town. And I have done both. A toast. To you. To me. To us.”

“No.” Regina said as her doppelganger sighed in disappointment.

“That’s why you’ll never be happy. You’ve won, and you can’t even admit it. If you could, you’d see that victory feels luxurious.” Evil Queen said as she relished in her victory.

“Yes, I may not be able to get ahold of that lamp, but you’re right. We are the same person. Which means, you’re not the only master of the lamp.” Regina pointed out with her own look of victory.

“No.” Evil Queen groaned.

“Yes.” Aladdin smirked.

“Genie of the lamp, I wish to be sent to the same place as Emma Swan.” Regina ordered.

“No!” Evil Queen exclaimed.

“Your wish is my command, Master.” Aladdin happily obliged before sending her away. Next thing Regina knew, she was back in the Enchanted Forest, standing alone on one of its many, damp, muddy roads.

“Emma? Emma?!” she called out into the woods. However, instead of her friend, she heard a familiar tune being whistled through the trees. A tune only whistled by dwarves. “Hey! Hey! Dwarves!”

As she looked at their confused faces, she noticed something strange. All seven of the dwarves she once fought against looked older. Like thirty years older than what they looked like back in Storybrooke. And none of them looked as happy to see her as she did them.

“I’m, uh, I’m looking for Emma. Have you seen her?” she asked.

“The Evil Queen is back.” Grumpy said in anger and fear,

“No, no, you don’t understand. I’m not the Evil Queen anymore.” Regina assured.

“Move! Move!” Grumpy shouted to his brothers, “We must warn them! The war is not over! Run!”

Clearly confused, Regina continue to walk down the road in search of any indication of anything that might be useful. As she did, she came across a marble monument of Snow and Charming, dedicated to them “defeating” the Evil Queen.

“Seriously?” Regina scoffed in amusement. At that moment, she could hear the sound of a woman humming nearby. Following the sound, Regina came across something she never thought was possible.

Wearing a pink cloak, over a pink dress, with more make-up than Regina had ever seen her wear, picking flowers, singing and gliding as if she were dancing, Emma Swan looked every bit of a stereotypical Disney princess as a woman could. In all honesty, it was slightly unsettling to the small town mayor.

“Emma?” she asked in utter disbelief, “What the hell happened to you?”

“You. You’re the Evil Queen.” Princess Emma said as she backed away in horror, like a scared little girl.

“You don’t remember me.” Regina acknowledged.

“I know exactly who you are.” Princess Emma said as she hid behind a tree, “My parents banished you.”

“Uh, no, they didn’t.” Regina chuckled, trying to get past the embarrassing state of her, formally, tomboyish friend, “None of this is real. I’m your friend.”

“You’re no one’s friend. My father said you were a liar.” the princess in pink sneered.

“No, it’s not a lie.” Regina reasoned, “Where we’re from, we actually share custody of a son. And you happen to be dating my little brother. I know it’s complicated but the point is I risked my life coming here because you’re the Savior and your family needs you.”

Even though Princess Emma’s was intrigued by her words, her attention was broken as an arrow flew past Regina’s head and imbedded itself in the tree Emma was hiding behind. Much to Regina’s shock, and amusement, Snow and Charming, now clearly king and queen based on their crowns and clothes, came to their daughter’s rescue. Only thing funny about it was the fact they were both in their sixties with silver hair and wrinkles.

“This is impossible.” King Charming gasped as he was prepared to draw his sword, “You were banished.”

“The fairies saw to it you could never return. There’s no way you can be here right now.” Queen Snow spat.

“Snow? David?” Regina asked.

“Show some respect!” Charming barked, “It’s ‘Your Majesties,’ now. This is our kingdom.”

“You’ve gotten so old.” Regina chuckled.

“Taunt us all you wish. We shall never back down from protecting our people.” Snow White declared.

“Emma, these people aren’t real.” Regina laughed.

“Mom, Daddy, please help.” Princess Emma pleaded like a child as they readied their weapons.

“They’re-they’re hallucinations, a-a fake reality.” Regina tried to explain.

“Step away from my daughter.” Charming ordered with his great-sword ready.

“Emma, you have to believe me.”

“Never.” the princess defied.

“Come on, this isn’t you.” Regina reasoned, “There has to be some part of you that knows that. Please! Dammit!”

In her annoyance and frustration, Regina poofed away just before Charming could cleave her in two. With not that many options on places to go, and curious about the world in which she lost, Regina sent herself to the ruins of her old castle. Weeds, vines, rust, decay and her destroyed possessions littered the entire palace. It had honestly surprised her that Snow allowed the castle she was born and raised to be abandoned in such state. As she wandered into her old foyer, she heard a maniacal laugh echo from another room.

“No.” she whispered. Going down into the dungeons, she found an old cell with a shadowy figure muttering to himself inside.

“There you are.” he said with his back turned, “Never thought I’d see you again. Thought their majesties got rid of you for good.”

“Rumple?” Regina asked.

“Ha! Rumple?!” the person asked in boisterous amusement as Regina lit a nearby torch. After she did, she saw that the person was wearing a red, hooded coat with a familiar symbol in black on the back.

“I might just take that as an insult, _sister dear_.”

“No.” Regina exhaled.

Raising his hood, Regina saw her younger brother, almost as old a Snow and Charming, but covered in scars along his face, neck and hands. His hair was also white, but not from old age. No, it was the same color of white she had seen when he died after dealing with Nimue.

“Nicholas?” she asked in horror, “What happened to you? Why are you down here?”

“What happened, you ask?! Why?!” he shouted as he rattled the bars before giving a crazy smile, “Well, I’ll tell you. After Snow and Charming banished you, the first thing they did was capture me. Oh, there were many whips that day. So many lashes. I think I may have gone mad because of those backstabbing brats. Be honest, do I look mad to you?”

“They betrayed you? You helped them over throw me, didn’t you?” she asked.

“Yeah! And that’s the bitch of it!” he shouted, still smiling like a lunatic, “I remember it well. It was a beautiful day. All the knights and dwarves and other lackeys they employed were rewarded well for their bravery and assistance. But when they got to me…they fired their crossbows at me and had those hypocritical fairies dump buckets of fairy dust on me. Few hours later, the Blue Fairy severed me from the Philosopher’s Stone and proceeded to destroy it. I’ve been in here ever since. For thirty years.”

“I didn’t think that was possible.” Regina remarked, feeling slightly guilty.

“Well,” he said clicking his tongue, “I can recount everything I did in that timeframe if it’ll help convince you?”

“Um, no need.” she replied as a tray of table scraps appeared on the floor.

“Oh, goodie, lunch!” he said sarcastically as he crawled over to the tray, “Looks like they had turkey, today. Delicious, a plate full of nothing but raw giblets. Yum!”

“So, here’s my question. What’s my big sister doing back here after all these years? And why don’t you look any older?” he asked as he ate the scraps.

“Oh, I’m not from here. Not really. I’m not the Regina you know.” she replied.

“No?” he asked.

“No. This place, this world, even you aren’t real.” Regina explained, “Everything here is fake. You’re fake.”

“Even the food?” he asked trying to amuse himself as he choked down the disgusting scraps.

“Yes.” she dryly replied.

“Wow. I think I’m starting to feel intrigued. It’s been so long, I’ve forgotten what it feels like.” he grinned, “Why don’t you tell me more? I don’t hear many good stories lately.”

“This world was created by a wish to trap Emma. The Savior.” Regina began.

“Ah, yes. Snow and Charming’s little bundle of joy. I saw her the day they stripped me of my immortality. I believe she just celebrated a birthday recently. I imagine she’s become quite the brat like her mother was.”

“Careful what you say.” Regina chuckled.

“Why?”

“Well, where I come from, none of this happened. I succeeded in casting the curse and everyone, save Emma, was taken away to the Land Without Magic. For twenty-eight years, my curse served its purpose until she broke it.”

“And she let you live?” he asked finding it surprising.

“Oh, there were plenty of complications. But she and I eventually became very good friends.” Regina replied.

“And do I fit in somewhere in this other reality?” he asked.

“Well, actually,” Regina laughed, “You and Emma are in love with each other and are in a serious relationship. Well, the real you, that is.”

“…You expect me to believe that a version of me fell in love with my great-step-niece?” he dryly asked.

“Oh, you had your ups and downs. Especially during the Promised Day.”

“Wait, wait, wait.” he said grasping the bars intensely, “The Promised Day occurred? I won?”

“With a few casualties. But yes, Branch Quartermain was victorious in defeating the Homunculi.”

“Branch Quartermain. Now there’s something I haven’t thought of in a long time.” he said in nostalgia, “So, everyone in this place you come from knows about the League, then?”

“Storybrooke, and yes. You and your friends nearly destroyed the town that day. I’m honestly surprised you’re here. I figured they would’ve sprung you out.” Regina remarked.

“…Well, the dead can’t exactly do much for the living, Regina.” he whispered somberly.

“Oh.” she said.

“Yes. Oh.” he nodded, “But enough of that. Why is it so important for you to find the Savior?”

“There’s something coming to Storybrooke and we need her. And she’s my friend and she belongs home with all her friends and family.”

“And me? Or, this other version of me?” he asked, “I imagine it’s a bit difficult being in a relationship with someone like me.”

“Yeah, being with the Immortal Alchemist is tough for all of us. Especially since you keep causing trouble.”

“Huh.” he remarked, “Well, maybe this version of me can help. Huh?”

“You’re not even real.” Regina smirked as she turned around to leave, “And from what I can tell, you’re not extraordinary, either.”

“Ah-ah-ah, wait!” he pleaded, “If your plan is to save the Savior, and you’re in another realm, I imagine you’re going to need a way home…Storybrooke, yes? I can help with that.”

“You don’t have your stone, anymore. And, obviously, you don’t have alchemy anymore, either. So, it’s not like you can create your own portal anymore.” Regina reminded.

“True. But, I know you, sister dear. I know you rushed into this without a plan to get out of here. You don’t have an escape route. You’ll need a portal for when you need one.” he countered, “But I can get one for you.”

“How?” Regina asked.

“After Charming’s twin brother, James, killed all the giants, I set up several hidden caches throughout the realms. And I stored a magic bean in each of them. And as luck would have it, I have one here in the Enchanted Forest.”

“So, tell me where it is.” Regina said.

“Oh, no. See, I’m not telling you this out of the kindness of my heart. What’s left of it, that is. If you want that bean, you’re gonna have to do something for me, first. You owe me. Real or not, I’ve been suffering three decades because of your crimes. So, indulge me, and I’ll help you. In fact, I’ll even help you get your Savior back.”

“Let me guess, you want out of this prison.”

“Correct!” he exclaimed.

“You’re not giving me much of a choice here.” Regina remarked.

“Oh, there’s always a choice, sister dear!” he playfully waved off, “But I am the only one who can get you a portal. There’s no Rumplestiltskin in this _reality_ , either. They banished him not long after you. So, unless you want to go running around the Enchanted Forest as public enemy number one, in search of a bean that may or may not be accessible without the use of an alchemist, you may just find yourself right back where you started; fighting a war, all alone.”

“I’ll manage.” Regina brushed off.

“You know, Rumple told me something interesting before his banishment.” he said causing Regina to stop in her tracks, “The only reason Emma was destined to become the Savior was to destroy your curse. Since _my_ Regina failed to cast it, no Savior was needed. Every Savior needs a villain. The Evil Queen. The _real_ queen! Not this soft, defeated compromising woman you’ve become. A queen of power and purpose. One the world feared. One that can remind Emma that the world needs a Savior. You know I’m right. Show her the darkness she’s feared from the stories she’s been told her whole life. Make her nightmares real. Plunge this fake world she’s trapped in into darkness so that her light will shine. And then the Savior will be reborn!”

“Alright. I’ll do it.” Regina smirked, “But I think I’ll leave you here until I need you.”

“Oh, no, no. You can’t do that.” he laughed, “How can you scare Princess Emma into being the Savior without the most important supporting character of them all? The character that everyone knew of and always feared because they knew nothing about him. The story cannot end without the Evil Queen’s brother, now can it?”

Not giving him the satisfaction of saying he was right verbally, Regina simply waved her hand and opened the door. Thinking it was too good to be true, he hesitated before walking out and taking in a deep breath of freedom.

“Hmm! Smells just as dank outside. Let’s get some fresh air.” he said before clapping his hands and using his alchemy to create a long executioner’s blade to serve as a weapon and walking stick.

“Sounds good to me.” Regina smirked.

“Um, I don’t know why you’re dressed like that, but you’re not going to inspire much fear in those clothes. If you’re going to play the part of an Evil Queen, you should look like one, as well.”

With a wave of her hand, Regina made herself look exactly like she did when she crashed Snow and Charming’s wedding all those many years ago.

“How’s that?” she asked.

“Much better.” he smirked before using his alchemy to change his appearance, as well. Giving himself the same clothes he wore during his service to the League, the only change he made was to his coat. Instead of a red coat, he changed it to black as night with his personal symbol changed to red. Somehow, it was much more intimidating than the previous version.

On the other side of the country, in the grand hall of their palace, King Charming, Queen Snow White and Princess Emma stood at the indoor gazebo where they held their ceremonies. Only on this day, it was for none of them.

“Presenting his Royal Highness, Prince Henry!” a steward announced before the trumpets blared for their prince and his knighting ceremony. Dressed in bronze armor, and looking more poised and confidant than his other version, the young prince strode up to his family with a proud smirk before kneeling at their feet. Drawing Charming’s sword, Snow White began the ceremony.

“Do you, Prince Henry, undertake to accept the accolade of knighthood?” she asked.

“I do.” he vowed.

“And will you conduct yourself in all matters as befits a knight of this realm?” King Charming asked.

“I will.” he vowed.

“It is with pride in our hearts that we, Queen Snow and King David of the Enchanted Forest, do dub you-” Snow White recited only to be interrupted by the doors opening and everyone gasping.

“Sorry we’re late.” Regina said with Flamel at her side.

“We’re back!” Flamel cried out with a wicked smile through his raspy voice.

“It’s the queen, run!” Doc cried out as Regina tossed aside the guards and Flamel swung his blade around like a light spear to scare everyone.

“She’s not the queen anymore!” Snow White shouted before Regina froze her and Charming with her magic.

“Look at them, missing out on this…happy, happy day.” Regina spat, trying to behave like the Evil Queen, “I vowed to destroy their happiness if it is the last thing I do. That promise still stands.”

“Please. Don’t hurt my parents.” Princess Emma begged.

“Oh, but you see, hurting them is the point.” Flamel sneered as he checked out the woman his other version was supposedly infatuated with.

“Unless someone knows of a hero who can stop us.” Regina baited as she tried to see some part of the Emma she knew. Unfortunately, it didn’t show when the princess fell to her knee and begged.

“Mercy, please.” the princess weakly bowed.

“Her?” Flamel asked his sister in disappointment, “Really?”

“Look for that hero, Princess, and when you find one, you know where to find us.” Regina warned before poofing away with Flamel and her captives.

**OUaT**

Back in Storybrooke, after trying to figure out a plan to get Emma back, David came up with something that would either work, or make things worse. However, he did not tell the others. Instead he moved them out of his way in order to put his plan into action. Inside the mayor’s office, he slid a sword across the floor to the heels of his oldest enemy.

“Ah, David.” Evil Queen grinned with an evil chuckle, “I thought I smelled earnestness.”

“Please pick it up.” he said, eager to end her as he held his own sword.

“Why me?” she giggled, “You’re the one who dropped it.”

“Because I’m starting to wonder if you still have it in you.” he taunted, “An assassin, Gold’s magic, a genie? Why don’t you try doing something yourself for a change, you snake!”

Throwing the angry prince to the wall, the queen looked down her nose at him in disappointment.

“Snake?” she asked, “You must be confusing me for my brother. You do realize you can’t kill me, you imbecilic shepherd.”

“Oh, he knows.” the voice of Nicholas said from behind. Turning her head, the queen gasped at the sight of her brother sitting on her desk with his legs crossed as her twirled the lamp on his finger, “He just wants to finally inflict some pain on you. But then again, who doesn’t? You really don’t have the best luck when it comes to genies.”

“You tricked me.” Evil Queen spat as her brother gave David the lamp.

“Annoying, isn’t it?” David rhetorically asked with a smirk, “I know I can’t kill you. But I can do something much worse.”

With a single rub of the lamp, David released Aladdin and took on the role as the new master of the lamp.

“Careful.” Evil Queen warned for her own sake, “Don’t dabble with forces you don’t understand.”

“Oh, I’m going to be quite careful.” David promised.

“Your wish is my command, especially if it’s gonna hurt her.” Aladdin said as they all glared at the queen, “But remember, all wishes come with a price.”

“Oh, I know. That’s why I’m not gonna wish for anything to do with Emma or Snow or anyone I actually care about. No, Aladdin. The only one that’s gonna pay the price is her.”

“This is gonna be good!” Nicholas said in excitement.

“Genie, I wish that the Evil Queen gets exactly what she deserves.” David wished.

With a thrust of his hand, Aladdin granted the wish. However, nothing seemed to happen to the black-clad queen.

“Are you experiencing technical difficulties? What’s going on?” Nicholas asked.

“I don’t know. I granted David’s wish.” Aladdin replied just as confused.

“No, you didn’t.” Evil Queen chuckled in triumph, “You wasted it. All I ever wanted was to rip Snow and Charming’s family apart, and now look. Your daughter’s trapped in a wish. And your wife is forever slumbering. And you, you are all alone. Don’t you get it? You can’t wish for me to get exactly what I deserve because I already have it.”

“I will destroy you!” David snarled, like a wild animal as he charged at her with his sword. Unfortunately, the queen used her magic to stop him before he could.

“Look at you. Such bloodlust.” she grinned, “I always knew darkness would be a lovely shade on you. Honestly, it almost seems natural for you.”

“Oh, shut up.” Nicholas scoffed as he hurled his shadows at her, “Kick stones, you middle-aged, Gothic-Lolita-wannabe. We’ve got the lamp, and I can easily introduce you to a world of pain.”

“Fine.” she spat before dropping David, “Death is too good for you, shepherd. I’d rather watch you suffer.”

And with that, she poofed away.

**OUaT**

Back at the castle in the wish realm, Regina was waiting for Emma to arrive and remember who she really was. Much to her annoyance, Snow White and Charming were annoying her with their incessant speeches on how they would defeat her. Also, Flamel and his insanity was getting on her nerves, too.

“Whatever you’re planning, it won’t work.” King Charming vowed, “We’ll defeat you, Regina. We always-”

“Defeat me. I know, I know. That’s what I’m counting on.” Regina sighed as she paced.

“In the meantime, let’s play a little game.” Flamel said as he smacked their faces, “You guys will sing the longest songs you know while I rip out your toenails and if you get through the entire song without crying, I’ll make you new crowns out of them!”

“You’re more sadistic than the other Nicholas.” Regina muttered in disgust.

“Don’t worry. They’re not going to hurt you.” Princess Emma declared as she entered the room with a small box in her hands.

“What? I would have painted the nails. I would’ve made them pretty.” Flamel pouted.

“It’s going to be okay.” the princess said to her parents.

“I knew you’d find the hero in you.” Regina grinned, happy to be done with this madness, “Now, let’s get this over with.”

As she made a fireball in her hand, the princess presented the box with a blank look on her face.

“What is that? Is it a weapon?” Regina asked with hope.

“The key to our kingdom.” Princess Emma said with a bow as she opened the box and presented the key, “It is yours, Your Majesty. We surrender.”

“Seriously?” the siblings asked in disappointment.

“Anything to protect my parents.” Princess Emma said pretending to be brave.

“Emma, I don’t want the key to your kingdom.” Regina lectured as she tossed the key away, “I just-I just want you to remember who you are and get you back to Storybrooke.”

“Storybrooke?” she asked, “Like in my dream? How do you know of my dreams?”

“Oh, come on, Emma. This! This is the dream!” Regina exclaimed in frustration as she gestured to everything around them, “And now I have to wake you up. I know you won’t believe it, Emma, so, I really am sorry about this.”

“No!” Princess Emma shouted as she watched her parents’ hearts get ripped out, “I-I already gave you the kingdom. I gave you everything. What more can I do?”

“Be the Savior and stop me.” Regina replied as Emma fell to her knees and sobbed. Flamel just stood back, paced and watched as he held his executioner’s blade, “If not, your parents die!”

“I’m not a hero.” she wept as Regina squeezed the hearts, “I’m not the Savior.”

“Yes, you are.” Regina said in a friendly tone, which may have made the princess feel even worse, “I know you, Emma. You fight when it matters. You always do. And right now, you need to fight!”

“No! Please!” she weakly sobbed.

“Oh, come on, Ms. Swan!” Regina snapped in annoyance.

“I don’t know how.” she wept.

“You don’t want their blood on your hands, do you?” Regina asked as she squeezed, “Do you?!”

“Grah!” Flamel shouted as he swung his blade through the fakes’ necks. Blood poured everywhere as the hearts popped into dust like balloons. Emma just wailed at the sight of her decapitated parents.

“Finally!” he shouted in triumph, “Serves you right backstabbing hypocrites! I’ve waited decades to do that! Ha ha ha!”

“No!” Emma weakly wailed.

“Why?” Regina asked before the blade was pointed at her.

“Why?” Flamel asked over Emma’s weeping, “Because they wronged me. Which is why I’m going to kill you next.”

“What?” Regina asked as he approached her threateningly.

“I don’t care about alternate realities, or wishes, or whether or not I’m even real. It doesn’t matter to me. Even if I’m not real, it doesn’t change the things I experienced, or at least, remember experiencing until showed up. Whether this reality was created because of a wish, or not, any way you slice it, my suffering and torment was caused by you. Because from the way you tell it, it’s your fault the wish was made to begin with. I don’t care if the Savior gets woken up, it won’t matter. Because as soon I’ve killed you, and taken her, I’m going to use that bean to get my immortality back.”

“That bean can’t restore your immortality, Nicholas.” Regina reminded.

“No. But the Philosopher’s Stone in the other Nicholas can. All I need to do is find him and take it. Oh, and kill him, too, of course. Just because.” Flamel smirked evilly.

“…What did you mean when you said you’d take Emma? You’re taking her back to Storybrooke with you?” Regina asked in suspicion.

“Oh, no. That’s not what I meant.” he replied with a dark grin.

“…You wouldn’t.” Regina paled.

“Thirty years is a long time to be alone, sister dear. Plus, it’s a long way to the Mystic Bayou from here. I’ll need something to keep myself preoccupied. And she is quite the beauty.”

“Please, don’t let him!” Emma sobbed.

“I won’t.” Regina whispered as she looked at what could have become of her brother and readied a fireball to throw at him.

“When you get to hell, Regina, say hello to Mother and Father for me.” Flamel grinned as he prepared to swing his blade.

“Nicholas, stop!” Emma shouted in authority as she froze him with magic.

“Emma?” Regina asked, “You saved me.”

“Yeah, well, you came to this crazy land to save me, so it’s only fair, right?” Emma chuckled, clearly embarrassed over how weak she acted moments ago, “Plus, Nicholas all but said he was gonna rape me after he killed you, so…”

“Yeah. But you remember?” Regina asked trying to change the subject.

“Yeah. I remember.” she nodded, “When Nicholas was about to cross lines he would never cross, he was about to become everything he swore he wouldn’t become. Uh, are they…”

“Oh, they’re not real.” Regina assured, “He didn’t actually kill anyone.”

“Still, that was very…very dark. Come on. Let’s go stop the real Evil Queen.” Emma declared firmly.

“But what about the sword?” Regina asked before Emma smirked and summoned it to her hand.

“Any ideas on how to get out of here?” Emma asked.

“Nicholas, this Nicholas, mentioned he had a cache of League stuff tucked away somewhere with a bean. And thanks to his overconfidence, I have a better idea of where it is. The Mystic Bayou.”

“Okay. Where is it?” Emma asked.

“It’s in the southern part of the country. There’s a lot of strange magic in those swamps. Not many people visit and get out alive. Even I didn’t go there back in the day.” Regina informed.

“How do we find it?”

“With a little help from the _Mortal_ Alchemist.” Regina smirked as she plucked a hair from his frozen head and enchanted it, “Let’s get out of here.”

As soon as the two women left, Flamel remained frozen in place. However, after a few moments, one of his fingers twitched.

**OUaT**

Walking down main street with a skip in her step, the Evil Queen was formulating her next plans for turning Storybrooke upside down.

“This town is almost tolerable when the peasantry is hidden away.” she remarked when she noticed Leroy and Walter exit Granny’s.

“Call Charming.” Leroy whispered to his brother before a gust of wind and lights blew from inside the diner, “Portal! We’ve been portaled!”

“Well, that was faster than I thought.” she sighed in disappointment just before a hooded figured came out, “Who the hell are you?”

Instead of answering, the figure used magic to knock the queen to the ground several feet away. After which, they just kept walking as if they could care less about her presence. But, just as Evil Queen was about to retaliate, the figure unleashed black, magical dust which turned her into a black cobra in a cage, still wearing Gold’s magic cuff.

Over at the mansion, one of the members of Nemo’s crew who was in charge of the town’s surveillance noticed the portal reading on his monitor. Confused and concerned, he notified Nemo who was in the room with him.

“Captain,” he alerted, “We’ve just picked up a portal signature coming from Granny’s.”

“Is it the Savior? Has Regina brought her back?” Nemo asked as he hurried over.

“Negative, sir. The reading shows the portal used some sort of powerful dark magic.”

“Trace back the origin point of the portal. Find out what realm that portal connected to.”

“Aye, sir.” the sailor nodded but remained confused after calibrating the machine, “Sir, I can’t.”

“What do you mean?” Nemo asked.

“The origin point is unknown.”

“Check the charts. See what realm it’s in.” Nemo advised.

“I-I am, Captain. There-there are no charts for this location.”

“That’s impossible. All our charts for this tracking system come directly from Shamballa’s records of discovered and LXG ventured realms.” Nemo pointed out.

“Aye, sir. All I can say is…” the sailor trailed before Quartermain barged into the room, as if he knew what happened.

“We have an uninvited guest.” he said to them all.

Meanwhile, after trying to find some way to find his missing son ever since he was born, Rumple had tried using the tacking globe to find him. For some reason, even it could not reveal the baby’s location. So, out of concern for his child, Rumple informed Belle of this who then called the monastery to check with Blue. However, they learned the leader of the fairies had been attacked and was gravely wounded.

“Mother Superior was found in the forest.” one of the nuns informed as she showed Blue in bed to the estranged couple.

“What happened?!” Belle exclaimed with worry, “Is she gonna be okay? Blue? Blue, tell us what happened to our son.”

“It was dark. And I fought as hard as I could, but she took him.” Blue said as her voice cracked.

“Who? Who took him?” Belle asked.

“…The Black Fairy. Your mother.” she said weakly at Gold.

**OUaT**

Back in the Wish Realm, after using magic to give themselves suitable clothes for their travels, the two women had arrived at the Mystic Bayou. It was dark out, so all they could see were the fireflies occasionally lighting their butts and the stars shining through the threes as they drifted in their boat through the swamp. Thankfully, there were plenty of crickets, frogs and other critters to fill the air, as well.

“Storybrooke felt like a dream. Now this does.” Emma remarked as they followed Flamel’s hair down the bayou, “I mean, a good dream. But the person I was here just wasn’t me. The fighting and the pain, it’s what makes me me. I’m good with that. Even if it means my end. ‘Cause, you know, that other person kind of…sucked.”

“Yeah.” Regina trailed with an awkward smirk, “Singing Princess Emma isn’t my favorite model.”

“I didn’t sing…that you heard.” Emma awkwardly retorted, “Oh, god. Nicholas would’ve flipped if he ever saw me in that much pink. And he’d never let me live it down if he saw that version of me.”

“Well, you’ll be able to tell him all about it soon, cause we’re here.” Regina informed as the boat docked itself, “It should be around here somewhere.”

“Regina, I may not be a dainty little princess anymore, but I am not swimming in this disgusting swamp water unless it’s a matter of life and death.” Emma firmly informed.

“Relax, it’s leading us this way. Just keep your eyes peeled for anything that might kill us.” Regina replied as they walked through the swamp, “They say there’s a powerful voodoo witch in this swamp.”

“How powerful?” Emma asked as she followed her friend and swatted away mosquitos.

“Powerful enough that even Cora or Rumple never came here.” Regina replied.

“ _Emma._ ” a female voice whispered through the swamp, frightening the blonde who looked around in panic before catching up to her friend.

“I don’t like swamps, Regina! They’re disgusting, they stink, and they’re filled with mosquitos and alligators. I lived in New Orleans for a few months when I was a little kid. I went fishing on a school trip, fell in the water and almost got poisoned by a catfish! I do not want to be in this place any longer than we need to so can we please hurry?”

“No need. I found it.” Regina informed at the base of a tree. After using her magic to dig up the ground, they found a wooden box with the Flamel symbol burned on it. Sure enough, inside the box was a magic bean ready to be used. “Let’s go home.”

**OUaT**

“What have I become?” David asked as he looked down at his sleeping wife, “I wanted to execute the Evil Queen back in the Enchanted Forest, but it was Snow who convinced me to show mercy. What if I am just like my brother?”

“You’re not your brother, David. You just want to eliminate threats to the people you love. That’s not evil. That’s doing what needs to be done. As long as you don’t take pleasure in it, you won’t lose yourself like James did.” Nicholas assured, “Now go kiss your wife.”

“Should we be concerned about any more wishes causing trouble?” Ariel asked.

“Hope not. Jasmine took Aladdin and the lamp in her wish to find Agrabah. Personally, I’ve had enough of genies for one day. Hopefully, any other issues we get won’t be as bad.” Nicholas remarked. Over at the pawn shop, Belle and Rumple were discussing their own problems.

“Rumple. The Black Fairy! Your mother!” Belle exclaimed in panic.

“And need I remind you that you entrusted him to that gnat?” he asked.

“After what you did to me?!” Belle shot back.

“Belle, I swear, I did not dose you with that magic. I couldn’t.” he swore trying to be the calm one. Seeing that he was telling the truth, Belle realized the severity and consequences of their bickering.

“What have we done to each other? What have we done to our son?” she asked miserably.

“We have to work together before it’s too late. There are realms of dark magic beyond even my reach, where my mother would lurk in the shadow.” Rumple explained.

“Where has she taken him?” Belle asked.

“I don’t know.” Rumple said feeling just as broken, “But it’s a place of immense dark power. Time runs differently there. Nothing makes sense. Anything’s possible.”

“Rumple, what could happen to our so?” Belle asked in fear. Over at the loft, Leroy, Sawyer and Mina barged in.

“Big trouble, team. Big trouble!” Leroy barked as he carried the cage the queen was in.

“What the hell is that?” David asked.

“That is the Evil Queen.” Sawyer answered as the snake hiss in anger.

“She got what she deserved.” David muttered to himself.

“Who put her in there, Leroy?” Nicholas asked.

“A guy in a hood.” the dwarf replied.

“Emma’s vision.” David gasped.

“Did you see him?” Nicholas asked, “Did you see who was under that hood?”

“Yeah, just barely.” he nodded, “He…he looked a lot like Gold. Like a…younger version of him.”

“…Oh, shit.” Nicholas cursed as a thought popped into his head. At the pawn shop, the hooded figure came in to greet Belle and Rumple. Confirming Nicholas’ theory, and matching Leroy’s description, the man did indeed look like a younger version of Rumplestiltskin but with different eyes. Eyes that resembled Belle’s.

“Hello, Mother.” their son Gideon greeted darkly, “Hello, Father.”

**OUaT**

In the wish realm, Regina dropped the bean onto the ground and opened a portal to Storybrooke. However, just as they were about to jump in, an arrow sailed past their noses and imbedded itself into a tree.

“Not another step, ladies.” a voice neither woman had heard in months warned.

“No, it can’t be.” Regina exhaled in shock.

“This is a robbery.” Robin Hood, or rather the Wish Realm’s Robin Hood threatened with another arrow ready to fire.

“Regina?” Emma asked as her eyes darted back to the portal.

“Let’s go! Off with the jewelry!” he ordered.

“Remember what you said. He’s not real. He’s not real!” Emma reminded as the portal was beginning to close, “Regina, we’ve got to go!”

But it was too late. The portal created by the only bean in the cache closed and all they had left was the ghost of a thief they once knew aiming an arrow at them.

“Come on, now. Off with it. The jewelry, now!” Robin ordered.

“Robin, you don’t know me?” Regina asked.

“Enough talking. The jewels.” he demanded.

“It’s not him.” Emma stressed as she handed over the princess jewels she still had on.

“And the necklace, if you please, m’lady?” he said to Regina who complied. As soon as she did, the sound of strange, monstrous shrieks filled the air. “Dammit! Last thing I need right now.”

“What the hell was that?” Emma asked.

“Nothing anyone wants to be caught by.” Robin nervously joked as he looked around in fear as he ran away, “Best of luck, ladies. If the Shadow Snatchers don’t get you, we must do this again sometime!”

“…Did he say Shadow Snatchers?” Emma asked.

“Uh-huh.” Regina nodded.

“Why do I get the feeling those aren’t good?” Emma asked before numerous shadows in the shapes of monsters swarmed towards them.

“That’s why. Run!” Regina shouted. And run they did, but it wasn’t easy. The terrain and fauna of the Mystic Bayou made running difficult for anyone on two legs, and it didn’t help that the shadows were faster than anything else in that swamp. It didn’t take long, but one of them grabbed Emma by the ankle and proceeded to drag her away by her own shadow.

“Emma!” Regina cried. Just as she was about to hurl a fireball, another shadow snuck up and grabbed hers and dragged her away, too. Nothing they did worked. No spell seemed to be working on the mysterious creatures that pulled them across the water and scum.

But just when all hope seemed lost, blasts of yellow light came out of nowhere and destroyed the shadows. Much to Emma’s relief, and displeasure, the other shadows were gone, but she was soaking wet and sitting in the shallow end of the swamp with Regina. But before they could say anything, they saw another shadow approach them.

At first, it looked like a hunchbacked man wielding a club was coming towards them. But through the mist and moss, they saw it was something else. The laughter of an old woman joined the sound of crickets as a short, plump, dark-skinned woman wielding a glowing squash with a net wrapped around it like a club, in a white moo-moo and turban with large, gold earnings, a gold necklace and black sunglasses came into view.

“Heh-heh! Not bad for an eleven-hundred-ninety-seven-year-old blind lady!” she laughed as she twirled her strange gourd and blew out the magical light coming from it, “Now! Which one of you _naughty_ dearies been messing with ‘dem genie wishes?”

Despite their shock, Emma and Regina just stared in awe, confusion, and nervousness at the strange woman before pointing at each other while sitting in the water.


	92. Tougher Than the Rest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, LXG or Disney. All I do own are my own original plot lines and characters.

In the depths of the Mystic Bayou, the mystery woman was leading Emma and Regina to her home. The whole time they were sloshing through the mud and stepping over the fallen branches, the lady was laughing as if she was continuously being told a funny joke. As she led the younger women, Emma pulled Regina back for a moment to speak to her.

“Regina, I think I know who this lady is.” she whispered.

“Robin,” Regina muttered, still in shock.

“What?” Emma asked.

“He didn’t age. Everyone else here aged. How is that possible?” Regina asked.

“Nothing is real. He’s not real. This place was created by a wish.” Emma reminded, “Don’t get lost in it. When we get home, this’ll just be like a dream. But in the meantime, I think I know who that lady is.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. And if I’m right, I just might be in heap of trouble with Nicholas when we get home.” Emma nodded before speaking up, “Um, excuse me, Ma’am?”

“Yes?” she kindly asked as they kept walking.

“Are you…is your name, by any chance, Madam Odette?” Emma hesitantly asked before the old lady stopped dead in her tracks.

“…Hehe. Now there’s a name nobody’s called me in a long time. Chitlens just call me ‘Mama Odie,’ now. How’d y’all know that, child?” Mama Odie asked as she continued walking.

“Well, uh, Regina and I, we, uh, know quite a few people in the League.” Emma replied, “Her brother is Nicholas Flamel.”

“Who?” Mama Odie asked as they came to the base of her home; a wrecked shrimp boat lodged in the branches of a large tree.

“Um, the Immortal Alchemist?” Emma added, surprised that someone in the League did not know about her lover.

“Never heard of ‘em.” Mama Odie bluntly replied before shouting, “JUJU!”

Literally a second later, a greenish-yellow boa constrictor dropped from the branches right next to the blind voodoo lady, tickling her ear with its tongue.

“Aw, there you are, you bad boy!” she cooed as it affectionately cuddled up to her, “Give a little suga’, now. Mwah!” she said before repeatedly giving the snake sloppy kisses on its mouth, disgusting both the women watching.

But before either of them could say anything, the strange lady yanked on her pet like a bell rope before it yanked her into the tree and into the boat. Still befuddled at what was going on, Emma and Regina relented and used their magic to poof themselves into the boat with Mama Odie.

“As I was saying, he’s the fourth seat to Branch Quartermain-”

“Oh, y’all mean he’s with lil’ Al!” Mama Odie interrupted as she tossed her gourd away, breaking some of her clay pots in the process; not that she seemed to care, “Why didn’t y’all say so?”

“You don’t know my brother, but you,” Regina began as they followed her, only to pause when they saw a pair of jars suspiciously containing a pair of eyes and set of teeth; both of which the LXG founder was lacking. “But you know Quartermain?”

“Sure as sorghum is gonna stick on ya.” Mama Odie laughed as she plopped herself on a large, wicker chair and footrest, popping her toes as she clenched them, “Yesum, I was the one what found that boy and brought ‘em into the League.”

“Really?” Emma asked as she shared a look with her friend, “Well, anyway, Mama Odie, we are grateful for your help, but we really need to-”

“Y’all want some candy?” she kindly interrupted as she offered some old, hairy candy and other random items from her pocket; there was even a dead fly!

“Um, no-no, thank you.” Emma politely refused.

“Not really. No.” Regina said trying to be polite, even though it grossed her out.

“Well, that’s too bad. It’s a special candy. Would’ve given y’all the power to open up a portal.” Mama Odie lamented before popping the candy into her mouth.

“No, no, no, wait!” the two women panicked before the old woman started cackling.

“I’m just messing with y’all!” she teased.

“How did you know we’re trying to open a-” Emma began to ask, only to stop when the sound of Mama Odie’s snoring interrupted her. Sure enough, the two women saw the legendary woman hunched over asleep in the middle of her laughing.

“Um, Mama Odie?” Regina hesitantly asked as she barely touched the woman before she burst from her chair.

“Juju!” she exclaimed as she rushed over to a white basin bathtub over a heated grate like a large pot over a stove, “Why didn’t you tell me my gumbo was burning?!”

“I think I’m finally starting to understand the quirky dynamics behind every League agent we’ve met so far.” Regina remarked as they watched the old woman use her gourd to stir the gumbo.

“Can’t believe this!” Mama Odie moaned in worry, “Got to do everything around here.”

“Mama Odie, this is-” Emma said before the old woman shoved a wrinkly, gumbo-covered finger into her mouth.

“Taste this.” she ordered while Emma savored the flavor, “Well?”

“Uh, maybe a little bit of hot sauce?” she suggested.

“Juju!” Mama Odie barked in the opposite direction of where her pet was. Much to Emma and Regina’s surprise, the snake actually added the hot sauce for his mama before she tasted it. Obviously pleased with the taste, the founder of the LXG hollered in delight.

“Oooh! That’s got some ZING to it! That’s just what it needed. Now, y’all figured out what you need?” she asked.

“We need a way to go home!” Regina shouted in frustration, “So instead of interrupting us and wasting our time with your tub of goulash, how’s about you-”

Not caring much for the mayor’s attitude, Mama Odie tapped her on the head with her magic gourd and turned her into a dog, then a pig, a cow, a goat, then back to normal. This, of course, was plenty enough to shut Regina up. All Emma could do was look at the rapid transformations in shock and consider herself glad she was smart enough not to mouth off to one of the first people to be Extraordinary like her boyfriend. Plus, Emma Swan knew something Regina did not; never insult a southern woman’s cooking, especially when you are a guest in her own home. It just might be the last thing you ever do.

“Child, you are much too young, inexperienced, and downright greener than goat poop to make demands of me in my own home. I trust you won’t be foolish enough to run your mouth off like that again? Otherwise, I just might turn you into something I could easily step on on accident; I am blind, you know.”

“I’m sorry.” Regina whimpered.

“Mhmm. I bet you are.” Mama Odie noted.

“Mama Odie?” Emma cautiously asked, “We do need a portal. This realm was made from a wish by the Evil Queen. She’s been tormenting our town in her pursuit of revenge. We need to get back and stop her once and for all.”

“I admire your bravery, Young Savior. But what are you gonna do once you get there? You have a plan?” Mama Odie asked, seemingly dropping her playful nature and acting like the Extraordinary Gentleman she was.

“This.” Emma replied as she held the sword.

“This what? Child, I just said I am blind. These glasses ain’t a fashion statement.” Mama Odie dryly reminded.

“Oh, sorry. This sword.” Emma clarified as she passed it to the founder.

“Ah, yes. I know this blade. Its last owner made quite a name for himself when he wielded it. It’s fairy made. Hrunting, I recall. It cuts through just about anything. Yes, that should do the trick. That’ll put an end to that abomination.”

“I don’t think I’d go that far.” Regina muttered.

“Child, that lookalike of yours is an unnatural being. You should never have split yourself from her.” Mama Odie scolded as she jammed her gourd into Regina’s stomach, “You violated so many of the divine laws of nature when you done that. If I weren’t retired, I would be within the rights of all my occupations to obliterate you from existence; or at least bend you over my knee and give you the paddlin’ your mama should’ve gave you a long time ago.”

“Is there any way for us to get back to Storybrooke?” Emma asked as she stepped in between them.

“Hmm, there is one way.” Mama Odie replied before stirring the gumbo to show the women images of the past and present, “Since the giants we’re wiped out, poor dearies, there’s not been any way to grow magic beans in realms not occupied by the League. And since your wishy-boy Henry found out what done happened to his wishy-grandmama and grandpapi, that boy’s having all the knights in the kingdom looking for y’all. You got no beans, but you do have trees.”

“Trees?” Emma asked.

“Of course. The wardrobe!” Regina realized as the gumbo showed the magic tree Geppetto used to make the wardrobe used to send Emma away as a baby.

“Nope. No wardrobe. Just the tree. For right now.” Mama Odie corrected, “Y’all gonna have to find a way to get that tree made into a portal home. Otherwise, y’all gonna be stuck here. And with as crazy as it’s getting’, I ain’t staying neither.”

“Wait, what do you mean?” Emma asked as the old woman waddled back to her throne.

“Dearie, there’s only one Mystic Bayou just like there’s only one Mama Odie. I ain’t from this realm, like y’all think I am.” Mama Odie clarified, “I felt this place get made, so I decided to hitch a ride over and see what the fuss was. Y’all pretty lucky I did, too. Otherwise, y’all might’ve been somewhere else, heheh!”

“So, all we need to do is find Geppetto and convince him to make the wardrobe again; for the first time.” Regina said.

“Yeah.” Emma nodded before her hopeful smile dropped, “Except in this reality, Marco died of old age a few years before Henry was born.”

“Well, that’s just perfect.” Regina sarcastically spat with a fake smile.

“But Pinocchio’s still alive. And I know for a fact he stuck around to learn and work with his father.” Emma added, regaining her grin.

“Great! Let’s go find him.” Regina said ready to leave.

“Wait!” Emma interjected before hesitantly looking back at Mama Odie as she had Juju prop her feet up, “Mama Odie, we really appreciate everything you’ve done for us.”

“Aw, now, don’t fret yourself, suga. I wasn’t gonna let y’all run around all lost and such.” Mama Odie waved off with a grandmotherly smile.

“Even so, thank you. But before we go, there’s something I have to ask you. Something that might just save my life.” Emma said looking nervous.

“Fire away, sweetheart.”

“Do you…” Emma hesitated as she took a deep breath and clenched her hands, “Do you know anything about a beast, or creature made of purple fire?”

“Emma,” Regina intervened in concern.

“She’s a founder of the League. If she doesn’t know, who else would?” Emma defended before looking back to the puzzled founder.

“A creature made of purple fire?” Mama Odie pondered as she rubbed her flabby chin and looked up at the ceiling; despite being visually impaired. “Oh! Y’all talking about Algmata Tier! Yeah, I know it.”

“Algma-Almaga-” Emma struggled.

“Algmata Tier.” Mama Odie slowly repeated. Finally, after months of worrying and curiosity, they had a name to the mysterious creature from her vision.

“Okay. What is it?” Emma asked.

“It’s a nature spirit. And a powerful one, too. _Very_ powerful.” Mama Odie replied almost in a warning tone, “Think of all the force and energy behind the most fearsome natural disasters you can think of, and that is what Algmata Tier represents. It’s the destructive aspect of nature given form.”

“So, I’ve been seeing an evil monster of destruction in my visions charge at me to probably kill me. Great.” Emma sarcastically sweated.

“I didn’t say it was evil. Or a monster.” Mama Odie corrected.

“But you said-” Regina argued.

“I said, it’s the destructive _aspect_ of nature.” she repeated, “Children, destruction is part of nature. It’s just as important and necessary as creation. Sometimes, it comes in large doses like a hurricane, or a wildfire. But it’s part of nature, and thus brings about creation to fill the vacancy it left behind. It’s the equivalent to death. But that don’t make it evil. That being said, the poor thing was hunted for years by people who wanted to use that power for evil things.”

“Was? What happened to it?”

“Well, y’all should know. Y’all done told me y’all met ‘em, already.” Mama Odie replied.

“What?” Emma asked.

“All due respect, Mama Odie,” Regina said more courteously than last time she spoke to the Voodoo Queen, “We didn’t know what this thing was until you just told us. We don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“But y’all said y’all knew ‘em.” Mama Odie said as she tilted her head, finding their words strange.

“When?” Regina asked.

“When y’all got here.” she responded.

“…I’m lost.” Regina said shaking her head in confusion, “We only said we knew my brother, Nicholas Flamel. And then you said you had never heard of him.”

“Oh!” Mama Odie said in realization, “I get it, now. You’ll find out soon enough.”

“Find out what?” Regina asked.

“Never mind. Now run along and go get that wardrobe of yours built.” Mama Odie dismissed with a few flicks of her hand. Once outside and back on the ground, the two friends mulled over this new information in confusion.

“I don’t get it. We know this thing?” Emma asked rhetorically.

“That’s impossible. Surely we would have seen something as deadly as that running around town at some point.” Regina remarked.

“Don’t call me Shirley.” Emma instantly remarked before realizing what she just said, “Sorry, sorry. That came out before I could stop it. Nicholas and I watched ‘Airplane’ on our last date-night.”

“Of course you did.” Regina sighed before they poofed themselves to their destination.

**OUaT**

Hustling down Main Street, Nicholas and David were keeping their eyes peeled for any sign of the hooded figure. Unfortunately, they were not having much luck.

“Come on. We gotta find this guy before Emma gets back. The only way she’s gonna see that hooded figure is behind bars. Or at his funeral.” David said.

“Easy, David. You’re running on steam as it is. I thought the plan was to get some sleep, kiss Snow and recharge?” Nicholas asked.

“Yeah, well, plans changed now that this guy’s in town. He changed the queen into a snake. He’s powerful, and he wants to kill my daughter. I’m not gonna let that happen. I’m gonna find this guy.”

“And then what?” Nicholas asked as he pulled the co-sheriff to a stop, “David, all those reasons you just listed are why you shouldn’t be rushing into things like you are right now. No offense, and I legitimately mean this, but your only skill is fighting with a sword. Let me and the rest of the team find him and take care of him. We stand a much better chance than you do.”

“But this is my fault.” David interjected, “The wish I made, to give the Evil Queen what she deserves. It brought him here. It’s on me. Now, I am not gonna wake Snow until I fix this. If you’re not with me-”

“I’m with you.” Nicholas replied, “I just hope you know what you’re doing.”

“You and me both.” David nodded before they continued their search. As they did, Gideon, the man in question, was having his first conversation with his parents.

“H-how?” Gold asked, completely stunned, “How is this even possible? How are you here? How are you grown?”

“I’ve lived a full twenty-eight years.” Gideon darkly explained, “I was in a place where time moved differently, where the Black Fairy raised me.”

“Did she harm you?” he asked his son.

“Depends what you mean.” Gideon responded as he thought of his childhood, “She toughened me up.”

“What did she do to you?” Belle asked in concern.

“She did many things, trying to make me evil, but she failed. Because in all those dark years, I always remembered you, Mother. I tried to follow your example.” Gideon explained.

“So, you’re not here to kill the Savior?” Gold asked.

“No, of course I am.” his son coldly acknowledged, “And once she’s dead, I will gain her power. I will be the Savior.”

“Why would you want to do that?” Gold asked.

“Because there is another land in need of a Savior now. I want to finally free it from the cruel reign of the Black Fairy. And I will need her power in order to stand a chance against something far more powerful afterwards. Once I have the Savior’s power, I will bring it to heel.”

“Defeating the Savior won’t be as easy as you think.” Gold warned.

“I’ve seen it in a vision. I’ve seen her death at my hand. And when I kill Emma Swan, the beast I am searching for will emerge. And then, I will fulfill my destiny.” Gideon declared before poofing away in a cloud of orange smoke.

**OUaT**

After finding their way to the little cottage, Emma and Regina peered through the trees to see the face of August selling wooden puppets to a pair of happy children.

“Alright, let’s go.” Regina said as she was ready to approach the former puppet, only to be stopped by the former pathetic princess.

“No, no, no. Stay back. You heard what Mama Odie said, the whole kingdom wants your head on a spike. You’ll just be a liability. Stay here.” Emma instructed before heading over to see her old friend, “Hey there, Pinocchio.”

“Princess Emma.” the older version of the puppet-turned-boy jumped in surprise before hugging her tightly, “I-I’d heard terrible rumors you were captured by the Evil Queen and her brother. I cannot tell you how relieved I am to see you.”

“Ooh, Nicholas would be so mad if he saw this.” Regina thought in amusement at the image of her brother seething in anger and jealousy.

“What are you doing here? What happened?” Pinocchio asked with worry.

Feeling that she could trust him, Emma told Pinocchio everything. About what happened at the castle, the wish, even Storybrooke. To further convince him, she brought Regina inside his cottage to back her story.

“I know this sounds crazy.” Emma admitted.

“Long ago, I desperately wanted to become a real boy. And it only took one person, my father, believing in me to make it so. I believe in you, Emma.” Pinocchio said sincerely.

“Thank you.” Emma exhaled in relief.

“You’re welcome. So, why me?” he asked them, “What can a simple wood carver do for you?”

“Carve wood and get us home.” Emma answered, “Your father once made a magical wardrobe. It took me between realms. I was hoping you might still have that wardrobe.”

“I remember the one you speak about. But I dismantled it years ago. It reminded me of darker times. No offense.” he said offhand to Regina.

“None taken. This world became oh-so-much better after I was gone.” she dryly remarked.

“Maybe I _can_ help. I know the enchanted grove where my father found the wood for the original wardrobe. Perhaps we can replicate his work. I kept his tools.”

“Regina, what do you think?” Emma asked only to see her friend had left the room and a note explaining why.

“Do what you must to get home with Pinocchio. I know you will succeed. But I can’t come back until I have a question answered. I know Robin isn’t real here, but I need to know if, like everything else in this realm, is he better off without me?”

Hoping to find the alternate version of her soulmate in the same place she first saw him, Regina traveled to the same town, to the same tavern where Tinker Bell first showed her Robin, so many years ago. When she saw his tattoo, she blindly barged in to meet him, only to be recognized by one of the patrons.

“The Evil Queen!” they cried as they scampered out the doors and windows like frightened mice. The only one not running, or even fazed was Robin who just sat there and continued his drink.

“Is it too much to hope you’re here to buy me a drink?” he asked as she joined him, “So, you’re the Evil Queen. I presume you’re here to take back the necklace I stole.”

“Um, actually, no.” Regina nervously replied, “I’m here to talk to you.”

“One doesn’t usually come to a tavern for talking.” Robin joked.

“Are you happy?” she asked, coming straight to the point.

“You’re a strange one.” he scoffed in amusement.

“Are you?” she asked again.

“As a matter of fact, my life’s great. I have work that I adore, I answer to no man, and I sleep under the stars. Who could ask for more?” Robin replied.

“…So, you were better off.” Regina sadly said to herself.

“Pardon?” Robin asked.

“Thanks for telling me.” she said as she got up before any tears could fall.

“Wait, what’s this about?” Robin asked in confusion as he got up, “Why would you care about my happiness? You can tell me.”

“There!” a newcomer shouted as black-clad men entered the tavern and quickly placed a magic-binding cuff on Regina’s wrist.

“Nottingham.” Robin noted, “Always good to see you.”

“Well, the pleasure is all mine.” the dastardly sheriff quipped as he held a blade at the thief’s throat, “At last, the most wanted man in all the land is as he should be; mine. And I see that we have a little bonus. Oh, I’m sorry, milady, but here in Sherwood Forest, we’re prepared for the likes of you. Off with them!”

Back with Emma and Pinocchio, they had made their way to the enchanted grove in search of another tree they could use.

“Is your friend gonna be okay?” Pinocchio asked in concern.

“Regina can take care of herself. We just need to do our part.” Emma assured.

“Speaking of which, here we are.” he said as the came to the tree.

“It’s beautiful.”

“It survived the Evil Queen’s reign. It’s magic flourished.”

“And this will get us home?” Emma asked.

“We’ll see. Ordinary tools are no good on enchanted wood. Luckily, my father’s chisel is exactly what we need. It was special to him. I just hope I can live up to him. He said a true woodcarver must always be in conversation with his tool and his materials.” Pinocchio explained as Emma looked to the sword she had been lugging around, “A sword, Princess? The Emma I knew was far more interested in fancy dresses and high tea.”

“Where I come from, I’m not a princess. I’m…a Savior.” Emma corrected.

“Interesting jobs in your world.” he remarked.

“Yeah.” Emma scoffed, “I spend a lot more time around guns and swords than dresses and tea. Although, there are some people I know with a much more stressful job than I have.”

“What exactly does a Savior do?” he asked.

“A lot of things. I protect people. That’s the gist of it, I guess.”

“So why so glum? Seems like a good thing.”

“Because the job comes with a destiny. I’m supposed to protect my home and family, but I die doing it. Then a beast of destruction shows up and destroys everything. This sword I’m holding, this is what will finish me. As soon as it pierces me, that monster will undo everything I’ve done.”

“Wow.” he said, “I have to say, if I were in your shoes, I don’t know if I could be brave enough to keep going. I probably would look for a way out. But something tells me you aren’t running away from this. Am I right?”

“I thought about it. Believe me, I did. But then I remembered who I was, what it is I’m meant to do. Even if it means my death, I’m going to do my part to save the people I love.” Emma firmly swore.

“Well then, _Savior_ , allow me to do _my_ part.” Pinocchio kindly smiled before taking his chisel and scrapping off a piece of the enchanted bark.

**OUaT**

Sitting by himself by Storybrooke’s pond, the black-clad, would-be-Savior was brooding in silence as tried to think of a plan to kill Emma. As he did, his estranged father approached from behind.

“Lonely here, isn’t it?” Rumple asked trying to break the ice.

“If you’re here to talk me off my path, you can’t. This is my fate.” Gideon coldly dismissed.

“Well, fate’s a tricky business. It still requires work. And planning.” Rumple lectured in his usual dark tone. Gideon, however, did not appreciate his condescension.

“I see what this is. You don’t think I’m strong enough.” he accused before attempting to storm off, only to be firmly stopped by his father.

“Don’t walk away from your father.” Rumple warned as he pushed his son back to his original spot, “You’ve been alive twenty-eight years? I’ve been alive hundreds. There are things a man learns.”

“…Take your hand off me.” Gideon demanded. Rumple did no such thing.

“You know, I waited years for a moment like this; when I could finally tell my own father that I was better than him, stronger than him, so you go ahead. You show me.” he challenged.

“You think you know all about me. You have no idea.” Gideon shot back through his teeth.

“I know your childhood was full of pain, just like mine. You want someone to pay for that? Make me pay. It is my fault, after all, is it not? I let the Black Fairy take you. I couldn’t protect you. So you go ahead. Do it. Hit me.” Rumple taunted before slapping his son’s face to fire him up, “Hit me.”

Wanting to give into his desires, Gideon channeled his magic into his fist, ready to take a swing at his old man.

“Hit me!” Rumple shouted, “If you can’t hit me, how do you expect to kill the Savior? Huh? How do you expect to get past her allies, those Extraordinary Gentlemen that will not hesitate to kill you if you go anywhere near her? I can help you, son.”

“I don’t need your help.” Gideon hissed before poofing away.

**OUaT**

Back in the wish realm, Regina and that realm’s Robin were thrown into a prison cart while Nottingham had his men watch them while he took a piss. Obviously, it wasn’t the outcome Regina was hoping for when she decided to confront the alternate version of her late soulmate.

“I am so sorry about all this.” she said to the thief, “I never meant for you to get hurt.”

“Yes, well, then you failed with flying colors.” he snapped bitterly, “Now I’m going to die for nothing, having accomplished nothing.”

“Not true. You’re Robin Hood.” Regina defended, “Think of all the people you’ve helped.”

“Robin Hood?” he asked, clearly baffled, “No, I am Robin of Locksley, and I’m a thief.”

“A thief who steals from the rich and gives to the poor.” Regina added.

“Gives to the poor? Why the hell would I do that?” he asked even more baffled.

“Wait. So you’re telling me you’re just a common thief?” Regina asked.

“I am not a ‘common’ anything. I steal from the rich to make myself rich.” Robin corrected defensively.

“And that makes you happy?” she asked, “No, I don’t believe it. It must be Marian.”

“What do you know of Marian?” Robin asked.

“Your wife.”

“No. She was never my wife. She died before we could marry.” he somberly replied.

“I’m so sorry. So, there’s no one?” she asked.

“No. Never.” he said curtly.

“And even so, your life, it makes you happy?”

“…That’s not exactly what I said. That’s what _you_ said.” Robin clarified, “If you want the truth, Your Majesty, I haven’t been happy for a very long time.”

“You never had love.” Regina said understanding his pain. However, the sounds of terrified screaming in the distance gained the pair’s attention.

“What was that?” Robin asked as the horses started acting afraid before running off without their riders.

“Please!” Nottingham pleaded as he startled them when he grabbed the cage in desperation, “Help me!”

Before either of them could react, a large hand made from the ground erupted behind him, tightly clutched him and threw him high into the air, resulting in falling to his death against the ground he would land on.

“I think I know who did that. And he is _not_ on our side.” Regina said in panic.

“How right you are.” Flamel said in his raspy voice as he limped over to them with his weapon in hand, “You know, after all those years locked up, it’s certainly nice to stretch one’s legs again. And kill a few people here and there along the way.”

“I’m sorry. Who is this?” Robin asked, slightly afraid.

“A twisted, darker version of my little brother.” Regina gulped.

“I’m shocked that you would think I wouldn’t come looking for you, sister dear.” he grinned maliciously as he paced in front of the cage, “It didn’t take long for me to get free, and when I did, I made my way to the Mystic Bayou. But, lo and behold, when I arrived, I found my cache dug up, and my bean missing. So, where is it?”

“…I wasted it.” Regina admitted, seeing no point in lying.

“You-you wasted-” Flamel struggled to say past his anger and he pressed his fist to his mouth and let out an aggravated sigh, “You wasted, quite possibly the last bean in this entire realm? Oh, Regina. Even after all these years, you are still such an idiot. Is that why you got yourself arrested and thrown in a cart with…whoever the hell this is?”

“Leave him out of this. He’s done nothing to you.” Regina snapped.

“Maybe not. But I am very angry right now and could use someone to take my rage out on.” he shrugged, “By the way, where’s the princess? Send her back home with her parents’ heads?”

“Like I would tell you.” Regina scoffed.

“…No, you wouldn’t. At least not without a little incentive.” Flamel acknowledged, “But since you aren’t parading around like the Evil Queen anymore, I take it you either succeeded or failed in waking her up. I’m guessing it’s the former. You split up after wasting my bean, and then…oh, I get it. You found another way to open a portal, didn’t you? Don’t deny it. I can see it all over your face.”

“Of course you can.” Regina sighed in annoyance, “Well, it doesn’t matter. Emma’s awake and the portal will be ready soon. I succeeded in what I set out to do. And you, little brother, won’t be seeing Storybrooke anytime soon.”

“Is that so?” he smiled as though he had won and not Regina, “Because, based on what you just said, I’ve still got time to find your Savior and hitch a ride on her portal.”

“You don’t even know where to look. Or even what kind of portal it is.” Regina retorted.

“True. But you do. And you’re going to take me there. Now.” Flamel replied.

“And why the hell would I do a stupid thing like that?” she scoffed.

“Because if you don’t, he dies.” Flamel grinned as he pointed his pale, scarred finger at Robin.

Before either of them could say anything, Robin jolted as he felt something slither up his shirt and down his left sleeve. Swiftly pulling up his sleeve, Robin looked in fear at the small, white snake tightly wrapped around his wrist, ready to inject its venom into his vein.

“What the hell is this?!” Robin panicked.

“Just a little incentive for my big sister.” the former immortal smirked, “You didn’t really think alchemy was all I had to offer, did you, Regina?”

“So, what? I don’t lead you to Emma and the portal and you tell your little friend to bite Robin?” she snapped.

“I guess even you have your moments.” he mocked, “That’s exactly right. And it’s a painful death. That little one’s venom puts the venom you used on Leopold to shame. So then, shall we be off?”

**OUaT**

Having found no trace of Gideon at all, David decided to take on Nicholas’ advice and call in the team for help. Skinner, Sawyer and Mina came over to the loft to look over the spots David and Nicholas checked the previous night. Nemo, Gilles and Jekyll were keeping watch on the scanners for any more portal activity, while Quartermain was off doing his own thing. Naturally, Killian and Ariel came over to help, as well. In the meantime, David was looking down at his slumbering wife with guilt.

“I’m sorry. I can’t wake you.” he softly said to her, “Not until I find the person who wants to harm our daughter. And, Snow, I promise you, I will find him and I will stop him and bring Emma home where she belongs, and we can fix this…all of this.”

Sealing his promise with a kiss to her forehead, David steeled himself and joined the others in the kitchen. As he did, Killian answered his phone while his wife addressed the acting sheriff.

“We still haven’t found where the Evil Queen’s wish sent Emma and Regina.” Ariel said, “And I’ve swam to every realm with an ocean in search of any sign of either of them. All the sea creatures in each of them said the same thing: no one matching either of their descriptions were there.”

“Well, wherever they are, Nemo and the others will be able to pinpoint their previous location as soon as they get back.” Skinner added.

“The dwarves have searched the entire northern woods. There’s no sign of our guy, or anyone else for that matter.” the pirate informed after he hung up.

“Well, he couldn’t have just vanished. We must have missed something.”

“This would be so much easier if we knew who the hell this guy is.” Nicholas hissed in frustration.

“His name’s Gideon.” Belle said as she made her presence known, “He’s my son.”

“Your son is an infant.” Killian remarked as they all looked at her as if she had antlers.

“He was. Then he grew up in another realm, without his parents, and that experience affected him.” Belle explained.

“Affected him?” David asked, “He’s trying to kill Emma.”

“And as far as we know, him doing that is going to unleash some kind of monster on the town.” Nicholas threw in.

“I-I know. Look, it’s not his fault, okay?” Belle defended, “He’s confused and Rumple’s out there looking for him right now.”

“To stop him or help him out?” Sawyer asked.

“…I don’t know.” she confessed, “But I do know that I can stop him. If I can just talk to him, reason with him, as his mother.”

“His mother?” Nicholas asked, “Belle, if I understand this correctly, he doesn’t even know you. Your basing this on…what? Your maternal instincts?”

“I don’t know, Belle. If he’s really planning to kill Emma-” David began.

“We will stop him.” Nicholas finished.

“But that doesn’t mean he has to be hurt.” Belle reasoned, “Neither one of our children needs to be harmed. Look, David, I came to you for help because I trust you. Can you trust me?”

“…Let’s just find him.” David replied, “The sooner we do, the better. Then take your shot, but if it doesn’t work.”

“Thank you.” she said. Off to the side, the four agents muttered to themselves.

“You going to kill him?” Mina softly asked Nicholas so that Belle could not hear.

“Only if I have to.” he replied.

**OUaT**

As Flamel was hauling Regina and Robin to their destination, Pinocchio was putting the final touches on the wardrobe. To save time and effort, the wood carver did not uproot the tree or saw off its branches. Instead, he simply hallowed it out and made the doors. In Emma’s opinion, it looked better this way than the rushed job she once saw in the ruins of her parents’ old castle.

“There!” he exhaled with a smile, “Finished.”

“I gotta hand it to you, Pinocchio, you’re a chip of the old block. Your father would be proud.” Emma praised.

“Well, it’s a little rough around the edges, but I think it’ll do.” he said bashfully.

“Oh, yes! It’ll do just fine.” Flamel hollered at them from behind.

Swiftly turning around, Emma gasped at what she saw. With his executioner’s blade pressing against Regina’s back, the Mortal Alchemist urged her and Robin to walk forward with their hands raised.

“Regina?” Emma asked.

“Sorry, Emma.” her friend sighed.

“No, don’t be sorry. It’s what brought us all together again!” Flamel mocked from behind her, “So, this is my portal, huh? I’ve seen better.”

“Okay, that was uncalled for.” Pinocchio muttered.

“What do you want?” Emma asked causing the scarred man to laugh.

“Is everyone from your realm so stupid?” he asked, “I want MY STONE! And this shoddy piece of craftsmanship, is going to get me one step closer to getting my immortality back.”

“That’s it?” Emma scoffed, “You just want to be immortal, again?”

“I want what’s rightfully mine!” he hissed.

“You’re not even real!” Emma shouted back, “The real Nicholas would never needlessly murder people without reason. And he wouldn’t be threatening to kill his own sister over his stone, either.”

“Well, I guess that Nicholas hasn’t learned the truth, yet.” Flamel retorted with an insane smile, “Right, sister dear? You haven’t told him, have you?”

“…I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Regina denied.

“Ha! You haven’t told him! You’re still playing him for a fool! Just like you did me!” Flamel shouted, “No matter. I’ll be sure to tell him after I’ve ripped the Philosopher’s Stone out from his chest cavity. That’ll be a nice little parting gift from me to _me_. Now, if you could be so kind as to get out of my way, Princess, I have an appointment with my other self.”

“No,” Emma denied as she unsheathed her sword, “You won’t.”

Snarling into action, Flamel pushed his captives aside as he charged towards the blonde Savior. Obviously, this version was not nearly as fast or strong as the other Nicholas, but his skills were still honed enough to keep Emma on her toes. As the fight went on, Regina hurried over to Pinocchio’s tools and used his chisel to take off her cuff. Once she did, she got rid of Robin’s snake and summoned a fireball, ready to throw it at the unfortunate alchemist.

“What are you waiting for?” Robin asked, “Kill him!”

“I can’t.” Regina confessed.

“Well, I can.” he spat as he quickly drew an arrow and sent it flying into Flamel’s shoulder.

“Gah!” the alchemist cried out as he dropped his weapon. Emma looked down at her lover’s lookalike in shock. Out of instinct, she was about to check if he was seriously injured. But then, two more arrows impaled him; one in the leg, the other through his knee, leaving him immobile on the ground in pain.

“There.” Robin sighed in satisfaction, “They won’t kill him, but he’s not going to keep fighting anytime soon. Best you ladies get out of here now, just in case.”

“Thank you.” Regina said sincerely.

“No, thank you. This turned out to be quite the little adventure.” Robin replied before pulling out a feather from his arrow, “Here, take this. So a piece of Robin is with you always. I may not be this other Robin you were so found of, but at least you have something to remember us by.”

“…When Robin, my Robin died, there was a feather that got lost on its way to me from him. But despite everything, I chose to believe and hope that he was in a good place. I think, somehow…he lives in you.”

“Regina, why don’t you bring him?” Emma asked.

“He’s not real.” Regina reminded as Robin kept another arrow ready for Flamel, “Emma, you said it yourself. This place was created by a wish. How could a wish become real?”

“Maybe it can.” she reasoned, “The feather. Robin’s soul had to go somewhere. Maybe that’s why he hasn’t aged, why he’s different. If you believe any part of him is in there, why walk away?”

“Because, Emma, it’s me. And I’m afraid at tempting fate.”

“No.” Emma denied, “We make our own fate. I did it, and now it’s your turn.”

“I’m in.” Robin said as he rejoined them.

“You are?” Regina asked, “It might not work.”

“Then again, it might.”

“You’d take the risk?” she asked as Pinocchio open the portal.

“Agh, you people are so pathetic!” Flamel groaned in pain from the ground.

“Fancy another one, mate?” Robin asked as he cocked back his bow.

“No, wait, don’t.” Regina pleaded as she stopped him, “He’s down. He’s not going to hurt us.”

“Oh, but how I want to.” he said in pain, “After what you did to me, all I want is to make you suffer as I did before killing you.”

“Regina, what is he talking about?” Emma asked.

“It’s her fault, you know. It’s because of her that I’m like this.” Flamel said.

“It wasn’t her that failed to cast the curse. That Regina doesn’t even exist.” Emma defended.

“Emma,” Regina tried to interrupt.

“I’m not talking about that.” he groaned, “It’s because of her, what she did to me all those years ago, that I became Nicholas Flamel. Go on, Regina, tell her the truth. Tell her how you ruined my life. Tell her what happened that day when we were children. How it was your fault I became this monstrosity. How you-gah!”

Gasping in horror, Emma saw Regina use her magic to send Robin’s arrow into Flamel’s thigh, in an attempt to keep him from spilling the truth.

“Get through the portal, now!” Regina ordered as she tried to push the two through the veil of magic. However, Flamel was not down just yet.

“You pushed me, Regina!” he shouted causing her to stop dead in her tracks, “You pushed me down that hill! You’re the reason I became a slave! You ruined my life! And there is nothing you can do to rid yourself of that! Nothing will ever wipe your hands clean of Abba’s blood! You hear me?! Nothing!”

“Go!” Regina urged as she pushed them through the portal, leaving the shell of her brother behind.

Once they made it through, with Emma back in the clothes she was wearing before being wished away, she looked at her friend with her mouth agape in horror.

“It was you?” she asked as Regina refused to make eye contact, “You pushed him?”

“N-no, it wasn’t like that at all.” Regina denied, “We-we were playing.”

**OUaT**

“You can’t catch me!” eight-year-old Regina said playfully to her little brother.

“No fair! Gina, wait for me!” Abba yelled back as they ran into the nearby woods.

Since Regina was older and stronger than her four-year-old brother, she was able to hide and climb much better than he could. Not caring that her dress was getting dirty or torn from the branches, young Regina sat on a sturdy branch just above her unsuspecting little brother. Her plan was to jump down and surprise him, a game they both enjoyed playing. However, when she did, what happened next never crossed her mind.

As soon as she jumped down behind him, the action startled little Abba so much, he swung his body around to see what made the noise, only for his foot to get caught on an arched tree root. This caused the boy to lose his balance and tumble backwards and roll down the steep hill they were playing near. Unbeknownst to either sibling, it would be the last game they would ever play together and they would not see each other for ten years.

**OUaT**

“Regina,” Emma gasped after her friend finished telling the truth.

“He can _never_ know.” Regina stressed as tears of shame threatened to spill from her eyes. Despite the tension that had been going on between them lately, Regina could not bring herself to hate her brother. Especially since it was because of her his life had turned out as it had.

“All these years, after _everything_ …why haven’t you told him?” Emma asked.

“Because I’m terrified of him.” Regina confessed as the tears finally spilled, “Ever since he killed Tucker and Nina, I have been terrified of that side of him. I’m the cause of all his suffering. All the pain he’s endured, all the loss he’s faced. It’s because of _me_! The moment he learns the truth behind it all, it just might be what finally sends him over the edge and causes him to do the one thing everyone fears that he will do; destroy the word and everything in it. You cannot tell him, Emma. He must never know. As far as both of you are concerned, he tripped and fell purely by accident.”

“Wow!” Robin exclaimed after he erupted from a tree, “Talk about making an entrance. So, where exactly are we?”

Over at the mansion, in the surveillance room, the members of Nemo’s crew immediately noticed the three portal signatures.

“Captain!” one shouted to Nemo, “We’ve picked up portal activity.”

“Finally.” Nemo sighed in relief, “Where?”

“They appear to have opened near the cliff area of the woods, sir.” the sailor responded.

“Good. Send a retrieval party to pick them up and-wait. Did you say they? How many were there?” Nemo asked.

“Three, Captain.”

“Who is the third?” Nemo asked himself before shaking his head, “Contact the others and alert them of this activity. We may yet have another uninvited guest roaming this town.”

In the dark of the night on Main Street, Emma was taking in the brisk weather of her town as she walked the road, sword in hand. As she did, her vision of the sword fight flashed through her mind.

“Savior.” Gideon greeted from behind with his hood raised, “I’ve been waiting.”

“Who are you?” she asked.

“My name is Gideon.” he replied with a dark smile.

“I only know one Gideon. He looks a lot younger than you do. What do you want?” she asked.

Instead of using words, Gideon summoned a sword of his own and swung it at the Savior’s neck. Since her own weapon was already drawn, she was able to save herself and parry his strikes, despite how fast and strong they were. He quickly kicked her to the ground and managed to take her sword with a quick twirl of his own. So she would not do the same, he dismissed his original blade and prepared his final strike. As he did, everyone Emma knew and loved ran towards them while Belle and Rumple rushed to their son.

“Mom!” Henry yelled.

“Emma!” Nicholas shouted as the other caught up.

“Stay back!” she warned them.

“Gideon! Wait!” Rumple called to his son.

“You don’t have to do this.” Belle stressed.

“It’s okay. I’m not gonna let him hurt anyone.” Emma assured before Gideon used his magic to freeze them all in place.

“I’m not going to hurt them; just you.” Gideon corrected darkly as Emma’s hand began to shake, “Ready to die, Savior?”

“I am fated to die, and I will die.” Emma admitted before she willed her magic to return, “But not today!”

With a powerful blast of magic, Emma sent Gideon flying yards back. As he laid on his back, Emma grabbed the sword and pressed it against his neck, ready to eliminate the threat against her life and home.

“I’m still going to kill you.” Gideon promised.

“Please.” Rumple begged as he and Emma locked eyes, “He’s my son.”

“Like Neal.” she thought as she hesitated.

“I don’t need your help!” Gideon shouted as he kicked Emma off and grabbed the sword from her.

As she laid on the ground, Gideon raised the blade, ready to fulfill his destiny and kill her, but before he could, the unexpected happened. Similar to what Emma saw when she met Sweeny Todd in Shamballa, a bullet of purple energy shot over her and shattered the sword on impact.

“That was just like…” Emma thought before jerking her head back to see where the energy could have come from. Based on its angle, she deduced it came from the clock tower. She looked back, ready to continue the fight, but Gideon did not look as ready.

Rather than looking furious, or malicious, as he had been during his entire time in Storybrooke, the son of the Dark One looked giddy. Like what just happened was the best thing he could have asked for. Even with the sword reduced to shards of enchanted steel, he was so happy, it was downright frightening.

“It’s here.” Emma heard him whisper as he madly smiled at the hand that once held the sword before looking at the clock tower, “It’s here!”

Not saying another word, the mysterious man poofed away in a cloud of orange smoke, leaving Emma confused on so many levels. Once he was gone, his spell was released and everyone was freed.

“Mom! You did it!” Henry cheered as they all rushed up to her. However, Nicholas beat them all to the first hug.

“You’re amazing, Em.” he praised with love.

“Thank God you’re alive.” David exhaled as he snatched his baby girl into his arms.

“You, too, Dad. You, too.” Emma said as she hugged him back, beyond happy that her real dad still had his head, “Really. Thank you.”

“Good work, sheriff.” Sawyer praised with a tip of his hat.

“What happened here?” Emma asked, “Was that really Gold and Belle’s baby?”

“We’ll filly you in later.” Nicholas promised, “Hopefully, he won’t be back for a while.”

“Nicholas Flamel?” Robin asked, making his presence finally known to everyone, “Well, you were certainly a little more well-kept and courteous in your younger days.”

“Robin?” he asked as he and his fellow agents gawked at the face of their fallen comrade.

“Well, not _really_ Robin. Sort of.” Emma corrected.

“It’s an alternate reality.” Regina clarified, “Copies of everyone. I brought him back.”

“Alternate reality?” Nicholas asked, “Wait. Not-not well-kept? What happened to you? What happened to me?”

“It’s okay. It’s all gonna be fine.” Emma assured as she tried to push the memories of the Mortal Alchemist out of her mind. All she wanted to do was take in the warmth of the man she loved and her son.

Meanwhile, having snuck away from the happy reunion, Belle and Rumple found themselves at the wishing well, mulling over the day’s events.

“Making a wish?” Rumple asked as he joined his wife.

“I better not.” Belle scoffed, “My hopes and plans don’t turn out like I want them to. No matter what I do, who I trust.”

“I understand the feeling.” Rumple acknowledged.

“Do you?” Belle asked, “Cause, I mean, clearly you wanted to keep him tied to this horrible fate, and you succeeded.”

“I wanted his life to take its natural course.” Rumple corrected, “He still has the power to change his choices, like the Savior’s doing. But using the shears would have robbed him of that. And, yes, I was gonna use them on him before, but I was wrong.”

“And you think he’ll make the right choices now?” Belle asked.

“No. But I hope he still may.” he said, “I know you don’t believe that’s what I want, Belle, but it’s true. When Baelfire rejected my magic, I respected it. I just wasn’t brave enough to follow it. My whole dark life, I’ve sought out those who are light; like you.”

“So, what, you don’t want him to kill Emma?” she asked.

“No, I don’t.” Rumple said sincerely, “That would be an irrational act of someone so blind with pain they think they’re reaching for the cure when, in fact, it’s just more poison. I know. I’ve done it myself. Frankly, I suppose I’m addicted to it, but I don’t want it for my son.”

“I protected him, even knowing what he wanted to do.” Belle admitted, “It can be easy to rationalize doing the wrong thing, can’t it?”

“Indeed it can.” he nodded as he thought of the thousands of times he, himself, did just that.

“Is it too late for us to help him?” she asked, “You must have some plan, some trick.”

“I’m sorry.” he said shaking his head, “But if there is anything we can do to help him, perhaps that’s something we should do together. Not just for us, but for everyone. You heard our son. I fear if we fail, war will come to Storybrooke yet again.”

“…What do you think he meant when he said it’s here?” Belle asked as she thought back to Gideon’s last words, “Do you think it has anything to do with what he said he was going to bring to heel?”

“I don’t know.” Rumple confessed, “But whatever it is, he was expecting it to make an appearance tonight. We might yet see it by the end of it all. But one thing I can say is this; whatever it is, it might just be too powerful for him even with the Savior’s magic. Whatever it is, it might be our doom.”

“What could possibly have that much power?” Belle asked in fear.

As they had this conversation, Gideon climbed the steps of the inner part of the clock tower with his insane grin. When he reached the face of the clock, he used his magic to reveal traces of powerful, purple magic left behind. This was all the confirmation he needed for his true target. The beast he would bring to heel.

“Algmata Tier.” he whispered with glee.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Algmata Tier is MINE. I'm using this story as a way to work out its kinks for a book series I am currently writing. Again, legally, Algmata Tier is mine. Sorry if I sound a little petulant, but I'm just being protective of my character and the future plans I have for it.


	93. Murder Most Foul

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or LXG

“Equivalent Exchange!” Nicholas shouted in a fluster as he pointed to a certain someone with blonde princess curls, “I’ll give half of my life to you, if you give half of yours to me!”

For a moment, the sound of a soft gasp filled his ears before the response was given.

“NO!”

Absolutely ashamed to hear a proposal in that way, Sawyer ripped off the wig he was wearing to imitate Emma and proceeded to stomp on it in his fit of disgust.

“No, no, no! That is a terrible way to propose!” he shouted.

To clarify, Nicholas, Sawyer, Skinner, Mina, Jekyll, Nemo and Gilles were in the lounge room in the sublevel of the mansion. As the previous interaction implied, Nicholas was rehearsing how he was finally going to ask Emma to marry him. Needless to say, it wasn’t going well.

The morning following Emma’s fight with Gideon, the protectors or Storybrooke were trying to resume their everyday lives while keeping their guards up for another attack from Gideon. Snow was having breakfast with Regina and discussing Wish Robin, the Hooks were going over possible locations where Gideon might be hiding with the dwarves, and Emma was taking a day off to go on a kayaking trip with Henry. So, with everyone out of the way, Nicholas decided now was the best time to practice.

“Ugh, that was too painful to watch!” Mina groaned into her hand as she shook her head.

“I can’t breathe!” Skinner said through his laughter.

“I’m sorry, Nicholas, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised if she left you over a proposal like that.” Jekyll added.

“Lord have mercy.” Gilles prayed.

“Alright!” Nicholas exclaimed before turning to Nemo, “Anything you’d like to add?”

Placing a sympathetic hand on the alchemist’s shoulder, Nemo took a deep breath and said, “That was pitiful.”

“Aw, screw you! Screw all of you!” Nicholas shouted, “You’re not exactly helping, you know!”

“Let’s see now,” Sawyer trailed as he fiddled with a marker as he stood before a large white board with marked out options they had already run through, “Using alchemy as a metaphorical proposal. Hard pass on that one. So, that makes a grand total of one, two, three…sixteen failed methods of proposal.”

“This is just sad.” Skinner remarked as he hung his head upside-down over the arm of the couch he was laying on.

“Oh, and like you guys have been supportive for any of these?” Nicholas asked as he gestured to his failed attempts, “Here’s a thought: maybe instead of having Tom wear a wig and pretend to be Emma each time, I can actually feel inspired enough to come up with something you won’t overly criticize! Seriously, why can’t you wear the wig, Mina?”

“Because even though I am the only woman here, my assets are much too big for me to be a convincing Emma.” Mina teased as she playfully pressed her breasts together.

“So, what, you’re saying my chest is closest to Emma’s?” Sawyer asked before a book was thrown at his head.

“Shut up, Sawyer!” Nicholas shouted before rounding on Mina, “And you! My Emma’s body is a work of art!”

“Yeah, so was Andy Warhol’s soup can painting.” Mina playfully retorted as she examined her nails.

“That’s it! It’s go time!” Nicholas bellowed as he pushed up his sleeves, “You and me, right now, you Jessica Rabbit-wannabe!”

“What’d you call me?!” Mina snapped as she extended her fangs and lunged at her fellow immortal.

“I’m so glad Nicholas let us be a part of all this.” Jekyll calmly remarked as he sipped his morning tea.

“Alright, break it up. We’ve still got to settle on the right method.” Sawyer interjected as he separated the brawling immortals and tried to settle things, “Mina, let’s face it, you are basically Jessica Rabbit’s ideal live action actress.”

“Fine.” she huffed while crossing her arms.

“And, Nicholas, would it make you feel better if we say Emma could very well be the next Kim Basinger when she played Holli Would?” he asked.

“No, because I don’t want you guys picturing her in any of those outfits!” Nicholas hotly retorted.

“Heh, too late.” Skinner chuckled, only to have a book hit his face dead-center, “Ow!”

“Okay, I think we’ve gotten a little off topic; again.” Sawyer sighed, “Can we at least settle on a top five best out of this crappy line up?”

“Personally, I favored him singing to her a romantic song, leading to him getting down on one knee and proposing.” Nemo offered.

“Of course you’d pick that one; your wife’s a mermaid.” Skinner remarked as he held his bleeding nose.

“Dinner and a walk through the park leading to candles and soft jazz in the background!” Gilles threw in.

“You could buy her favorite flowers, cook her favorite dinner at home and recite her a poem expressing your love for her and then propose.” Mina suggested. This, of course, earned some surprised looks from the others at how heartfelt her suggestion was.

“What?” she asked, “That’s what my late-husband did when he proposed to me.”

“As romantic as that sounds, Mina, it might not work the same way with Emma.” Nicholas declined, “She’s not big on flowers, or poetry, and her favorite dinner is anything with cheese.”

“Well, fine. Don’t accept my help.” the vampire lady huffed.

“Still pretty sore that he gave you your ring back?” Sawyer asked.

“Hmph!” was her response as she jerked her head up and away from Nicholas’ direction.

“Mina, I love you, and I appreciated the gesture, but it just wasn’t the right ring.” Nicholas gently defended, “I’m sorry. Please, forgive me?”

“…Oh, I can’t stay mad at you.” she relented, “The rest of these idiots, on the other hand…”

“What did I do?” Nemo exclaimed.

“What the hell are all of you shouting about now?” Quartermain asked as he entered the room with a cup of morning tea.

“I’m gonna ask Emma to marry me.” Nicholas replied with a genuine, happy smile.

“Hmm…good luck.” Quartermain curtly replied with a dry look as he toasted his cup.

“…That’s all I get?” Nicholas asked.

“Has she said yes?” Quartermain asked with a grumpy sigh/look.

“W-well, no, but-”

“Have you even asked her?” he asked.

“…No.” Nicholas sheepishly replied.

“So, what are you looking for? Do you want me to congratulate you on your ability to make a decision or your ability to ask a question?” Quartermain rudely asked.

“Man, you’re a sourpuss!” Nicholas exclaimed as the old man ignored him and drank his tea, “I can’t wait to see your wedding gift.”

“If she even says yes.” he remarked as he read the morning paper. Needless to say, Nicholas’ mouth was gaping when he heard the comment.

“Okay. I’m out of here.” the alchemist informed as he grabbed his jacket off a love seat.

“Wait, Nicholas! We didn’t settle on a proposal, yet!” Gilles cried out as his friend went to the secret elevator.

“I’m not gonna do it now, Bluey.” he said before looking dejected, “I gotta go ask David for his blessing.”

“Seriously?” Sawyer scoffed.

“Yes, seriously.” Nicholas snapped, “I kinda owe him that considering he missed out on every other important moment of Emma’s life.”

“Fair point.” Skinner nodded, “But, do you think he’s going to allow it?”

“Fingers crossed.” Nicholas said before the elevator took him up.

Once the alchemist made it into town, he headed straight up the stairs leading to the loft. When David opened the door, Nicholas immediately noticed the semi-frantic expression on his face.

“Morning, David. Is this a bad time?” he asked.

“Nicholas. Not at all. Come here.” David said in a rush as he led the man inside. Once he did, Nicholas’ eyes widened at the elaborate set up of sketches, sticky notes, red thread and charts pinned to a large bulletin board propped up on the counter.

“What the hell is this?” he asked in surprise.

“Tell me if you see anything; any connections, patterns.” David instructed, ignoring the question.

“Uh, first of all, what am I looking at, exactly?” Nicholas asked.

“You know what this is?” David asked as he held up his father’s coin.

“A very old coin from the Enchanted Forest?” Nicholas asked unsure of where this was going.

“This coin belonged to me when I was a boy on my parents’ farm. I gave it to my father before he died. My mother and I were told he died in a cart accident because he was drunk. Then the Evil Queen gave it to me and hinted that it wasn’t an accident. Then, after confirming with Rumple, I found out my father had been stabbed. I’m trying to figure out who did it and why.”

“Okay…” Nicholas awkwardly trailed. This was not at all how he was expecting his meeting with David to go. “Are you sure you should be obsessing over this? I’m fairly certain the Evil Queen only gave you that coin to mess with your head.”

“I know. I know. I’ve tried to fight it, but I can’t get it out of my mind. I…I keep dreaming about him; my father. It’s almost like he’s haunting me, begging me to find out the truth.”

“Are you sure?” Nicholas cautiously asked with a slight cringed expression, “I know I’m the world’s greatest insomniac, so I don’t have much room to talk, but are you sure it’s just not because you’ve been staying awake longer than Snow, lately?”

“Yes, I’m sure. And don’t tell me I need more sleep.” David snapped, “I’ve had, plenty, and I still see him every time I switch out with Snow. I’d given up on him, Nicholas. What kind of son does that?”

“A son with a family of his own.” he defended.

“I can’t abandon one family for another.” David retorted, “My father was a weak man, but he’s still my father. He deserves justice. Will you help me?”

“Don’t you think Emma’s a better choice for this?” he asked, “I mean, this is kinda a family affair, it’s her grandfather.”

“No, no, don’t call Emma. It’s for that reason I don’t want to worry her, or Snow. What I might have to do, they wouldn’t approve of. You, on the other hand, are willing to cross lines no one else would. I need someone Extraordinary, like you.”

“Agh!” Nicholas groaned as he smacked his forehead.

“What?” David asked.

“You basically just said the secret passphrase people use to hire members of the League.” he groaned, “Now, I have no choice.”

“Great.” David said as he smacked the man on the back, “Come on. You gave me an idea.”

Over at Regina’s house, she was going over all the details she felt Wish Robin needed to know about Storybrooke; minus his alternate-self’s infant daughter.

“So, everybody in this book lives here, in Storybrooke?” he asked as he flipped through the pages of Henry’s book.

“Most of them.” Regina nodded.

“I don’t see any tales of you and Robin.” he noticed, “That must be quite the story.”

“It is.” she said with a sad smile.

“Perhaps you’d care to share it with me sometime.” he offered before the doorbell rang. When Regina got up to answer it, she found her half-sister standing on her porch in a huff.

“So, when were you planning on telling me?” Zelena snapped, “Where the bloody hell is he?!”

“Zelena!” Regina intercepted as her sister tried to barge in, “You can’t see him yet.”

“Why? Because he’s scheming to take back baby Robin. That’s not gonna happen.”

“Trust me. That’s not the problem.” Regina assured.

“You haven’t told him he’s got children, have you? That one of them is here, in Storybrooke.” Zelena asked.

“Well, I am going to tell him. It’s difficult.” Regina struggled to explain.

“Actually, it’s quite easy.” Zelena corrected, “You tell him that he has no rights to my daughter; none. And if he comes anywhere near her, I will make him bleed!”

“Go home, Zelena.” Regina sneered, earning a haughty chuckle and sneer.

“Ta-ta.” Zelena spat before poofing away. When Regina went back inside, she had found that Robin left through the window, and that the book pages had been turned to Robin’s story; namely the illustration of the Sheriff of Nottingham.

“Oh, no.” she gasped.

Out in the streets of town, Wish Robin was tracking hid old nemesis town, armed with his bow and arrows, and fired an arrow at the man’s jacket sleeve, nailing him to wooden post he was about to pass.

“Fancy that. The Sheriff of Nottingham.” Robin seethed as he strode up to the frightened man.

“No, no, wait.” he pleaded, “Look, I heard you were back. Look, I’m not that man here. Nobody calls me that in Storybrooke.”

“I’m not from Storybrooke.” Wish Robin reminded before clocking the man in the jaw, sending him flat on the ground. As he laid there, Robin pulled out a knife and held it to the man’s throat from behind, “You know, I could have killed you with that arrow. But after all you did to me, I wanted this to be more personal.”

“Stop!” Regina shouted as she caught up to him.

“Regina, leave, now!” Wish Robin barked.

“Don’t do this. This isn’t you.” she pleaded.

“No, you mean, this isn’t him. This isn’t _your_ Robin, but me? I’ve wanted to do this for years.”

Before the man could make good on his threat, Regina sent the former sheriff away in a puff of smoke, leaving only herself and the angry lookalike of her late-lover.

“What the hell did you do?”

“I sent him somewhere else before you did something you’d regret.”

“Who says I’d regret it?” he asked.

“Well, trust me, someday, you would.” Regina tried to assure as Robin flexed his fist in pain and frustration, “Here, let me see your hand. I know someplace where we can fix this up, but I need you to promise that you’ll stop running away and trying to kill people.”

“…Alright.” he relented, “Lead the way.”

After pulling up to his and Emma’s house, Nicholas followed David as he speed-walked across the street to his yard.

“Are you sure Emma’s gone?” he asked.

“Yes, she’s taken Henry on a canoeing trip. She’ll be gone all day. Why are we here?” Nicholas asked.

“Well, despite how smart you are, and how good you are at tracking, we need magic. Emma’s got that.” David replied as he kept pressing forward.

“Whoa, hold up. What is this?” Nicholas asked as they kept walking to the backyard.

“Emma’s trying to break the curse, right? Regina just gave her a whole box of potions.” David explained.

“I know, I practically need to wear a hazmat suit when she uses that stuff.”

“So, we borrow a few ingredients and a spell book, and we learn what happened to my father.” David explained.

“Wait, stop.” Nicholas said as he grabbed the man’s arm, “You’re trying to cast a spell?”

“Look, if you’re too afraid, forget about it. I’ll do it myself.” David snapped.

“Slow down, you idiot.” Nicholas hissed as he kept following the co-sheriff, “I’m not afraid, I’m concerned. You really have no qualms about stealing from your own daughter?”

“What is with you today? You spend your whole life a secretive, lying, glorified murderer, and the one time I need you to be that guy, you get cold feet.” David remarked.

“Maybe I’m trying not to be that kind of guy now that the Promised Day is over and all the Homunculi are dead.” Nicholas snapped.

“Buddy, come on. It’s just me here.” David scoffed, believing Nicholas was just trying to pretend, “Now, I need a key to the shed and a lookout.”

“Fine.” Nicholas sighed as he handed over his keys.

“There. That wasn’t so hard. Now, you keep watch.” David said before heading to the shed.

“Think about Emma. Think about Emma. Think about Emma.” Nicholas repeatedly told himself as he tried to control his anger at the man who might become his father-in-law. About five minutes into David’s search, Emma’s bug pulled up to the curb before she got out.

“Emma’s coming. Hurry up!” Nicholas discreetly snapped. When the blonde rounded the corner, he intercepted her.

“Hey, gorgeous, what are you doing here? What happened to the trip?” he asked with a slightly nervous smile.

“Oh, Henry. I love him, but he forgot the life jackets, and you’re the one who’s been going on about boat safety.” Emma smirked before trying to get past him.

“Wait, I can’t let you in there.” he said trying to sound playful.

“Why not?” she laughed as he pulled her back.

“Because I-I must have you.” he said as he tried to dip and kiss her, earning laughing from his swan. Since this was in earshot, David shook his head and sighed in disgust at the thought.

“Wait, hang on!” Emma laughed as she stopped him, “You’re forgetting something.”

“What?” he asked with a smile.

“My superpower; I know when you’re lying.” she smiled.

“Aw, shit.” he cursed in his head.

“What are you hiding from me?” Emma asked, still smiling.

“The truth is, um, I’m a bit out of sorts…because of Robin.” he partially lied.

“Robin?” Emma asked, “Baby or Wish?”

“Um, Wish.” Nicholas replied, “The-the team and I are concerned with him being here. And we haven’t gotten the chance to find out whether this version is with the League, or not.”

“Oh.” she said.

“Yeah. And seeing this stranger who looks like our friend, it…made me think of you. I thought you were gonna die the other night. And me just standing there, helpless and unable to move, made me think of how I was unable to save our Robin. I don’t want you to sacrifice yourself the same way he did. But, I know I can’t stop you from doing the right thing. You’re pretty much the only thing that keeps me going, Em.” Nicholas sincerely said before noticing David leave the shed with Emma’s box, “And since I don’t need to keep all this stuff bottled up anymore, I felt like I should share these feelings with you before you went to the shed. So, feeling shared!”

“Well, I like feelings once in a while.” Emma said with love before giving him a passionate kiss, “Now, why was I here? Life jackets. Right. See you tonight.”

“Have fun.” Nicholas waved as he watched her walk away and dropped his smile. He then rounded the corner and joined David head back to his car.

“Come on. Good work.” David praised.

“Certainly didn’t feel like it.” Nicholas retorted.

“Well, it was. Now let’s find out who murdered my father.” David said, not caring about Nicholas’ feelings, at all. Over at the vault, Regina was tending to Wish Robin’s injury.

“May hand’s really not that bad.” he assured.

“I didn’t bring you here for that.” she said, “We need to talk. Were you really going to kill Nottingham?”

“Wait, you’re not judging _me_ for that, are you?” he asked defensively, “You told me it was your curse that created this place. I mean, bloody hell, look around. I mean, wh-what’s in these boxes?”

“Uh…the hearts of my enemies, but, I-”

“Oh, and what about this?” he asked as he gestured towards a gilded box, “This looks nasty enough.”

“Oh, no, don’t touch it!” she warned as she stopped him from opening it, “It’s…powerful. Yes, I know I sound like a hypocrite. But I have changed.”

With a wave of her hand, she healed his bruised knuckles.

“Which is why I have to tell you something. The other Robin, he recently had a child. Well, two, actually, but only one is here; an infant daughter.” Regina confessed, “But, I mean, she’s not yours. Not really.”

“Does the mother know that?” he asked, “Who even is the mother? You?”

“…My sister.” Regina replied, “It’s complicated.”

“Apparently, everything here is complicated. Did you bring me here just to drop me in the middle of this mess?” he asked.

“I hoped I could be part of a fresh start. Your fresh start.” she said getting choked up.

“And maybe one of your own, too?” he asked, getting closer to her.

“Maybe.” she softly chuckled, “I don’t know. I think if we give ourselves a chance, maybe you being here could be a good thing.”

Hoping to seal her hopes with a kiss, Robin moved in and pressed his lips against hers. For a moment, it was like her soulmate was back in her arms. But as quick as the moment came, Regina quickly realized just how different the feeling was, and how wrong the situation was.

“Well then,” she said after awkwardly separating, “How about I show you more of the town?”

At the loft, after bringing over Nicholas’ spare chemistry set, the unlikely duo prepared the spell as best they could. As far as the chemistry aspect went, Nicholas had no troubles with the spell. However, it was the magical aspects of the procedure that made them both confused and worried.

“Well, according to the spell, this should show us where the coin was the day your father died and then it will show us where the killer is now.” Nicholas informed.

“Okay, it says, turn counterclockwise.” David read, “Do you think they mean the beaker, or do we have to turn?”

“…You never know.” Nicholas shrugged before they both turned their bodies 360 degrees counterclockwise and poured the liquid into a larger beaker and added the remaining ingredients.

“Careful, if you turn us into racoons, driving that truck will be a challenge.” Nicholas joked awkwardly, only earning a quick nod from David.

“Okay, there’s fumes. I think we got it.” David guessed before they both recoiled from the smell, “Okay, could’ve gone without smelling that.”

“How do you think I feel?” Nicholas gaged since his sense of smell was much stronger. He then unfurled David’s old map of the Enchanted Forest while David dipped the coin in the potion.

“Okay, let’s find out where my father was before he died.” he said before placing the coin on the map. Once he did, it began to roll on its own across the chart to a little island off the coast of the forest.

“An island?” David rhetorically asked.

“Not just any island.” Nicholas clarified as he took a closer look, “I’ve never been there, but I’ve heard of it. It’s a cursed place, born and fueled of temptation; Pleasure Island.”

“Pleasure Island, why does that sound familiar?” David asked.

“Did you ever see Disney’s Pinocchio movie?” Nicholas dryly asked as he gave his answer.

“August.” David gasped before rushing out the door. After arriving at the garage and explaining everything to the former puppet, David handed the coin over to August so he could inspect it.

“Yeah, this is definitely the coin,” he said, “And it was the last I saw of him when he left with the boy. And, honestly, I never put you with him, David.”

“He went after James.” the man exhaled in shock, “I thought he was just a drunk who fell prey to his temptations. He was trying to fix our family.”

“He was stone-cold sober.” August added, making David feel even happier and prouder.

“Thank you, Pinocchio.” he said to the man he once knew as a boy before leaving with Nicholas, “I know who killed him.”

“Really, who?” Nicholas asked.

“Someone you killed a long time ago.” David replied as he held the coin.

“…That-that’s a long list, David. I-I’ve killed a shit load of people.” Nicholas bluntly reminded.

“George. Who else could it be but George?” David asked.

“Oh, yeah. I almost forgot about him.” he recalled, “Well, there you go. George killed your father, I killed George, the man’s been avenged. You’re welcome.”

“Something’s not adding up, though.” David said as he shook the coin, “Why would the Evil Queen give me this just so I could learn my father’s killer was already dead?”

“Got me.” Nicholas shrugged, “Unless she wants you to get mad at me for stealing that from you. You’re not mad, right?”

“No, but I don’t think that’s it.” he said before pulling out the maps and placing them on a table outside Granny’s.

“What are you doing?”

“The spell we used should tell us where the killer is right now, right? Maybe, they’re in Storybrooke.” he said as he placed the coin on the map of Storybrooke. When it finally stopped, Nicholas paled.

“Oh, crap.” he muttered.

“His killer is…at the mansion?” David asked in shock as he looked at Nicholas.

“Don’t look at me! I didn’t do it!” Nicholas exclaimed as he raised his hands, “I couldn’t have done it. I would have still been in Xerxes or Arendelle back then.”

“Yeah, but someone on your team could’ve done it. Here.” David said as he pulled out a zoomed in image of the mansion.

“You brought a zoomed in map of the mansion?” Nicholas asked in disbelief.

“No, I brought zoomed in maps of all the town’s locations, just in case.” David replied as he unfolded the paper.

“Dude, you’re getting obsessed with this.” Nicholas bluntly remarked before the coin moved, making him pale even more.

“Oh, shit!” he cursed in a panicked tone.

“What?” David asked, “What is that part of the mansion?”

“Um, well, th-that particular p-part of the mansion is…David, just let it go, it’s not worth it.” Nicholas said, practically begging.

“What is it?” he loudly asked, “You said you’d help me, Nicholas. So what is it?!”

“…That is…that is where Quartermain’s room is.” Nicholas confessed.

“Quartermain?” David asked as his eyebrows shot up, “So-so, you’re telling me Allan Quartermain killed my father? Why?”

“I don’t know, David.” Nicholas exasperated, “I wasn’t there. I don’t even know when the man joined the League. For all we know, this could have been before he joined. He was a mercenary, in those days. That is all I do know about the man’s past. Okay? Maybe George hired him to kill your old man. I don’t know.”

“That son of a bitch!” David seethed before kicking over a chair.

“Okay, are you satisfied now?” Nicholas asked trying to calm the man down, “You know who did it. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

“Not anymore.” he snarled before storming back to his truck.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Nicholas said as he got in front of the man to stop him, “David, stop. I know what you’re thinking, and it is _not_ a good idea.”

“Get out of my way, Nicholas.” he warned.

“No.” the alchemist said firmly, “Listen to me, you cannot go charging into this suicide mission. You’ll only make things worse for yourself.”

“I don’t want to hear this from some frightened alchemist. I have to do this. My father deserves to be avenged. Oh, why am I wasting my time with you. It’s not like you’d understand, anyway.” David said as he pushed past him, only to be stopped again.

“David, I see the person who killed my father on a daily basis.” Nicholas snapped as his worry was replaced with anger, “And worst of all, it’s my own sister. You cannot win a fight against Allan Quartermain! You’ll just end up dead! Revenge is not worth the kind of pain and humiliation that man will put you through.”

“…I’m sorry for this, Nicholas.” David said with a shamed look before quickly uncorking a small test tube of one of Emma’s potions and tossing it on him. As soon as the liquid made contact, it burnt through the alchemist like acid, rendering him crumpled in pain on the ground. Taking the chance, David hurried to his truck and drove off to the mansion.

Little did Nicholas know, David was seeking revenge the entire time, no matter who it was that killed his father. So, in preparation, the co-sheriff had his sword wrapped up in the trunk, and his two glocks loaded and holstered in his shoulder holster. While he did not know Quartermain as well as Nicholas, thus knowing how powerful the old man was, David was not as afraid as he should have been. All he could think about was avenging the father he had scorned and resented his entire life.

Currently, he was several yards away from the mansion, but could clearly see both it, and the section he knew, deep within his gut, that Quartermain was residing in. Just as he was about to climb over the ditch he was covering himself with, Nicholas jumped out of nowhere and tackled him out of the way. Once he did, he took out a transport rock, crushed it, and teleported them about sixty yards further away from the mansion.

“What the hell?! That bastard killed my father, you know he did!” David yelled before running up and pressing a knife against Nicholas’ throat as he pinned him to a tree, “If you take this from me, I will never, _never_ forgive you!”

“Yes, he killed your father.” Nicholas calmly agreed, “But killing Quartermain won’t bring him back. It won’t bring you the peace you’re looking for. Giving into revenge, this temptation, will only bring you pain. Just remember what August said; how your father resisted his temptation.”

“And it didn’t work!” David cried as he shrugged away, “He still died. I thought he didn’t fight for us, but he did. He fought with everything he had. He did the right thing. And it wasn’t enough! So what if-what if Gideon comes back stronger and kills Emma? What if I can’t be with Snow ever again? What if being ‘Prince Charming’ isn’t enough, and I start losing, and it keeps going, and I lose everything that matters to me?!”

Even though he knew the risks, Nicholas made the hard decision he thought was best for David.

“Alright. If you wanna go and pick a fight with Quartermain, go ahead. But let me tell you this; Allan Quartermain is the coldest, cruelest man I know. I love him like he was my own father, but I know how he can be. If you challenge him, whether you go at him with the intent to kill, or not, he will show you no mercy. He will either kill you, or he will beat you to your knees, black and blue, and leave you alive so you can feel horrible about yourself for failing to avenge your father and daring to challenge him. And even in the unlikely chance that you do kill him, what then? It won’t bring your father back. And Quartermain won’t stay dead, David. If not by us on the team resurrecting him, he would still come back on his own. It’d take a like a month, but he can bring himself back to life. And what do you think he’d do to you if that happens? He’d kill you; and kill Snow in the process. All you’d be doing is putting yourself in a situation that results in the death of you and your wife, and _your_ son without _his_ father. Is that what you want to do? Put Neal through the same pain of not knowing the love of his parents like Emma went through? I can promise you this, David; Quartermain would still kill you, even if that thought crossed his mind. If you think the memory of a dead man is more important than your family, then go head. Go. Go kick the door in and call out Quartermain and have yourself your own Inigo Montoya moment before a bullet blasts through the back of your skull. But think about your father, first. How he put his family first and fought for them. He made a choice, and as noble as it was, it cost him his life. Avenging your father is noble, but it will cost you your life. Don’t put your son what you went through; and don’t make Emma go through it again, either.”

It was difficult for David to know what hurt more; the truth behind the alchemist’s words, or the fact he was actually doing as he said and decided not to risk his life and avenge his father. Tears of shame, defeat and sadness finally fell from David’s eyes as he sunk to his knees and wept. Despite the tension between the two men in the past, Nicholas kneeled to David’s level, tossed the knife away, and comforted his grieving friend. The pain of losing your father to murder was something Nicholas was familiar with, as well as the pain of letting his killer go unpunished. But Nicholas also knew that in times of pain such as this, the best way to begin moving forward was someone at your side to pick you back up.

As this happened, with his eagle-eye vision, Allan Quartermain watched everything from the moment David’s truck pulled up. From his window, the old hunter simply shook his head with his permanent scowl and muttered to himself.

“So pathetic.” he grumbled before closing the curtains.

Later on, after the sun had set and night had fallen over town, Nicholas had taken David to the pier to calm him. It had taken awhile, and many tears, none of which Nicholas held against the man, but David gradually made his peace with what happened.

“So, you gonna toss it?” Nicholas asked as he nodded to the coin.

“No.” he said as he rubbed his thumb on it, “This is all I have left of my father. The only thing left of him. I gave this to him as a reminder to stay strong for his family. Now, I’ll keep it to remind me of the same thing.”

“That’s a good way to honor him. I keep this for the same reason.” Nicholas said as he pulled out his father’s broach, “It really is the little things, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. He-hey, I’m sorry about what I said earlier. That-that wasn’t fair to you.” David apologized.

“No, it’s okay.” Nicholas assured before looking around at the town he called home, “I think it’s easy for people to forget that Regina had to kill our father to create this town. I often wonder if she, herself, forgets when times are tough. You know, when I first woke up in this place, all those years ago, I wanted to kill her. Truly kill her. I just couldn’t understand how she was capable of committing such a horrible act. I never doubted my father’s love, but I always knew Regina had a special place in his heart where I wasn’t. And-and that’s to be expected, I wasn’t always there. Even after coming home. I didn’t know how to act around them, or how to be a good little brother, or son. So, I thought, to spare him and my mother the pain of disappointing their hopes, I distanced myself from them. Thought I was too damaged for them. I wasted a lot of chances to build a connection with him as strong as Regina’s. He loved us more than I thought possible for anyone to love anything; and she killed him. I may have wasted my chances, but she prevented me from ever having any more. And when she told me how even the curse still left her feeling empty, I wanted to kill her even more. But, that all went away when we adopted Henry. I started to understand the kind of love our father must have felt for us. And then when Emma came and started helping everyone, giving us all second chances, I started to see this town in a different light.”

“What do you mean?” David asked.

“My father was a firm believer in second chances. And thirds, and fourths, and fifths, and so on. He saw the good in people like no one else. I like to think a part of him…lives on in Storybrooke. Like, his good nature attached itself to this place. Almost like this town, and all the good that’s come from it is his legacy.” Nicholas said before chuckling a little.

“Although, now that I think of it, there was this one time we tried bonding after I came home.” he laughed, “We-we tried playing an old kickball-ish game, just to have some fun, and-and I ended up kicking the ball so hard, it hit him square in the face and broke his nose! I was so afraid I really hurt him, but he just kept smiling telling me he was okay and wanted to keep playing. I felt so bad!”

“Oh, that’s nothing.” David laughed, “I branded my father.”

“What?!” Nicholas exclaimed.

“Yeah.” David said sheepishly, “I was four or five and helping him out around the farm. He managed to get a newish horse and had to brand him. I asked him why he had to do that and rather than explain that it was to make sure people couldn’t get away with stealing from us, he-he thought it was more appropriate to come up with some corny bonding story. What did he say? He-he said that the brand was a mark that represented the bond between a man and his horse. And that whenever something has your own mark, you are connected forever. So, he got it hot and ready, but set it down before he branded it to grab a pail and brush. I noticed his sleeve was rolled up and his arm was bare, so I thought if I branded him, he and I would be bonded together and happy forever.”

“And then you proceeded to viciously burn him?” Nicholas asked with a smirk.

“Yeah. Right there.” David chuckled as he clapped his hand over the top of his left forearm, “Never saw my mother laugh so hard in her entire life.”

“You know, I think my mother would’ve done the same.” Nicholas laughed.

“Heh. I really do owe you an apology.” David said again.

“You already did.” Nicholas reminded.

“No. For making you risk what you’re building with Emma.” he said.

“So…you think I’m good enough for her?” Nicholas asked.

“You’ve done the hardest thing anyone can do. You’ve changed for her. I mean, hell, you literally died for her! And today, you saved me from making a terrible mistake, and I don’t know how I’m gonna be able to pay you back.”

“Well, as luck would have it, I have an idea.” Nicholas said as he felt a nervous pit in his stomach, “There’s one way for you not to lose your family…and that’s to let it grow. David…may I have your blessing to ask for Emma’s hand in marriage?”

For what seemed like a century to the alchemist, David stared blankly at the man as he processed his request. For a moment, it seemed like he was going to refuse. But when his blank expression broke into a happy smile, Nicholas felt like the apocalypse had been averted once again.

“Of course.” he said causing Nicholas to exhale and laugh in relief, “Of course you have my blessing.”

“Oh! You kinda had me worried there.” Nicholas laughed.

“Well, I mean, it’s up to Emma, of course, but, yes, you have my blessing.” David laughed, “I didn’t realize you were so old-fashioned.”

“Um, hello? Have you not see my car or my pipe? I’m about as old fashioned as it gets around here.” he laughed.

“Fair point.” David laughed, “Were you really that nervous?”

“Why would I be nervous? Prince Charming doesn’t set the bar high at all.”

“Well, I am overdue to wake up Snow, but I won’t tell her the news until it’s official.” he assured.

“I appreciate that, David; all of it.” Nicholas sincerely said as they head back to their homes.

Later on, after David had switched with Snow, the former princess called to check up on Regina. Ever since their conversation regarding Wish Robin, she had been concerned for her friend’s grip on things.

“So, you talked to Robin?” Snow asked, “How did it go? Did you tell him about the baby?”

“I did.” Regina nodded, “And, well…we sort of fought about it, and then…there was a kiss. And it was nothing. It was like kissing a photograph. Like it isn’t him. It just isn’t, and you were right.”

“I’m sorry.” Snow said as she poured them some tea, “I didn’t want to be right.”

“Well, it’s not your fault. It’s mine. I just wanted to believe.” she said, “I mean, there has to be a reason he made it through that portal, right? And if I’m not the reason, then what is?”

“The way I see it, he made it through that portal because he has something it recognized as real. Maybe it’s not about there being a reason why. Maybe it’s just who he is.” Snow offered.

“Well, he’s certainly not _my_ Robin Hood. So, who is he, and what does he want?” Regina asked.

In response to this question, Wish Robin was back at the vault, breaking open the chest containing the mysterious box he found earlier. Without any empathy, he just simply strolled out of the vault without a care in the world.

Meanwhile, before heading home to the woman who may very well become his wife very soon, Nicholas made a little detour to the mansion. Before he was going to fully commit himself to his woman, he had to clear the air on her grandfather’s death. Once he was inside, he followed his nose to find Quartermain polishing his precious riffle in the debriefing room.

“You got a minute?” Nicholas flatly asked from behind.

“Perhaps.” the old gruffly replied, not even bothering to look up from his weapon.

“Did you do it?”

“Do what?” Quartermain asked.

“You know what I’m talking about. You saw the whole thing earlier. Don’t deny it. You know why David and I were out there, and what he was planning to do. All I want to know is if you really did kill his father, and why?”

“Would it change anything, regardless of what my answer is?” he asked, bored of the conversation.

“Just say yes or no, you old bastard.” Nicholas sighed.

“Very well.” Quartermain curtly said as he finished his functions test on the riffle and turned towards his subordinate, “Yes, I did. I killed that man’s father.”

“Why?”

“He was weak.” Quartermain replied without hesitation, “He was a pathetic man who failed his family. Furthermore, he was undeservingly married to a woman whom was very dear to me. She deserved far better than him, especially when he gave away one of his sons to a warmongering tyrant. So, when I heard that King George’s son had run away, and there was a reward instore for his return, I went looking, found the miserable bastard, and killed two birds with one stone. Or rather, one knife in the back. Was there anything else you’d like to know, Agent Flamel?”

“…No, Agent Quartermain, there was not.” Nicholas coldly said before turning around to leave, “Goodnight.”


	94. Ill-Boding Patterns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT

Ever since the night Emma, Regina and Wish Robin returned from the Wish Realm, Rumple and Belle had been searching all over Storybrooke for their wayward son. No matter what method they tried, magical or non, the would-be-Savior could not be found. So, while his estranged wife was looking somewhere else, Rumple was scouring through the woods the old fashioned way.

“Gideon.” he called out to his boy, “Gideon!”

“Did you find any sign of him?” Belle asked as she joined him with Mother Superior.

“No.”

“There was nothing in the north woods, either.” Blue informed the couple.

“Why am I not surprised you couldn’t find him? Could it be because you were the one who lost him in the first place?” Rumple sarcastically asked in spite to the fairy.

“If you’re looking for a fairy to take your anger out on, perhaps you should find your mother.” Blue suggested in retort.

“Well, since the Black Fairy is trapped in another realm, I suppose I’ll have to make do with you.” he all but threatened.

“The most important thing right now is finding our son.” Belle reminded as she stepped between them.

“I think maybe it’s best if I continue to look on my own.” Blue offered before leaving the couple.

“I’m beginning to think we’re not gonna find him out here.” Rumple said.

“Well, why? Where do you think he is?”

“His heart is set on fulfilling his destiny. And he can’t do that without the sword.”

“What sword?” she asked.

“The sword that was shattered when Gideon last faced Emma.” he clarified.

“I don’t understand. Why does he think that killing Emma with this blade will make him the Savior?”

“He’s not the first one to think wielding that sword will make him a hero.” Rumple replied, clearly thinking about the first time he saw that sword.

“We have to find him before he gets his hands on it, before he goes after Emma again.”

“We will. You can trust me, Belle.” he vowed, “I’ve already lost one son. I won’t lose another.”

Not long after making this vow, the Dark One’s other son stomped through the sheriff’s station in search of something he needed. Still clad in his black hood, the town’s newest villain cut the security feed and searched through Emma’s office. After spotting her safe, he used his magic to unlock it and unveil his prize; the grip and fragmented blade of Hrunting. As soon as he took it and turned around, he was slightly startled by his melancholy father.

“Father.” he gasped before composing himself.

“Gideon.” Rumple greeted, “After your little showdown with the Savior, this is one of the last places you should be.”

“Don’t worry, Father. With this sword, she won’t be able to get the best of me again.” Gideon assured before falling in a heap, unconscious from his father’s magic.

“Perhaps she won’t. But there’s still a few things you need to learn from your papa.” Rumple said to his sleeping boy.

After transporting them both to the inside of the clock tower, and binding Gideon in both the magic-sealing cuff and golden ropes around his wrists to the railing, Rumple waited a few moments for his son to wake up. After Gideon did, with a panicked jolt, Rumple resumed their conversation.

“I’m afraid I couldn’t take any chances.”

“You said you’d help me. You said you were on my side.” Gideon spat.

“I did, and I am.” Rumple calmly replied, “But killing the Savior, even to destroy the Black Fairy, you will never be the hero you want to be. Gideon, do you know why I became the Dark One?”

“Afraid not.” his son replied, obviously not caring.

“I took the power to end the first ogres war, to save my first son; your brother, Baelfire. I embraced darkness for good. But I never became a hero. Because once you fall into darkness, it’s almost impossible to pull yourself out.”

“Not if I become the Savior, not if I steal Emma’s light magic.” Gideon argued.

“And how are you gonna do that?” Rumple asked as he held up the broken weapon, “This is a useless relic, Gideon. It never worked to begin with”

“You know, I thought you’d want to see the fall of the Black Fairy more than anyone.”

“Oh, I do. But not if it costs my son his soul.” Rumple sternly replied.

“I have to defeat her. I have to save my people from her curse.”

“Gideon, no one knows more about darkness than I. If you do this, giving into darkness can only lead to heartbreak.” Rumple warned, clearly speaking from his own, painful experience. 

On the other side of town, after taking their daily stroll for fresh air, Zelena and little baby Robin were headed back inside their cozy, little home.

“This little munchkin went to see the wizard, and this little munchkin stayed at home.” Zelena cooed at her baby as they went inside. But, as soon as she passed the threshold, Zelena’s playful demeanor immediately changed to defensive rage as she summoned a green fireball in her free hand. “And this little munchkin never lived to see the light of another day.”

“Careful. I don’t think your sister would be too pleased if you caused the demise of a second Robin.” Wish Robin playfully warned from his seat at her table.

“I don’t care. You’re not getting my daughter!” Zelena shouted.

“Oh, I’m not here for the brat. I never was one for children.” he arrogantly smirked before opening the small box he stole from Regina, “You see, where I’m from, I robbed enough witches and warlocks to know the kind of magic you need to break a protection spell. Problem is, I had a partner that was savvy with that kind of stuff.”

“Sorry.” Zelena scoffed after dismissing her spell, “Grand theft sorcery isn’t my thing.”

“Oh, I don’t need your help to break in somewhere. I need it to break out.” he corrected.

“Oh. Do you want to leave Storybrooke?” she asked, already knowing the answer.

“It’s just that there’s this pesky little protection spell surrounding the town. I came here for a fresh start; new people to rob, places to drink, women to meet. But, you see, I’m not gonna get any of that, not with your sister threatening to reform me at every step.”

“Believe me, that I understand. But why should I help you? Why not go ask the League agents over at the mansion?”

“Because you need to leave this town more than I do.” he replied, “I know when somebody’s got a target on their back. And as for this League I keep hearing about, while the other Robin may have been involved with it, I, on the other hand, have never heard of it before coming here.”

“Is that so?” she rhetorically asked, “Well, even if I do have a few enemies, I can handle myself.”

“But wouldn’t it be nice to make a few friends, instead?” he asked with a cunning smile.

“When do we leave?” she asked with a smirk of her own.

Back in the clock tower, still not making any headway with his stubborn, borderline emo son, Rumple decided to take a different approach.

“You think tea with dear old Dad is going to make everything better?” Gideon sarcastically asked as he watched his father pour a cup of tea from a thermos.

“No. But a chat might.” he replied, “I want to know what the Black Fairy did to you to make you think killing the Savior is the only way to become a hero.”

“How can I trust you with the truth when you don’t even trust me?” Gideon challenged as he gestured to his restraints. Nodding in acknowledgment, Rumple undid the ropes around his son’s wrists.

“Now, tell me. What did the Black Fairy to my son?” Rumple asked, bracing himself for the truth about his boy’s painful life. In response, Gideon pulled out the copy of Belle’s favorite book, the one she sent away with him.

“Her Handsome Hero.” Gideon said as he handed over the book.

“Your mother’s favorite.” Rumple wistfully said.

“She sent me away with that copy. Years after the Black Fairy kidnapped me, I found it amongst her things. I kept it beneath the mattress in my cell. That tale got me through the endless nights. But then one night, the Black Fairy caught me reading it. She asked me if I wanted to be like the character I was named after; a hero. I said I did. She just laughed, and she said, ‘We’ll see about that.’ That night, she took the boy in the cell across from mine. She dragged him to her tower, where she whipped him. I could hear his cries echo through the halls, begging for someone to stop her. I reached out to the door of my cell, and it was open. I had a chance to save him. But I didn’t. I just sat there, listening to his cries.”

“She left the door unlocked on purpose.” Rumple stated.

“To show me I didn’t have what it takes.” Gideon nodded as tears slipped down his faces, “I was a coward, Father, just like you. But we can show your mother that she was wrong about both of us. Will you help me?”

“Yes.” Rumple softly said before rising from his seat and handing his son the tea, “But first you must settle your nerves.”

“What kind of tea is this?” Gideon asked after he sipped from the cup.

“One laced with memory potion.” Rumple replied, earning a look of betrayal from his son, “In a few moments, you won’t remember what the Black Fairy did. Your pain will be gone.”

When Gideon stumbled forward, only to be caught in a hug from his father, it seemed like all his pain was about to leave him. But, much to Rumple’s surprise, his son reached into his coat and pulled out the dagger as he pushed him away. Clearly, the plan had backfired.

“Did you really think a memory potion would work on me?” Gideon darkly asked as he used the dagger to strip off his cuff, “I was raised by the Black Fairy.”

“Gideon, don’t.” Rumple pleaded.

“You know, I thought you cared about what she did to me, but you’re no different than her.” he seethed, “Now you’re going to keep your promise, and you are going to help me to fulfill my destiny, whether you want to or not. Now, take us to your shop and tell me what I must do to repair this sword.”

Even though he did not want to, Rumple relented and sent them both to the pawn shop. Already knowing exactly what his son needed, Rumple plucked a book off one of his many shelves and explained the process to repair Hrunting.

“This book contains the spell that will repair the sword.” Rumple began as he showed his son the formula, “It requires the blood of the person who forged it.”

“If that’s what it takes, Father.” Gideon replied as he began to storm off.

“Gideon, look, you were willing to kill the Savior. Now you’re willing to spill innocent blood.” Rumple argued.

“I don’t have a choice.” Gideon argued, “I need to fix this sword to fulfill my destiny.”

“And what happens then? How does it end?” Rumple asked.

“With the destruction of the Black Fairy and all she stands for.”

“That’s not how it ends. That’s not how it ever ends.” he corrected, “The Black Fairy destroyed your childhood. Don’t let her destroy the rest of your life.”

“You don’t get a say in the matter.” Gideon retorted as he held up the dagger, “Dark One, who forged this blade? Whose blood do I need?”

“…The Blue Fairy’s.” Rumple unwillingly confessed.

“My fairy godmother?” Gideon asked.

“There’s good in you, Gideon. Don’t snuff out the light in your heart. If you do this, you might not be able to get back.” Rumple warned.

“…That’s a risk I have to take.” Gideon waved off as he stormed towards the door.

“Gideon, please.” he begged, only to be stopped by the dagger.

“I can’t have you getting in my way. I truly am sorry, Father. Dark One, I command you; don’t try to stop me.” Gideon ordered before poofing away.

As Gideon was once again on the hunt, over at the town line, Wish Robin, armed with his bow and arrows, was waiting for Zelena to appear with the potion they needed for their escape. A few moments later, the witch in question poofed behind him with her baby, three suitcases, and a tarp covered cage.

“Where have you been?” he snapped.

“Don’t get your arrows in a twist. I just had to pick up a few things.” Zelena replied as she revealed the Evil Queen’s snake form inside the cage.

“A pet snake?” Robin asked.

“Well, she’s practically family.” she joked, even if he would not understand it, “And with so many dank sewers out there, I could hardly leave her behind.”

“Right. So, we’re doing this?” he asked.

“Mixed to order.” Zelena said a she presented the green concoction, “It’ll drain the magic out of any spell, including the town line. And then it’s hello New York City.”

But before either of them could pour the liquid on the line, Regina appeared before them, looking completely pissed.

“I thought you might be here. I should have known you’d be with him.” Regina spat towards her sister, “Did you really think I wouldn’t notice my magic was missing?”

“I can explain.” Robin attempted.

“Oh, you mean lie to me again?” she countered, “You said you came here because you wanted to find meaning in your life. Was any of that true?”

“Yes!” he retorted, “I truly wanted to find purpose here, but you made it so hard.”

“How did I make it hard? All I did was try to help you.”

“By bringing me somewhere where I’m constantly reminded of somebody that I’m not.” he pointed out in a huff before slightly calming down, “Regina, I can’t live up to the legacy of a man who died for you.”

“It won’t work.” Regina warned when Robin snatched the potion from Zelena.

“Don’t listen to her. She’s lying.” Zelena snapped.

“Fine. Don’t believe me. Go ahead. Try it.” she urged. As soon as the liquid touched the spray paint line, it immediately backfired on Robin, leaving the barrier still intact.

“If I had all the ingredients to break the protection spell, do you really think I wouldn’t have done it already?” Regina sarcastically asked her sister.

“So we’re trapped here?” Robin snapped.

“I bet you’re happy now.” Zelena remarked towards her sister.

“Robin, I know you want to leave, but you don’t understand the world out there. It’s not like where you’re from.”

“I can handle myself, Regina.” he defended.

“…I know. If you really want to leave, I’ll dig through every book I have to figure out how to break the protection spell.” she said.

“You will?” he asked.

“Yes. I owe it to him; to you. To let you find your happiness…even if it means helping you walk out of here.” Regina said, trying to swallow the lump of sadness in her throat.

Later, once night had fallen over the town, Gideon found his target looking over a map of Storybrooke, still desperately searching for the child she failed.

“You were my fairy godmother.” he said, alerting her to his presence.

“Gideon.” she exhaled after being startled, “I have been looking for you everywhere.”

“You were supposed to protect me when I was just a baby.” he coldly said.

“I know. I tried.” Blue said, “But the Black Fairy was too strong. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. You may not have been able to help me back then, but maybe you can now.” Gideon offered as he held up the hilt of the sword she made.

“No.” she said as her voice shook, “Killing Emma with that blade, it-it will not make you the Savior the way you think.”

“Save the lecture.” he coldly interrupted, “There’s only one thing I need from you; your magic. All of it.”

“Please don’t do this.” she begged.

“Don’t make this any harder than it has to be.” he said before freezing her with his magic. Just as he was about to slice her hand and take her magic, his father, once again, arrived to stop him.

“Gideon, stop.” Rumple ordered.

“Father, what are you doing here?” he asked.

“I watched one son darken his heart long ago. I can’t watch another do the same.”

“You can’t stop me. I commanded you.” Gideon reminded.

“I’m not here to stop you. I’m here to do it for you.” Rumple clarified as he took the hilt and pressed it against Blue’s palm.

“Gold, please don’t.” she pleaded desperately.

“I’m sorry.” he said sincerely before slicing her hand. As soon as a single drop of her blood landed on the red gem of the sword’s pommel, all of her magic was absorbed into her creation, restoring it to his former glory. Unfortunately for Blue, it completely weakened her, causing to fall to the ground unconscious.

“We will defeat the Black Fairy. You will become a hero. But I won’t let you touch the darkness to do so.” Rumple vowed to his son as he gave him the blade.

“Thank you, Father.” Gideon said, feeling touched by his parent’s sacrifice. It was then that he felt trusted enough to return the dagger. “I don’t think I’ll be needing this anymore.”

Later, after Gideon went off on his own with the sword, Rumple did the courteous thing and brought Blue back to the shop with him. Afterwards, he called Belle over to explain things. As soon as she arrived and saw the comatose nun on the backroom cot, she feared the worst.

“What happened?” she asked.

“Belle, I can explain.” Rumple calmly said.

“No. Rumple, you promised me. You said you would find Gideon before he did something he couldn’t come back from.” Belle accused.

“Gideon didn’t do this to her. I did.” he admitted.

“Why?”

“Because it was the only way to stop him from doing it himself.” he explained, “If he had, I fear he would already be lost to us. Once we stop him, I can return her magic. No one needs to be hurt. Gideon has the sword now. It’s more powerful than ever. He’ll go after the Savior once again. I just hope there’s enough time to stop him before he does.”

“We will.” Belle promised, “For once, you put our son first. You darkened your soul so he wouldn’t have to. If you can make the right choice after all the wrong you’ve done, then that means that there’s hope our son will, too.”

Over at the vault, Regina was in the process of brewing another potion to destroy the town’s barrier for Robin. While she was doing this, Zelena came down the stairs with the snake cage in her hand.

“There you are.” the witch said as she entered the chamber.

“Here to steal more of my magic?” Regina quipped without making eye contact.

“No. I’m here to return Queen Cobra before the Charmings realize she’s missing. Although, I suppose I should be thanking you for ruining my plan for her.” Zelena sarcastically remarked.

“What plan?” Regina asked, actually looking her sister in the eyes now.

“Did you really think I was going to run off to New York with my baby daddy’s lookalike?” Zelena sarcastically asked, “No. I couldn’t care less what that man does, as long as it doesn’t involve my daughter. So, when he told me he was looking for a way out, and just so happened to be in possession of some of the ingredients needed to make that possible, I saw an opportunity to get rid of Her Majesty, once and for all.”

“You were going to throw her over the town line?” Regina asked.

“Oh, look who’s catching on, finally.” Zelena said with a fake smile, “Of course that’s what I was doing. And if it resulted her remaining in her surprise make-over, and staying locked in that cage, it would’ve been an added bonus.”

“Why? I thought you two were trying to be the sisters we never were.” Regina asked.

“You really have to ask me that?” Zelena snapped, “After what she did to Nicholas?! I only regret not getting my hands on that sword so I could’ve killed her myself after what she did to him. Because unlike you, Regina, I actually still care about our brother and how that day afflicted his mind. I wanted to finally do something for him for once, so I could be the one to tell him that the devil woman who made him suffer the one thing that terrifies him more than anything was finally gone.”

“So, all the suitcases-”

“Empty.” Zelena spat, “It was all for show to convince that doppelganger to hold onto the cage while I grabbed my stuff. Once they were past the barrier, I would have thrown it back up and gone home.”

“You did all that for Nicholas?” Regina asked, “You were willing to stay for Nicholas?”

“Well, it certainly wasn’t for you.” Zelena snapped, “Because unlike with, I don’t have to prove myself or meet impossible standards for his love. And with the way you’ve treated him these last few months, I figured he needed at least one sister who still cares about him. Not to mention, I wasn’t going to cheat my daughter out of knowing her only uncle’s love, either.”

“…You really do love Nicholas, don’t you?” Regina softly asked, already knowing the answer.

“He accepted me for who I am. Something you were too proud to even try.” Zelena sneered, despite how much it hurt her.

“You’re right.” Regina admitted, “I’m not different than I was before. Still just as cynical. How did I ever think that removing my evil half would change anything? When I saw Robin in that alternate world, it was a test to see if I could move forward, and I failed.”

It wasn’t an apology, but Zelena could tell her sister was beginning to realize how wrong she had been lately.

“Well, I thought I was rid of you for good, Queenie,” Regina said to the covered cage, “But I guess I’ll always be paying the price for what you did…what _I_ did.”

Wanting to at least look at her other half in her serpent eyes, Regina pulled off the tarp, only for both sisters to see that the cage had been broken and the Evil Queen nowhere to be found.

“What?!” Zelena shrieked.

“Where the hell is she?” Regina asked.

In another part of the woods, Wish Robin was mulling over his thoughts in front of a campfire. However, as he was, a large, black, familiar snake was slithering down from a tree across his shoulders and down his arm.

“Easy now.” he calmly said, even though he was afraid. As the snake looked directly at him, he thought he was safe. That is until it bit him and became engulfed in magical dust. While he cradled his bitten hand, the snake resumed her original form as the Evil Queen.

“Hope that didn’t sting.” she playfully remarked as she took in the pleasure of having her old body back, “A-A bit of that anti-magic potion stuck to you in the blast. And, well, as you can see, I needed some. So, thanks.”

“I just left you at the town line.” he said, clearly confused.

“You left _Regina_ at the town line.” she dryly corrected.

“You _are_ Regina.” he said, still confused.

“ _I’m_ the Evil Queen.” she snapped, trying to maintain her wicked smile, “You, of all people, should recognize a doppelganger when you see one. There’s two of us now.”

“I don’t care if there’s seven of you now.” he rudely retorted, “I’m leaving as soon as possible.”

“Well, that’s a shame because there’s nothing for you out there.” Evil Queen said with a slight pout.

“Nothing you can say will keep me in this abysmal hamlet a moment longer than I need to be.” he argued.

“Abysmal hamlet?” she asked with an amused scoff, “Sounds like you haven’t had the right tour guide. But now you do. And when I’m done with you, you’ll have a whole new appreciation of what Storybrooke has to offer.”

“This is not how I expected things to turn out.” Zelena huffed as she and Regina marched to the loft to warn everyone about their enemy’s release.

“Oh, when does anything any of us plan ever work as we wanted?” Regina pointed out, “As long as she’s still a snake, we have nothing to worry about. She can’t hurt anyone not within reach of a baseball bat.”

As soon as she said this, the two sisters heard the distinct screaming of Snow White from the loft. Fearing the worst, they ran as fast as they could in their current footwear and hurried towards the building, completely unsuspecting of the news they were about to receive.


	95. Page 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or LXG, aside from my own original ideas and changes

As the two sisters were racing to the loft to come to Snow’s rescue, the woman in question was smiling from ear to ear. Contrary to what her screaming led Regina and Zelena to believe, she wasn’t in any danger. She was, however, absolutely overjoyed at the news her daughter just told her.

Holding Emma’s left hand in hers, the former bandit princess smiled down at the beautiful diamond ring on her ring finger. After years of enduring so many hardships, Emma Swan was finally getting some happiness in her life. Despite all the difficulties her lover brought her, all the happiness was worth it all. And now, after everything they had been through, they were finally sealing the deal.

Emma Swan and Nicholas Flamel were officially engaged!

“Emma, it’s beautiful.” Snow beamed with Henry at her side, “I’m so happy for you.”

“Me too, Mom.” Henry smiled.

“Thank you.” she said, not able to stop smiling, “I just never thought-”

“Well, if it makes you feel any better, I did.” Snow replied.

“So, how did Nicholas pop the question?” Henry smirked, “On board a romantic underwater cruise on the Nautilus?”

“Well…”

“Did he have the team serenade you?” he teased.

“Not exactly, but he did ask me to keep it a secret.” Emma grinned, “He’s kinda embarrassed by it.”

“Okay, now I have to know.” Snow laughed, “Oh, I can’t wait to tell your father that we have a wedding to plan.”

“Oh, about that; we’re gonna wait a little while before we start planning.” Emma sheepishly informed.

“Oh. Why?” Snow asked with a clearly fake smile as she tried to hide her disappointment.

“Well, Gideon’s still out there, and even though I defeated him once, we don’t really know what he’s up to, and I don’t feel like I can focus on anything else until I’ve really dealt with that.” she explained just as Regina and Zelena barged in, fireballs in hand.

“Mom?” Henry asked in confusion.

“What’s wrong? We heard Snow scream.” Regina huffed.

“Sorry. I couldn’t help it.” Snow said, bouncing on her heels in excitement.

“Why? What happened?” Regina asked as they put out the flames, “You scared the crap out of us, Snow. We thought it was the queen.”

“What do you mean?” Emma asked as Zelena noticed her hand.

“Is that an engagement ring?” she asked, perking up as she grabbed Emma’s hand and pulled it in to look at the ring.

“Oh. Yeah.” Emma smiled as the sisters looked at her in surprise, “Nicholas proposed.”

“Oh, Emma!” Regina gasped. Despite the tension between her and her brother, she was still happy for her closest friend. “I’m happy for you. I really am.”

“Thanks.” Emma said as they hugged, “Thanks a lot.”

“That just leaves the question; what happened to the Evil Queen?” Snow asked, “She’s still a snake, isn’t she?”

“I have no idea. She got loose. And if she has figured out a way to escape her mortal coil, well, there’s no telling what evil she could be up to.” Regina sighed in irritation, “We could certainly use Nicholas’ nose right about now.”

“Where is Nicholas, anyway?” Zelena asked as she looked for her brother.

“Oh, about that.” Emma awkwardly laughed, “Something weird happened on our way over here.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well…” she trailed, “We were walking over here to tell everyone the good news when it happened. We were walking down the sidewalk, arm in arm with Nicholas closest to the street. And as we were walking, we heard tires screeching from behind. Then all of a sudden, this weird arsenal on wheels rounded the corner, I swear it was like something the ninja turtles would drive. It had to be going like 55. And right as it came alongside us, the door slid open and about four sets of hands shot out, grabbed Nicholas, pulled him in, and drove off. Honestly, it was kinda creepy how they were able to snatch him without losing any momentum.”

“…Those League guys are so weird.” Henry dryly remarked.

“To Nicholas!” the alchemist’s friends cheered as they toasted their drinks together.

“Our little boy is all grown up!” Skinner comically sobbed in joy. 

“Yep! Seems like only yesterday we were watching your first kill as a LXG agent.” Mina wistfully teased.

“They grow up so fast!” Jekyll and Sawyer wailed.

“I may just be the new guy, but I’m so happy!” Gilles cheered.

“Well, guys, I do appreciate all this; really I do. There’s just one little thing.” Nicholas calmly said before making his outburst, “Why the hell did you kidnap me in a sedan of all things?!”

“First of all, it’s not a sedan.” Nemo corrected from the driver’s seat, “It is a fully armored and equipped automobile of my own design, fully stocked with all the weapons and resources we typically need and use while on assignments. Completely bullet proof. Laced with black mithril to ward off magical attacks, and capable of going zero to seventy-five in less than a minute. I call it-”

“The Leaguemobile?” Nicholas asked with a smirk. In response, Nemo slammed the brakes and stopped the vehicle dead in its tracks before jerking his head to uncharacteristically glare at his friend.

“Do not _ever_ call her that.” the captain warned with a glare that would have even scared the death god he worshiped.

“Duly noted.” he nervously chuckled, “Sorry.”

“Get out.”

“Aw, come on! I said I was sorry.” Nicholas stressed.

“No, I mean, we have arrived.” Nemo clarified as he got out.

“Where? What is all this?” he asked.

“Well, we had a pretty good feeling that the Savior was gonna say yes, so we got something a little special for ya.” Sawyer grinned.

“You did? Thanks, guys. You didn’t have to do that.”

“Pardon me.” Skinner said as he shoved a pair of nose plugs up Nicholas’ nose as Mina blindfolded him.

“Okay, you really didn’t have to do that.” Nicholas remarked as they led him outside, “What is all this, guys?”

“Well, we want it to be a surprise and that nose of yours would give it away.” Mina excitedly replied as she gently pushed him forward.

“Though, to be honest, it’s actually a gift for us all in the long run.” Jekyll added.

“And how.” Skinner nodded.

“Okay, okay, I get it. Can I see and smell what it is, now?”

“Surprise!” Mina cheered as swiped off the blindfold. As soon as she did, Nicholas saw a sight so divine, tears of joy flooded his eyes as an angelic voice singing Hallelujah filled his ears.

Standing in his own hometown was the most cherished establishment of all LXG agents; Aesop’s Tables!

The moment was absolutely beautiful. Until Nicholas realized that it was actually Gilles standing behind him who was singing Hallelujah. That part alone was the only minor mood killer. Nevertheless, the alchemist’s favorite tavern, which hadn’t been too in so many years had actually come to him. His prayers had been answered!

“I-I…what?” he stuttered in awe.

“Well, as luck would have it, Aesop was one of the people the Evil Queen snatched from the Land of Untold Stories. And even though we returned them all, our dear mixologist decided to stay and open up another branch of his business here instead of returning with the others.” Skinner explained before he and the others were pulled in for a sobbing hug from the alchemist.

“You’ve all made me so happy!” Nicholas sobbed in joy as his tears poured into waterfalls.

“Come on, y’all! Let’s all get wasted!” Sawyer cheered as they went into the bar.

“Yah!” they cried.

While the agents of the League were busy celebrating, the rest of Storybrooke’s defenders were facing a bigger problem. After the Evil Queen finished her little outing with Wish Robin, she sent a message to her other half. On the mysterious page Regina found so long ago, the one of her alternate happy ending, the queen wrote her demand for Regina to come to their office and finally settle their inner war. Naturally, Regina accepted. When she stormed into the office, she found her soulmate’s alternate self tied to a chair.

“You shouldn’t have come here.” he said.

“I couldn’t let anything happen to you.” she said before he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

“He’s not the one you should be worried about.” Evil Queen warned as she revealed the Shears of Destiny in her hand.

“Oh. So that’s your plan. You’re going to separate us.” Regina stated, “Then what?”

“Then I’m going to do what you tried to do to me; destroy you.” she vowed in hatred.

“It’s always about revenge with us, isn’t it?” Regina asked, “You know what? Trim away. After all the damage you’ve done because of me, I’m ready. This town’s just not big enough for the both of us.”

“At last we agree on something.” Evil Queen remarked before summoning the magical bond between them, ready to be severed, “See you on the other side.”

With a swift snip of the shears, the link between the two halves was finally severed. Now, after decades of regret and resentment, Regina and the Evil Queen were finally, officially separated and their own persons.

“Now let’s finish this.” Evil Queen declared as she summoned a sword.

“Gladly.” Regina said curtly as she summoned her own blade and began the fight.

“You tried to destroy me because you couldn’t stand looking at the darkness?” Evil Queen asked as they fought, “Well, I can’t stand looking at the light.”

“Oh, you don’t have to worry about that.” Regina assured as she threw her bowl of apples centerpiece at her and bashed her with the bowl, knocking her sword away.

“You really believe you’re better than me? Huh?! Stronger than me?!” Evil Queen shouted before throwing her other half into the large mirror on the wall, shattering it on impact, “Because you think you filled that nasty little hole inside you with love and friendship and hope? Well, you’ve been fooling yourself, because you haven’t. I’m still what’s inside of you. I’m all that will ever be there.”

“You’re wrong.” Regina dismissed before turning the trees on her wallpaper into actual branches to bind her other half, “All those things in my life you can’t stand looking at? They’re real. And now that I have them, you will never take them away from me.”

With a thrust of her hand, Regina ripped out the blackened heart from the queen’s chest, fully prepared to crush it into dust one last time.

“I hate you!” Evil Queen spat in hatred, fear and bitterness at her final defeat.

At first, Regina was going to say the same before finishing her off, but then, something else happened. At that moment, she thought back to a time when she realized just how much she hated herself. Whether as Regina or the Evil Queen, or both, that day, she would never know. But now, she decided to finally put an end to her cycle of hatred; just not in the way she originally planned.

“…But I don’t hate you. Not anymore.” she softly said as she undid the binds.

“What are you doing?” Evil Queen sharply exhaled.

“I’m going to do what we never could. I’m going to be brave for both of us and choose love over hate.” Regina replied before removing her own heart and trading some of her light for the queen’s darkness.

“What’s happening to me?” the queen asked as she trembled after her heart was returned.

“I gave you some of my love; love from Henry and Robin and the people I care most about. And in return, I’m taking back some of your darkness. _Our_ darkness.”

“Why?”

“You are a part of me. And I’m a part of you whether you like it or not. And now I love myself. Which means so should you.” Regina smiled before bringing her other half into a hug, finally achieving peace with herself. After taking a bit of time to collect themselves, the two women began to clean up the mess they made in their little brawl.

“Sorry about the mess.” Evil Queen apologized.

“Forget about it.” Regina chuckled as if she were talking to an old friend, “I’m more worried about the things that really matter, like Robin. Please tell me he’s okay.”

“Oh, yes. He’s-he’s fine.” Evil Queen assured, “I actually kept my word and sent him where he wanted to go. Home.”

“You mean, back to his land? The realm you created with your wish? How?”

“Gold was too busy worrying about his son to mind the shop.” Evil Queen replied as she pulled out the Apprentice’s wand, “I had a feeling I’d find a use for it.”

“So, he’s gone, then.” Regina sighed as she unfolded her page.

“I’m sorry you didn’t get to say goodbye.”

“It’s probably better like this.” she muttered.

“Do you still regret it? Not walking through the door of that tavern all those years ago?”

“If I had, I wouldn’t be here. I wouldn’t have Henry or my family or this town. I can’t imagine a life without all that.”

“So, Tinker Bell was wrong, then.” Evil Queen stated, “That isn’t your happy ending.”

“No, it isn’t. But it did give me hope when I needed it most, and that was just as important.”

“I wouldn’t mind a little bit of that right now.” she lamented.

“What, you mean hope?”

“Yes. Well…I’m not exactly sure what I’m supposed to do anymore. I need a place where I can get a fresh start. But where that is, I haven’t a clue.”

“I think I know someone who can help.” Regina grinned. Over at the diner, after calling over Henry, Snow, Zelena and, Regina explained her plan.

“You want me to use the pen to send her where?” Henry asked.

“Well, that’s the thing; I don’t know.” Regina replied, “It has to be someplace where she can start over, have a chance at a new life.”

“Isn’t this against the rules?” Snow asked her grandson.

“Actually, the rules say I’m not supposed to affect the lives of people in my book. She’s not; not technically, at least.” he clarified.

“Hand on a minute.” Zelena interrupted, “This is the Evil Queen we’re talking about. Wasn’t she just trying to murder us all?”

“And Zelena makes a great point.” Snow nodded, “This is the same exact person who put David and I under a sleeping curse like five minutes ago. Maybe she can start by undoing it before we trust her.”

“Well, she told me everything she knows about that. It won’t be easy, but at least we know where to start. As for her…”

“Regina, I know you want to believe in her, but not everyone is redeemable.” Snow pointed out.

“But I was. And that means she is.” Regina firmly argued, “And I’ve given her what she needs now to make the right choices. We just have to give her that chance, like you all gave me.”

“Heroes are so gullible.” Zelena chuckled, “When you wake up a few months from now to find her crushing your heart, don’t blame me.”

“That won’t happen.” Evil Queen said in a weak voice filled with guilt, “Well, I hope it won’t. All I can say is, I’m truly sorry for everything. And I promise to do the right thing now. And, Snow, I am so sorry for what I put you through; again.”

As if seeing the ghost of the young woman who saved her all those years ago, Snow nodded with tears in her eyes and accepted the queen’s apology.

“I knew you could be good, Mom.” Henry praised.

“Henry,” she said as her voice broke, “You’ve never called me that before. Mom.”

“It’s who you are.” he said before giving her a hug, “You ready, Mom?”

“Yes.” she nodded before turning to Regina, “Thank you.”

“Just promise me you won’t waste a single minute.” she smiled.

“I promise.” Evil Queen nodded, “And please, tell Abba I’m sorry; for everything.”

“…I will.” Regina promised before Henry’s magic sent her other half away.

“Where do you think she went?” Henry asked.

“There’s no way to know for sure, but…I have my ideas.” Regina smiled.

True enough, just as she expected, the queen found herself in the wish realm, and reunited with her former captive, ready to start her second chance with him.


	96. Grandmother's Little Helper

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or LXG, just my own original characters

What was only a few weeks ago for Storybrooke, but was twenty-eight years for others, a sleeping baby boy cradled in a basket flew through the air and realms, courtesy of his abductor. From the moment the Blue Fairy took off into the sky, her presence was immediately made known to a certain dark force that was always watching. This particular force was known and feared as the _Black_ Fairy.

As her name implied, she was fairy clad entirely in black and wielded the darkest of magics to achieve her ambitions. Every chance she had to take an infant from its home and family to add to her own, she took. It did not matter from which family or realm, they were all the same and would share the same fates as all those who came before. This particular child, however, was a different story. This child was her own grandson; Gideon.

As she flew into the realm she was banished to, what was originally only her prison now her own utopia, or dystopia whichever you prefer, she formulated her plans for this child with a malicious grin. Once inside the citadel she built up from the wasteland with her bare hands, she returned to her full size and gazed down at her grandson. As she did, several plumes of black magic smoke appeared in the chamber.

“Mother.” they obediently greeted with bows of worship.

“I’ve brought someone new, my children.” she said to men and women in black.

“Another child for the mines?” one asked with an arrogant grin towards the sleeping babe.

“No. Not this one. This child is different. He’s…precious.” she said in her own form of adoration, “He is my grandson. My own blood.”

“Truly, Mother?” a young woman asked with a sadistic sense of glee.

“Yes.” the Black Fairy said as she cooed at Gideon.

“Is he to be like us, then?” another asked, “One of your chosen?”

“No. He won’t be like any of you, at all. He’ll be something even greater. He is the key to finally free us all and bring about the end.” she smiled happily, yet darkly.

“Of what, Mother? Of what?” they all asked in unison.

“Everything.” she smiled before pulling away Belle’s book and cooing at Gideon again, “You won’t be needing this, anymore; _my_ Gideon.”

**OUaT**

During the time Regina spent dealing with the Evil Queen, and while Nicholas was celebrating their engagement with his friends, Emma found herself alone in their house, taking in the joy her new fiancé had brought her by gazing at her ring. She may have wanted to spent some quality time with him alone, but she knew just how eccentric the agents could be. However, her alone time was cut short.

“Such a lovely thing. Did the alchemist craft it himself?” Gideon asked as he appeared behind her, now wearing modern clothes instead of his robes.

“Gideon.” Emma snarled as she sprang ready to defend herself.

“Hello, Emma.” he arrogantly smiled.

“So, this is how you want to do round two? Huh? Try and kill me in my own house when no one’s around? That’s very brave.”

“Oh, no. That’s not why I’m here, Savior. I’ve come to offer you something.” Gideon replied.

“Like what? A deal? Taking after your old man, are you?” Emma mocked.

“A truce.” he corrected.

“You tried to kill me just so you could steal my powers and now you want a truce?” she skeptically asked, “Why?”

“Allow me to answer that question with a question. Why do you think I want your powers, Savior? If I just wanted power, I could’ve just killed my father and taken his when I had the dagger.”

“So why do you want my powers?”

“To kill the Black Fairy.” he curtly replied, “Surely you know what happened to me. Why I am the way I am. It’s all because of her. I thought having your powers added to my own would be enough to defeat her. Perhaps I was wrong.”

“What’s the matter, cold feet?”

“I realized it’s better to make friends than enemies. If I were to kill you and then go after the Black Fairy, I’d have far too many people trying to kill me. So instead, I’ve come to offer you an olive branch, so to speak. You agree to help me destroy the Black Fairy, and I’ll stop trying to kill you.”

“Why ask only for my help? Why not ask for the LXG’s?”

“Because only the Savior can defeat her. Your fiancé and his friends may be extraordinary, but the Black Fairy is on another level. No matter how strong they may be, only a Savior’s magic can finish her off. I’m the only person in this town who knows anything about her; what she’s capable of. You are the only person who can harm her. It only makes sense that we work together.”

“From what I gather, she’s worlds away and can’t get away long enough to do anything but kidnap babies. Why should I get myself involved in something that has nothing to do with me or my home?”

“Because soon enough, Savior, the Black Fairy will come to your home and raze it to the ground. Furthermore, there are hundreds of people suffering under her depravity, children that I swore to protect. You call yourself the Savior but refuse to help so many people in need when they don’t live in your perfect little town? Perhaps I should kill you and steal your powers, after all.”

In response to the threat, Emma used her magic to slam him against the wall and lightly choke him.

“You tried to kill me with that sword, and you failed, and now you think you can guilt trip me into fighting your battles because you’re not strong enough to do it yourself and top it all off by threatening to kill me? You really are your father’s son. I will never help you. You wanna save your people? Do it yourself, you brat!” Emma snapped as she hit him in the face hard enough to make his mouth bleed, “Now get out of my house.”

“Yes, you bested me.” Gideon admitted through the blood in his mouth, “But now we have a common cause, whether you know it or not. I will not give up my mission. So, either you help me willingly, or…well, you may want to consider planning your own funeral rather than your wedding; and perhaps your family’s, as well.”

With the conversation at its end, the son of the Dark One poofed away in orange smoke, leaving the Savior to consider his proposal. Although, she did not consider it the way he wanted. The following morning, after calling her mother to explain what happened, the two women barged into the pawn shop to run things by her attacker’s dear old dad.

“Gold! Get out here; now.” Emma demanded as she and Snow entered the shop, “I’ve got questions, and you better have answers.”

“Well, if you want answers, I suggest you start by asking nicely.” Rumple lectured as he joined them.

“I’m done with nice. Your son has a death wish, which, if he messes with me one more time, I’m happy to fulfill.” Emma warned.

“And I’m happy to help. We’ve been looking for some mother/daughter bonding.” Snow added.

“What did he do now?” Belle asked.

“In addition to several threats against my life? He’s threatening to kill everyone I love if I don’t help him destroy someone called the Black Fairy.” Emma answered, “Now, I know nothing about this fairy, but I’m guessing you do.”

“Yeah, she’s my mother.” Rumple casually replied earning looks of absolute shock from the two women, “She stole Gideon from the Blue Fairy, took him away to another realm where time moves differently, and tortured him for twenty-eight years.”

“Why would she do that?” Snow asked.

“To hurt me.”

“Her own son?” Snow asked.

“That tells you all you need to know about her.” he curtly remarked.

“Emma, please don’t hurt Gideon.” Belle pleaded, “He was not born evil. She made him this way. If you help him, though, he will be on the side of good. I-I’m certain.”

“Belle, I can only go with what I see and what I know.” Emma retorted.

“Then know this: belief in good and hope isn’t the only reason to spare my son and help him destroy the Black Fairy.” Rumple countered, “Right now we have an opportunity to not only destroy her and save him, but to save all of us.”

“She hasn’t threatened anyone else.” Emma said.

“That’s because she’s in another realm only able to break free long enough to steal other children before it pulls her back in. But if she should break free for good-”

“I think I can handle it. I handled _you_.” Emma cut off, “I broke your curse, the one you gave to Regina that started this whole mess.”

“Well, that’s just the thing, Miss Swan, the curse, that dark curse. It and all the darkness you’ve ever faced was born out of one twisted soul; the Black Fairy. You think Nimue and the other Dark Ones, or Hades were difficult? Not even they could hold a candle to her. And unless we try and stop her, she is gonna bring far worse.”

Over at the vault, Regina was continuing her attempts to break the sleeping curse on Snow and David’s heat. Unfortunately, she was not getting any results. As she continued her work, Henry decided to stop by for a visit.

“How’s it going, Mom?” he asked as he joined her.

“It’s going…slowly.” Regina replied as she hovered over her bubbling cauldron, “Casting a sleeping curse is one thing, but breaking it? Apparently, Snow and Charming have met their match; me.”

“If there’s anyone who can undo your work, it’s you.” Henry assured.

“Yeah. I’ve cleaned up almost all my evil half’s messes. Town line protection spell; check. I freed that dragon from the mirror world; check. Got Doctor Doolittle out of that cage. Don’t ask. I undid everything…except for the big one.”

“I wish I could help.”

“Maybe you can.” she said, “There’s a few ingredients in Emma’s shed I haven’t tried yet. Can you run over and grab them for me?”

“Of course. What do you need?” Henry asked as he pulled out a pencil and paper.

“Uh, tongue of newt. Not the eye; tongue.” Regina stressed before noticing something was wrong with her son, “Henry?”

Upon closer inspection, she noticed he was unresponsive as he was scribbling erratically with milky-white eyes staring intensely at the paper. When she looked down, instead of words, she saw strange symbols unlike anything she had ever seen.

“Henry?!”

While their shared son was having his bizarre experience, Emma was meeting up with her would-be-usurper inside the clock tower. When she finished climbing the stairs, she saw Gideon reading the same book Belle had given him the day he was born.

“When I first came to this town, that clock didn’t even move. Now look at it, ticking away, marking every magical second since my arrival.” she said trying to make small talk.

“Are you here for nostalgia, or have you come to give me an answer to my proposal?” Gideon asked, not even bothering to look up from his book.

“I saw your parents.” she replied, “It made me realize something, something I saw the last time that we chatted. The look of someone who needs hope. Henry had it all those years ago when he found me and told me I’m the Savior. Now you have it.”

“Are you saying you will help me to defeat the Black Fairy?” he asked.

“First things first.” Emma sharply exhaled, “You came here to kill me, which, call me crazy, doesn’t exactly inspire trust. So, I need a sign of good faith.”

“Hmm. And why?” he asked as he stood face to face to her, “It’s not like I could defeat you anyway, even with the sword.”

“Then hand it over.” she demanded curtly, “That’s what I want. I may not trust you, but I’ll at least know you won’t be able to use it like you wanted.”

“Hmm…fair enough.” Gideon relented before unsheathing the sword and giving it to her, “We have a deal.”

“Now then, why is the Black Fairy planning on coming to Storybrooke?” Emma asked after taking the sword.

“There’s something here she desperately wants; something with unbelievable power. She knows it’s here in Storybrooke, sealed away somewhere. She expected me to unleash it for her after I killed you. That way, when I would use your powers to permanently free her, she would find it and bind its power to her; much like how the spirit of the Dark One is tethered to my father.”

“What does killing me have to do with this thing?” Emma asked.

“I don’t know.” Gideon shrugged, “She never told me anything aside from for some reason, your death will break its seal and unleash it. My guess is that a past Savior sealed it away and her killing you would break it. As for how it got brought to Storybrooke, that remains a mystery.”

“So, how were you going to handle that in addition to everyone else going after you after you killed me?” Emma asked with a raised eyebrow.

“I’ll admit, I hadn’t thought that far ahead.” he confessed sheepishly, “But as long as you remain alive, the seal with remain unbroken. One less catastrophe to worry about.”

“Fine by me.” she muttered, “Alright then, how do we stop her if she’s trapped in another realm?”

“Normally, in order to summon the Black Fairy, a summoning ritual must be used. However, she’ll know it’s a trap if we use that method. What we need to do is summon her without alerting her. Then we trap her with squid ink and finish her off. After that, liberating my people will be a breeze.”

“So, how do we summon her without her knowing?”

“With this.” he replied as he held up his book.

“Your mom’s old book?” Emma skeptically asked.

“It spent as much time in the presence of the Black Fairy as I did. And, for a time, it was kept close to her dark magical possessions. We can use it as a conduit to bring her here long enough to immobilize and kill her.” Gideon explained.

“And in the event that doesn’t work and she gets the upper hand against us?” Emma asked only to receive a fearful expression that said it all, “Right. Well then, Mr. Gold, it’s your plan, so lead the way.”

“Gladly.” he smirked before poofing them away to their destination. When the smoke cleared, Emma looked around in both confusion and concern.

“The League’s mansion?” she asked, “What are we doing here?”

“It’s at the nexus of the most powerful magic in Storybrooke. We can create the portal inside there.” Gideon explained.

“And you think the agents who live in there are just going to let us conduct our little experiment in there, no questions asked?” she skeptically asked.

“No need to worry about that. I’ve been keeping tabs on them all and know for a fact all seven of your fiancé’s team are currently incapacitated from their celebration last night. We have the house to ourselves.” Gideon informed with a look in his eyes Emma did not care for.

After they entered the mansion and made their way into the foyer, Gideon arranged the necessary ingredients in the center of the room. Though the set up looked simple, Emma could already sense the magic in their air channeling into them.

“Now what?” she asked.

“You must focus your power at the book and pull on the remnants of the Black Fairy’s magical presence. Trust me, you’ll know her power when you feel it.” he said. However, before Emma could begin, the book began to shake erratically on its own. Then, before they could do anything to stop it, the book snapped open to an illustration of a giant, terrifying spider that began to tear its way through the page.

“I didn’t do anything.” Emma said in fear.

“No. She’s figured out what we’re doing.” Gideon corrected as the spider tore through and roared at them.

“What the hell is that?!” Emma cried.

“That is a message.” Gideon claimed before they through their magic at the beast. Unfortunately, it did nothing to stop it.

“Gideon, run!” she yelled before they broke away and ran upstairs.

Rather than waste its time and effort chasing after them, the spider stayed downstairs to coat the mansion in its webs, its traps to catch its prey. Looking down from the floor above the creature, Emma and Gideon tried to formulate a plan of attack.

“After we kill this thing, then what?” she asked in a hushed voice.

“Then we turn our sights to my grandmother.” he replied.

“I thought she was trapped in another realm.”

“That’s where you come in.” he said, “You’re the Savior. Your magic is the only thing strong enough to not only slice into her realm, but to allow me to at last defeat her.”

“So, you tried to kill me because you didn’t believe that I would help you get to another realm to get back to her?” she asked.

“Seemed like a good plan at the time.” Gideon awkwardly nodded, “In retrospect, perhaps not. I thought I could channel your powers via the sword to open a portal between worlds. I’m sorry, Emma. After everything I’ve done to you, you should just walk away.” he suggested before shots of the spider’s webbing flew between them.

“Move!” Emma cried.

While Emma and Gideon were trying to stay alive, Regina and Henry were trying to figure just what in the hell happened to the teenager. As they sat on one of Regina’s loveseats, Henry just stared at the images he drew in confusion.

“What is this?” he asked.

“You tell me. You wrote it; before you passed out.” Regina informed.

“I-I have no idea.” he said, “M-Maybe it’s my Author powers? But I didn’t use the pen, and I didn’t write this in my book. Mom, why did this happen?”

“I-I-I really don’t know. But lucky for us, I know someone who might.” Regina informed. After poofing them away, the mother and son found themselves walking through the mental ward/prison of the hospital.

“I don’t think he’s ever had visitors.” the desk nurse informed as she led them to a specific cell.

“Shocking.” Regina sarcastically scoffed.

“Do you really think he’ll be able to help us?” Henry asked, “I mean, he’s not exactly our biggest fan.”

“Well, it’s worth a shot.” she defended as the nurse unlocked the cell, “Henry, if your problem is being the Author, why not ask the last one? Hello, Isaac. We need to talk.”

“Oh,” the former Author mischievously chuckled, “This ought to be good.”

After explaining the situation, and presenting the mysterious symbols to the mediocre author, Isaac silently analyzed the images while his captors loomed over his shoulders.

“Well?” Regina asked.

“Shh, shh.” he shushed with a raised finger, “I’ve heard of this sort of thing happening, but it never happened to me. Not that I’m complaining. Well, actually, yes, I am complaining. You’ve had me locked up for how long now, and what did I really do to you that was so bad?”

“Tried to kill us all.” Regina replied without missing a beat, “So, if you want to earn your way back, maybe you can start by telling us what this means. Or maybe I should give my brother a call and he and his extraordinary friends can come over and start asking you questions?”

“Oh, no, no, no, no! That won’t be necessary.” Isaac fearfully assured. He may have been locked up during the Promised Day, but as the Author, he knew better than most never to cross the LXG.

“Then tell us what’s going on. Why did Henry write this?” she demanded.

“I propose a trade.” Isaac offered, “I’ll tell you what you want to know, and in exchange…”

“What?”

“I want out of here; for good. I wanna go back to New York. I’m gonna need a car; something sporty. Ooh! Maybe a Porsche.”

“You got to be kidding me.” Regina scoffed.

“Lamborghini will do.” he smirked.

“Henry, call your uncle.” she said without breaking eye contact with the weasel.

“With pleasure.” Henry muttered as he pulled out his phone.

“You wanna know what’s going on? You want answers?” Isaac hotly asked, “Then freedom, sports car, Big Apple. And, since you’re making this so difficult, ‘Hamilton’ tickets.”

“Hey, Uncle. What would you say to beating up that washed up Author we’ve got locked up in the hospital?” Henry asked as he pretended to speak with Nicholas over the phone.

“His Author powers are taking over!” Isaac exclaimed in panic gaining their attention, “He thinks he controls them, but he doesn’t. They are more powerful than you know.”

“Well, what’s going to happen to him?” Regina asked in concern.

“Those trances; they’ll become more frequent, more intense. He might even end up in a cell right next to me.” the man smirked.

“Well, what can I do to help?”

“You can start by giving me what I want.” he demanded.

While those negotiations were underway, Emma and Gideon were continuing their struggle to avoid the spider’s attacks. Having enough of spinning around trying to shoot them, the beat leapt up to the second floor to charge at them. Thankfully, they were able to escape it by running through the halls and managed to get downstairs. Unfortunately, all the doors and windows were completely covered with the thick webs.

“It’s a dead end.” Emma exhaled when they ran into the sun room.

“Yes, so it is.” Gideon nodded as he panted before shoving her into the webs.

“What the hell are you doing?!” she shrieked as he took back the sword.

“I already told you.” he wickedly smiled, “Once you’re dead, I’ll be able to channel your powers and use this sword to open a portal to my home.”

“I was helping you.”

“Yes, like a naïve fool.” he madly chuckled.

“The spider…you brought it here.” she realized, “You knew you couldn’t kill me on your own.”

“Alas, you were far stronger than I anticipated. But, no. That’s not the only reason why.”

“What else, then?!” Emma shouted as she struggled to get free.

“Algmata Tier.” he smoothly answered with a dark grin, freezing her in shock.

“How do you know that name?” Emma asked.

“Did you really think I came all this way just so I could steal your powers and betray the only family I’ve ever known?” Gideon scoffed, “No, Savior. Killing you will allow me to free my mistress from her prison, but it will also unleash the power Her Holiness will need to achieve her destiny. Your death will finally unleash it, and when the Black Fairy arrives, she will dominate it and bring all of existence to its knees. It will be glorious!”

“So-so, it-it was never about destroying her? You want her to get ahold of this thing?” Emma asked.

“I owe everything to her. It’s like I told you, I am who I am because of her; because of her love. You’re merely an obstacle in her way. One I am more than happy to dispose of.” he said with pure adoration in his voice.

“What does Algmata Tier have to do with me?!” she shouted.

“Don’t know, don’t care.” Gideon shrugged, “You shouldn’t, either. You’ll be dead soon. It is such a pity, though. Such a waste of such…lovely potential.” he smirked as raised some of her hair and deeply inhaled its scent.

Having enough of the arrogant creep, Emma was able to head-butt the brat’s nose hard enough to make him stagger away.

“Such a pity.” he laughed, “But no matter. It’s worth it. Oh. I think I sense it coming this way. Soon Algmata Tier will belong to Her Holiness. The age of the Black Fairy begins tonight! Adieu, Savior.”

With his own evil laughter, Gideon poofed himself away. As soon as he left, the spider crawled its way towards the immobile Savior, eager to make a meal out of her.

“Where’s a 40-foot can of Raid when you need it?” she asked herself as she struggled to get free. Once she was, she readied her magic to finish the monster. “Okay, Charlotte, let’s do this.”

Even though Emma put all she had into her next attack, it still wasn’t enough to squash the massive bug. In its anger at being attacked by its food, the spider threw its webs and proceeded to wrap Emma in its suffocating stands like an ordinary house fly. As this happened, Gideon was in the clock tower, eagerly awaiting his pet to finish her off. As she drew closer and closer to death, the sword destined to kill her began to glow with the magic Gideon needed.

“It is time.” he said in excitement before slicing open a portal, “The era of light is over. Now begins the era of darkness! Hahaha!”

As the spider slowly reeled the unconscious Emma closer to its maw, the sound of gunfire rang through the air as one of its multiple eyes erupted in blood. Hissing in pain and fury, the giant arachnid jerked its head to see its attacker from the floor above.

Looking down at his new prey, Allan Quartermain coolly glared down past the muzzle of his riffle and readied his next shot. Accepting the challenge, the spider fired another shot of webbing at the old man, only to see it burn away in violet cinders when it reached his proximity. Quartermain then took the chance to shoot the monster again in another of its eyes. Once it let go of Emma’s line, that was when the Gentleman changed his attack.

Jumping down to the spider’s level, not once breaking eye contact, Quartermain pulled out his bayonet knife and topped his weapon with it, assuming his bizarre fighting stance. When the spider screeched at him, Quartermain responded with a roar like that of a tiger’s. Had Emma been conscious to witness the standoff, she would have noticed Quartermain was fighting like a spearman would during a hunt.

Hoping to make quick work of this stranger, the spider launched a strong strand of webbing that wrapped around one of Quartermain’s wrists. However, before it could do to him what it did to Emma, Quartermain grunted and lit the chain-like webs on fire with purple flames. Since they were still connected, the spider’s mouth was horribly burned from the mysterious flames. Taking the chance, the old man rushed in close and stabbed the spider’s lower jaw with his weapon and fired the gun’s loaded shot. In its pain, the spider tried to smack the man away with its larger front limb. However, Quartermain caught it with ease and stopped it from moving him more than just a few feet. With an angry grunt, Quartermain crushed the monster’s limb with his mighty grip, broke it off from the rest of it, and tossed it aside where it burned away in more of the strange flames.

Having enough of the fight, Quartermain coated his entire weapon in the purple flames and proceeded to spin it and attack in a fashion that even the Red Viper of Dorne would have been impressed with. In both pain and fear, the spider cowered from the powerful old man it tried to make a meal out of. It had to have been more than twenty-feet between them after the spider cowered against the wall. Showing no mercy, Quartermain simply kept firing his blazoned weapon as he walked towards the monster. 

Once he was close enough, with his eyes shining as purple as his flames, Quartermain ignited his hand, grabbed the arachnid by its pincer and said, “Hush.”

And with that, and a crushing clench of his hand, the spider erupted into purple flames and disintegrated entirely; not even leaving a trace of ashes.

Taking a moment to compose himself, Quartermain set the floor on fire with his flames and willed them to only burn away the webs that covered his home and the unconscious Savior. Once that was all cleared, he tried to wake her.

“Savior, wake up.” he said as he gently shook her, “Ms. Swan? Emma!”

Gasping back to life, Emma looked around in panic as the old man gently raised her up.

“Easy. Easy.” he soothed to the frantic woman.

“Wha-what? Q-Quartermain?” she asked in shock and confusion.

“It’s alright. It’s gone.” he assured her gently.

“But so’s Gideon.” she gasped as she tried to jolt up only to get a head rush.

“ _Easy_.” he urged as he caught her and led her to the room’s sofa, “Take a breath. You’ll get him next time.”

“No, no. You don’t understand!” Emma cried, “He’s going to open a portal to free the Black Fairy! And-and-and she’s after Algmata Tier, and-”

“Algmata Tier?” he interrupted.

“It’s-it’s a-”

“I know what it is, Emma.” Quartermain gently halted with a raised hand.

“Then you know I can’t just sit around waiting for her to get here and take it!”

“Trust me.” Quartermain lightly chuckled, “Algmata Tier isn’t going anywhere, anytime soon. Especially not with the Black Fairy.”

“Wait, I don’t understand.” Emma said, thinking she was still trying to wake up, “You know about Algmata Tier?”

“Of course I do.” Quartermain calmly stated as he patted his chest, “He’s sealed away…in _me_.”

“…What?” Emma gasped in shock. Before she could ask any further questions about the atomic bombshell that had just been dropped, the door flew open with Gold rushing in.

“Ms. Swan?” he asked as he barged in, “What happened? Where’s Gideon?”

“Your son tried to kill me; again.” Emma spat, “I’m sorry, but your son cannot be saved. He’s evil.”

“Emma!” Snow called out with Belle at her heels. As soon as she saw her, she rushed to her side and threw her arms around her.

“Are you okay?” her mother asked in concern.

“Yeah. I’ll never look at Spider-Man the same way again, but I’m fine.” she dryly said.

“Rumple, where’s our boy?” Belle asked her husband.

“Your boy ran off to open a portal to free the Black Fairy. _After_ he created a giant spider to kill me.” Emma snapped.

“I thought you were helping him?” Snow asked.

“I was, but Dark One Junior had different plans. He played me.” Emma replied.

“He came to you for help, though.” Belle defended.

“Belle, I know you want to believe the best in him, but it’s like you said; evil is not born, it is made, and that is what the Black Fairy did to him.” Emma snapped.

“Careful with your accusations, Ms. Swan.” Rumple warned.

“It’s not an accusation. He told me so, himself, before he left me to die. And from the way he made it sound, he cares a hell of a lot more about her than either of you. Worships her, more like it.”

“He needs help.” Rumple defended, “You’re a hero, Ms. Swan. Gideon is my son.”

“You can’t keep cleaning up his messes, Gold. He needs to take responsibility for his actions.”

“Are you threatening my child?” he asked in a dark tone.

“I don’t have a choice. He’s tried to kill me twice. I’m not gonna give him a third chance.” Emma warned.

“Alright, Savior. If you cross my son, I will do what I must to stop you.” Rumple countered.

“ _We_ didn’t start this fight.” Snow reminded matching her daughter’s glare to the Dark One’s, “Let’s go home.”

“Whatever business you lot need to settle, do it elsewhere.” Quartermain gruffly snapped, dropping the disposition he showed Emma, “All of you, _out_.”

“He’s ripping us apart.” Belle scoffed after she and the others left, “Gideon has been here a matter of days, and look at all the destruction he’s caused.”

“Don’t listen to them. They only see the world in black and white. We can still bring him back to us, Belle.”

“How?” his wife asked.

“Look, the Black Fairy isn’t here with him now. We are. Whatever damage that woman did to him in the past, it’s over. I promise. We _will_ save our son.” Rumple vowed as he took her hand in his.

As the estranged couple tried to comfort themselves, their wayward son was located deep in the woods with an unbreakable, malicious smirk on his face. As he strode up to the cliff that oversaw all of Storybrooke he spoke to the lone figure already gazing out into the night’s darkness.

“You have done well, Gideon.” the figure said as he kneeled before them. When they turned, the Black Fairy looked down at her grandson with dark smile of her own. “Very well.”

“All that I do is for you, Grandmother.” he said as though he were speaking to a god, “But the Savior still lives. And Algmata Tier has not been unleashed.”

“All in due time, my sweet. All in due time.” she softly said as she gently caressed his cheek, which he absorbed with adoration.

“Algmata Tier will be unleashed soon enough. We just need to give its host a little…incentive to set it free.”

“By killing the Savior.” Gideon nodded.

“Yes. But, this needs to be handled delicately. Otherwise, we may be here in the putrid realm of light longer than anticipated.” the Black Fairy spat in disgust, “You have played your part well, my dark, handsome hero. But now it’s time for me to step in and play the game.”

“As you command, my dark mistress.” Gideon humbly bowed even further.

“We must not hesitate. We must act now if we are to extinguish the hope from these pitiful denizens of the light. And you, my children, shall be my instruments of darkness.” she said to the large crowd of black-clad men and women wearing the same robes Gideon wore when he arrived.

“By the Black Fairy’s will, it shall be done.” they all recited in unison as they kneeled before their mistress.

“Soon,” she said as she gleamed out to the town she would tear to shreds, “Very soon, the Final Battle will commence. And then…all shall fall into darkness and rejoice. Hehe!” she insanely giggled.


	97. Awake

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or LXG. But I DO own Algmata Tier

The morning following the arrival of the Black Fairy and her many followers, Regina called Emma and Nicholas over to the loft to discuss with them, David, and the Hooks about what Isaac explained to her and Henry before they let him ditch town.

“The Final Battle?” Emma asked as she and Nicholas tried to make sense of Henry’s writing.

“According to that weasel, Isaac, that’s what these hieroglyphs mean.” Regina explained.

“We really are at the end of the book.” Emma exhaled as she flipped through the book’s pages.

“We should have seen this coming.” David scolded himself.

“There’s no way you could.” Emma defended.

“Yes. Back in the Enchanted Forest, when Rumplestiltskin told us you were destined to be the Savior, he said you would have to fight the Final Battle. We thought that meant breaking the original curse. We-we never would have put you through that wardrobe if we knew it was gonna lead to this.” David said, his voice and body racked with guilt.

“It’s fine.” his daughter assured, “I’m not gonna lose. Come on, Henry. Let’s go to the library and see if we can find something to decipher exactly what this means.”

As she passed the book back to her son, Emma’s hand began to shake again. Needless to say, this made her and everyone else a bit concerned.

“It’s going to be okay, Mom.” Henry comforted.

“I know.” she nodded, not completely sure she believed it.

“I’ll see if we have anything at the mansion to decipher it while you guys are at the library. Maybe Jekyll came across something like that during his time as the warden.” Nicholas offered as they left.

“Her story can’t end like this.” David sighed as he rubbed his face in frustration, “Some kind of fiery monster is out there waiting to pounce on her, her parents are stuck apart in a sleeping curse. She can’t go into the Final Battle without her family.”

“She won’t, mate.” Killian vowed, “I swear to you, we will protect her at any cost.”

“Yeah.” Ariel nodded firmly. They may not have had magic or as skilled in combat as the town’s agents, but they were still ready to lay down their lives for the woman they considered and loved as family.

“I agree. But unless you or Snow sleepwalk, Emma’s gonna have to settle for only one Charming.” Regina pointed out.

“Unless you break the curse you put us under.” David argued.

“I know, and I’m working on an antidote. This kind of magic takes time, testing, and experimenting to be sure.”

“Testing? You have something?” he desperately asked.

“Yes, I may have something, but it could be dangerous or life-threatening.” she warned.

“Our daughter is about to face the biggest fight of her life. We’ll do whatever it takes to be with her.” David said on both his and Snow’s behalf, “Now, whatever you have it’ll work. It has to. I mean, it’s not like it’s the first curse we’ve ever woken up from.”

“Are you sure?” Regina asked.

“Mate, if this doesn’t work-”

“It _will_ work. I have to believe it does.” David stressed.

“Alright.” Regina relented, “Switch out with Snow so I can explain everything to her. I’ll call Zelena head to the vault and get everything ready. I’ll send us there with my magic as soon as she’s awake.”

“Right.” David nodded in thanks.

“In the meantime, we’ll get the dwarves and start looking for Gideon, again. That sea slug has a lot to answer for.” Ariel said as she popped her knuckles. 

After the Hooks left and David switched with Snow, Regina explained the procedure to her step-daughter after alerting Zelena. It would be a long shot, but if it worked, Emma would have both of her parents at her side for the Final Battle. Once they were all at the vault, Snow sat next to her sleeping husband as the two sisters put the final touches on their experiment.

“Are you sure you don’t want to tell Emma what you’re doing?” Regina asked.

“Well, we know what she would say. She wouldn’t let us take the risk. I agree with David. We have to do this now.” Snow firmly decided, “So, how does this work?”

“Sorry, but this is going to hurt.” Regina apologized before she tore out Snow’s half of her heart while Zelena tore out David’s, “The curse’s magic has been split between both halves of your shared heart. It’s what keeps you from being awake at the same time.”

“This potion clears up the darkness, and then you and Charming will be able to make us all retch with your sweet nothings in no time.” Zelena teased with her typical dry sense of humor.

“Right.” Snow nodded, “And thank you, Zelena, for your help.”

“Save it. I’m only doing this for my brother’s sake. He’s marrying your daughter, she makes him happy, and she can’t completely do that if she’s unhappy about her mummy and daddy being asleep all the time.” Zelena brushed off, clearly still not used to anyone but Nicholas giving her any kind of praise or thanks. After they pulled the halves out of the potion, they all saw the curse inside fade away.

“It’s working.” Snow said in hope before the sisters returned them. However, seconds after they did, something went wrong. Both Snow and David jerked in pain as soon as their bodies readjusted to the return of their heart.

“What the hell?” Regina rhetorically asked.

“What happened?” Snow asked through her grunt of pain.

“The Evil Queen happened.” Regina realized, “She must have baked a failsafe in her curse.”

“Our potion didn’t weaken its magic its magic. It weakened your heart.” Zelena clarified.

“What does that mean?”

“It means by the end of the day, you’ll both be asleep; with no way of waking up.” Regina answered.

“So, Emma will fight the Final Battle without us.” Snow realized in horror.

Later, after Regina sent the couple back to the loft, Snow needed to take a moment by herself and collect her thoughts. So, after bundling up and heading over to Granny’s, she made a recording for David that explained what happened at the vault and what this meant for their daughter. After she switched back with him, he watched the video and reluctantly showed it to Emma over at her house.

“You did what?” she gasped.

“We’re sorry, Emma. We were just trying to make things better.” David apologized.

“You made it a hell of a lot worse.” she snapped as all three Mills siblings stood by her feeling just as guilty, “You keep blaming yourselves. It’s not your fault. There’s nothing you could have changed.”

“We know, but that doesn’t mean we’re gonna let you face it on your own.” David defended before Snow’s recording caught his attention. When the princess had made the video, there had been numerous pink petals fluttering behind her, blowing in from the woods. “And you won’t. I think your mother just found a way to break the sleeping curse. She just didn’t realize it.”

“Flower petals?” Regina asked as they all looked at the image.

“Those aren’t just any petals, Regina.” David grinned in triumph.

“Pretty boy is right.” Zelena agreed as she took a look, “Those are pixie petals.”

“Exactly. And pixie dust might just be strong enough to wake us up.” he nodded.

“Well, that’s convenient.” Nicholas remarked in surprise.

“More than you know.” Zelena added, “Pixie flowers only grow for one reason; in reaction to the presence of great evil.”

“So, if these flowers just started sprouting up all over Storybrooke…”

“I think the Author had the right idea of skipping town.” she quipped.

“Oh, don’t go getting cold feet on us now, big sis.” Nicholas teased with a smirk.

“As if.” she scoffed with a roll of her eyes, “But whoever you’re meant to face in this Final Battle, Emma, they’re already here.”

“So that means…” Henry trailed.

“Gideon got what he wanted.” Emma nodded, “The Black Fairy is here.”

“…Mother-pussbucket.” Nicholas cursed.

Sure enough, the fairy in question was indeed in Storybrooke, and she wanted at least one person in particular to know; her real son, Rumplestiltskin. Over at her son’s shop, while his back was turned, she and Gideon casually entered.

“Hello, Rumple.” she greeted with an evil giggle, “I believe the greeting you’re looking for is, ‘Hello, Mother.’”

“…How did you get here?” Rumple asked, taken aback with his unexpected guest.

“I had a little help.” she smiled with a nod at Gideon.

“Father.” he wickedly smiled.

“Gideon. So, taking the Savior’s power, becoming a hero; all a ruse in order to bring her here.” Rumple put together.

“Don’t feel discouraged. Lies and deceit are our family’s prime qualities.” Gideon mocked as Belle came in from the back.

“Wh-What’s going on?” she asked, clearly shocked to see the woman she once saw so many years ago as Rumple’s maid.

“Belle. So lovely to make your acquaintance.” the intimidating woman politely greeted with a, surprisingly, warm smile.

“Gideon,” Belle said, ignoring her mother-in-law, “No matter what you have done to help her, you can always come back to us.”

“Oh, he’s not going anywhere.” she chuckled.

“We’ll soon see about that.” Rumple challenged as he reached for his secret stash of squid ink. However, before he could even uncork it, his mother effortlessly summoned his dagger directly to her hand, putting a stop to his defiance.

“Put it down.” she calmly ordered, “There’s Mummy’s good boy. Oh, don’t look so surprised. I practically invented dark magic. Well, _perfected_ more like. But worry not. I won’t force you to do anything. When you join me, it will be because you want to.”

“Is that why you’re here?” Rumple asked with a sneer, “Because I will never join you.”

“Oh, when the darkness comes, you’ll change your mind. And then, Rumplestiltskin, we can finally be the family we were always meant to be.” she said in a motherly tone as she gave the dagger back before poofing herself and Gideon away.

Once night had fallen over town, with snow gently covering it in both darkness and cold, everyone had scattered to locate the source of the pixie petals. Since Snow could fall asleep at any moment, Nicholas joined her and Emma as they searched. Plus, since Nicholas was basically allergic to magic, he stood a better chance at finding them than anyone else.

“The winds were blowing in from the north, which means they must have come from around here.” Snow explained as they trudged through the snow.

“Yeah,” Nicholas said in discomfort as his body tingled from the magic in the air, “I’d say we’re pretty close. Oh, god, it’s like I’m covered in ants!”

“Look; down there.” Emma alerted as she looked down to find a small field of the pink flowers blooming from the snow, “Wait. Zelena said these flowers only grow in the presence of evil.”

“So if there’s a whole field of them…” Snow trailed.

“Oh, crap.” Nicholas bluntly quipped in realization.

“And here I was hoping to make an entrance.” the Black Fairy playfully said as she emerged from behind a tree. Without hesitating, Snow readied her bow and Nicholas readied his lightning claws.

“Stay away from my daughter.” Snow ordered.

“So, you’re the Black Fairy.” Emma stated.

“Oh, please. Call me Fiona.” she darkly smiled, “I’ve been waiting a very long time to meet you, Emma. You’ve lasted much longer than any of the other Saviors who came before you.”

“So I guess you’re the one I fight in the Final Battle.” Emma pointed out.

“I created the Dark Curse. You were born to break it. I’ve been destined to clash with a Savior since the beginning of time. I’m glad it’s one of your caliber.”

“How in the hell did you get here?” Nicholas asked before Gideon joined them.

“Evening, everyone.” he patronizingly smiled with a small wave.

“I really hate that family.” Nicholas sighed as he briefly dropped his claws in irritation.

“So, is this it?” Emma asked, “We duke it out here, tonight?”

“Oh, no.” Fiona assured, “You’ll know when the Final Battle begins. Everyone will.”

“We won’t let you hurt Emma.” Snow declared.

“Is that so? Because it’s going to be hard to stop me when both Mummy and Daddy are fast asleep.” she giggled, “Oh, Gideon.”

“Yes, Grandmother?” he asked, not taking his arrogant, smirking face off of them.

“Do it.”

“With pleasure.” he grinned before destroying all the pixie flowers behind them.

“Oh, that little shit!” Nicholas cursed as he and Emma looked in horror.

“It’s better this way.” Fiona continued, “No mother should have to watch their child die.”

“I think we’ve heard enough!” Nicholas bellowed before blasting his lightning at the arrogant duo. However, just as it was about to make contact, Fiona calmly raised her hand and caught the attack with ease.

“Impressive.” she causally praised as she examined the bolts of lightning struggling to escape her clutches, “Alchemically amplified static electricity, yes? Very impressive. Still,” she said before launching the attack into the clouds above, lighting the whole sky with lightning.

“Not good enough.” she taunted with a mocking laugh, “It’ll take more than that to defeat me, _dearies_. I came here with the intention of fulfilling my goal. I’ve spent millennia preparing for the Final Battle. You cannot win.”

“Yes, she will.” Snow denied, “Because no matter what happens, curse or no curse, she will always have her family. But you’ll always be alone.”

Instead of countering Snow’s claim, Fiona’s grin simply grew bigger. The next thing everyone knew, a little over a dozen of the devout followers of the Black Fairy magically appeared behind their mistress, all of them wearing the same dark robes Gideon wore when he arrived.

“And who are they? Organization XIII?” Nicholas sarcastically remarked, clearly unimpressed.

“These are my children. And they are so excited to play with you Extraordinary Gentlemen. They’ll be sure to eliminate all of you before the Final Battle. Until then, dearies. Ta-ta.” Fiona said before they all disappeared in magical smoke.

“…Why is it that everything that happens in this godforsaken town is so overly difficult?” Emma flatly asked.

“Hell if we know.” Nicholas replied as he and Snow shook their heads.

Later that, Snow and David finally succumbed to the full effects of the curse and were both rendered completely asleep. Despite the failed attempt earlier, Regina managed to come up with one more idea. If it worked, Snow and David would awake. If it failed, everyone who participated would be cursed as well. However, everyone was willing to take that risk for the people who sacrificed so much for them. While Emma, Regina and all the others of their group gathered Snow and David’s closest friends and supporters, Nicholas returned to the mansion to explain the current situation to the team. It wasn’t out of any remaining resentment he had towards the couple, it’s just that he would not have been able to help share their curse like Regina planned. The rest of the agents, however, still did resent the Charmings for their intentions to banish them and Nicholas after the Promised Day. So, they would have refused had they been informed earlier. All of them, except for Quartermain were present for the meeting.

“The Final Battle, you say?” Nemo asked as they all sat in their respective chairs in the debriefing room.

“That’s what both Henry and the Black Fairy said.” Nicholas nodded.

“I’ve never heard of this fairy before, let alone this ‘Final Battle’ thing.” Sawyer remarked.

“Neither have I.” Mina added, “Jekyll, did you ever hear anything about her during your time as warden?”

“Just the occasional rumor every decade, or so.” Jekyll shrugged, “From what I understand, since she was already restrained to another realm, the League had no interest in eliminating her; even if she was responsible for the disappearances of infants.”

“That may have been a mistake.” Nicholas warned, “She caught my lightning attack like it was a wiffle ball. Not even Rumple’s ever been able to anything like that. We may be facing a bigger threat than the Homunculi.”

“You really think she’s that dangerous?” Nemo asked in surprise.

“She caught a blast of lightning in her bare hands!” Nicholas emphasized, “I don’t even think Quartermain could do that. Speaking of which, where is our terrifying leader? I’ve barely seen the old man since this whole ordeal with Gideon started.”

“Like he told any of us.” Skinner scoffed, “Regardless, how many newcomers did you see in the woods?”

“Like twelve or thirteen of ‘em.” Nicholas shrugged, “But something tells me there’s a hell of a lot more than just those assholes waiting to strike. The way this Fiona woman was talking, well…”

“Yes?” Mina asked.

“As much as I hate to admit it, it reminded me of myself when I was planning for the Promised Day.” he admitted.

“Well, from what you told us, it sounds like she’s put a lot of thought and planning for this Final Battle of hers.” Jekyll mentioned, “Perhaps she has taken a similar approach to preparing for it as we all did for that day.”

“Yeah, but we only planned out who we were gonna call in to give us a hand and how we were gonna set up the town’s defenses once the enemy got here.” Sawyer reminded, “Not to mention we knew what the enemy could do, what they wanted, and what they were going to do to accomplish their goal. This time, on the other hand, we know absolutely nothing about this woman. We don’t know why she’s here beyond killing Emma, what she is capable of aside from creating curses, what she’s gonna do for this battle of hers, or even when the hell it is. We’re completely in the dark, here.”

“He’s got a point.” Skinner admitted.

“Sad, but true.” Mina nodded.

“Well, whatever it is she wants, I could tell it’s more than just killing Emma.” Nicholas retorted, “Emma’s strong, but to bring that many people and go through all this trouble with Gideon and getting here? And to not even attack her when they were face to face? She’s not concerned with Emma. I don’t think killing Emma is her main goal.”

“I wonder what that is then.” Nemo mused as he stroked his beard.

Back on main street, Fiona took in the brisk wintery breeze and basked in the dark of the night. While most would try to avoid such darkness and cold, it was all the Black Fairy had ever known, so it was only natural to be comfortable to her. However, that was not the reason why she was standing outside all alone. She was waiting for a certain someone to join her. And it just so happens, that person arrived right behind her.

“There’s never enough time, is there?” she asked her appointment as he joined her, “Whether it’s fast or slow or even if it doesn’t move at all, but especially when the end is near.”

“I’ve lived a long life. Not as long as yours, or your son’s, but it has been a long life.” Quartermain said as he stoically gazed at the woman, “In that time, I have known brief moments of joy and love, and extended periods of torment, anger, grief, and rage. But in all that time, no one has ever been foolish enough to come after us; to come after Algmata Tier and I.”

“Are you calling me a fool, _Macumazana_?” Fiona teased.

“Don’t call me that.” Quartermain warned, “No one in this, or any realm these days has the right to address me by that name. And, yes. You _are_ a fool. A fool for thinking you are capable of containing Algmata Tier’s power. I don’t know why you want it. I don’t care. This is your only warning, and it extends to all your followers, and especially your arrogant grandson. Abandon this futile ambition, take your followers, return to your prison, and never return. Otherwise, I will kill you all.”

“How considerate of you to offer a warning to one such as myself.” Fiona said, pretending to be flattered, “As such, allow me to offer you the same courtesy. Give up Algmata Tier, slit your own wrists, and watch while I subjugate this putrid realm of light and all its weak and feeble inhabitants as you slowly die.”

Having said what he had to say, and seeing there was no point in further speaking with this deranged woman, Quartermain said nothing before turning on his heels and walking away. He gave her his warning. If she refused and instead decided to make a declaration of war, then he would gladly reciprocate.

“I will take that power from you.” Fiona called out as Quartermain continued to walk away, “And I will engulf this realm in darkness. You cannot stop me on your own. The only chance you’ll have is to unleash the very power I seek. And when you do, I will snatch it from you and end your life.”

“My life already ended a long time ago.” Quartermain softly said to himself as he walked away.


	98. Where Bluebirds Fly

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT or LXG

The morning following Fiona and Quartermain’s confrontation seemed peaceful enough, all things considered. Since this was far from the first villainous threat made against the town, the heroes were handling it like any other day. While everyone else was enjoying their morning, Zelena was hurrying as fast as she could to prepare her wailing daughter’s breakfast.

“Hang on a minute, darling. Mummy’s coming. I’m going as fast as I can.” she said over the baby’s cries as she checked the bottle. Once it was ready, she entered the baby’s room with a kind motherly smile, not noticing that the crying suddenly stopped. “Is somebody ready for their breakfast? Robin?”

For a brief moment, fear shot straight through her entire body when she did not see her baby laying in her crib. Before she could react, however, the voice of an intruder replaced her fear with rage.

“Keeping a watchful eye on an infant can be so hard all by yourself.” Fiona taunted as she bounced Robin in her arms, “But worry not. I have plenty of experience, and I am happy to help.”

“Give me back my daughter.” Zelena snarled as she took the baby back.

“Oh, can’t I hold her a little longer?” Fiona asked with a fake pout, “I never grow tired of that new-baby smell.”

“Lay a hand on her again, and you’ll lose it.” she threatened.

“Oh, no need to be so hostile, especially around the child.” Fiona chuckled, “I came here because I heard you were wicked, and I thought we could help each other.”

“Why would I help you?” Zelena scoffed.

“Oh, isn’t it obvious? Look around. You’re out here, living alone in the middle of nowhere. You look like you could use a friend, especially with the Final Battle approaching. I could be that friend. One wouldn’t want to be alone for what’s coming.”

“Is that a threat?” Zelena coldly asked, “Because I’m not afraid of you.”

“Oh, but you should be. You most certainly should be.” Fiona softly warned with a sickly-sweet, dark smile and giggle, “I’ll be in the dwarf tunnels if you change your mind. Until then, dearie.”

Leaving her threat and offer in the air, the Black Fairy vanished in a cloud of black smoke. On the other side of town, the Wicked Witch’s younger brother was taking in the joy of his morning by deeply inhaling the scent of his fiancé’s hair, and the pancakes she was making for the two of them.

“Something smells delicious.” he huskily said in her ear as his breath tickled her neck.

“It’s just from a box.” Emma smiled as she blushed at his playful antics.

“I don’t mean the damn pancakes.” he retorted before she whipped around to kiss him passionately. When they separated, the blonde couldn’t help but stare deeply into his eyes. “What?”

“I’m just happy. It still surprises me sometimes.” she said honestly.

“Yeah, me too.” Nicholas smiled before pulling her in for another kiss.

“To hell with the pancakes.” Emma said between the kisses, passion overtaking her. Nicholas was more than happy to comply as she pushed him onto the kitchen table while forcefully grasped and squeezed her round ass. Just as they were about to tear each other’s clothes off, Snow barged through the front door with a thick, heavy binder in her arms.

“Oh, great. You’re up.” she greeted, shocking the two of them; Nicholas more than Emma.

“Ah! No, thank you, little girl; I don’t want any cookies!” he shrieked as he shoved her off and jerked away in embarrassment. Although, Emma thought he was doing it just for the sake of being funny.

“Mom.” Emma said in surprise, “Uh…”

“You could’ve warned me your mother has a key.” Nicholas whispered as he dropped his little act.

“…Am I interrupting something?” Snow croaked as awkwardly caught her little girl and her fiancé before their positions became too compromising.

“No/Yes.” they both said.

“We were, uh, we were just making some pancakes.” Emma replied.

“Pancakes. Right.” Snow nodded as she avoided eye contact, “Uh, maybe I should come back after you’ve had…pancakes.”

“Don’t worry, Nicholas was just on his way out.” Emma said with a fake smile as she nudged her future husband, “Weren’t you, babe?”

“…It would appear so.” Nicholas nodded with an even bigger, fake smile before stiffly walking out of the kitchen while muttering to himself, “Typical. I miss out on pancakes and that pound cake ass of hers all because of little snowflake barging in. It’s not like she’s a virgin; she has a teenage son, for god’s sake.”

“Mom, as much as I love our unexpected visits, is there something pressing today?” Emma asked.

“I know I’m a little early, but I woke up this morning and couldn’t wait any longer.” Snow said in excitement as she slammed the heavy binder on the table, “Wedding planning. I have been putting together a few ideas.”

“You did all this since Nicholas and I got engaged?” Emma asked as her mother flipped through the pages.

“I may have started a bit before that.” Snow said without making eye contact.

“Like, how long ago?” Emma lightly laughed.

“Um, well, it was definitely after the first curse.” Snow replied before noticing the amused look on her daughter’s face, “Look, I know I’m excited, but can you blame me? I have missed a lot of the milestones in your life, Emma. I want to make the absolute most of this one.”

“Me, too, Mom.” Emma said as she tightly hugged her mother who hugged her back even tighter. As they did, Nicholas came barreling down the stairs with an enraged look on his face. “Nicholas, what is it?”

“I’m gonna kill that bitch!” he shouted in fury before practically ripping the front door from its hinges. To clarify, Zelena had just called him and informed him how the Black Fairy just threatened both her and his niece in their own home. Since this was an issue that affected everybody, Zelena reluctantly agreed to meet in the sheriff’s station to explain it to everyone else.

“I was about to wring her scrawny little neck, and then she just poofed away.” Zelena snarled as she finished ranting to the others.

“Makes sense she’s headed to the dwarf tunnels. It’s an easy place to hide.” Emma pointed out.

“And there are miles of them below Storybrooke.” David nodded, “Pinning her down in there won’t be easy.”

“Well, the good news is, whatever her plan was for the Final Battle, she needs help. Which means we have time to figure out how to stop her.” Regina suggested.

“With that in mind, do you think the League would be interested in getting involved now, mate?” Killian asked Nicholas. However, he was preoccupied with something else; namely, his infant niece.

“There’s no need to worry, Robbie.” he cooed in a playfully-cartoonish voice as he gently rubbed her little chest with his finger, “Unky’s gonna make sure that big nasty gnat gets her wings ripped off for going anywhere near you. Yes, he is. Yes, he is!”

“Nicholas.” Emma deadpanned as they all flatly looked at him. It never failed, every time Nicholas was anywhere near his adorable niece, he always got distracted and shifted his entire focus on showing love to the baby girl.

“Huh?” he asked, not taking his eyes off the baby.

“Focus. Focus.” she said snapping him back into the adult’s reality, “Focus.”

“Right, sorry. Don’t worry, we’re already on it.” he assured, “Sawyer’s leading a platoon of Nemo’s crew in search of any more of the Black Fairy’s followers. I’ll let him know to start searching down there. And in the event she makes an appearance up top, I have a few tricks we can use against her.”

“Well, not to sound rude, little brother, but I won’t wait any longer than I already have.” Zelena said to the only adult in the room she cared about, “The only reason I didn’t blast that noir-colored nit is because of Robin. So, if one of you’d be kind enough to watch her for a minute, I’ll do what I intended and go and take care of this.”

“Well, hold on.” Regina snapped, “You can’t just go down there alone and confront her.”

“Why not? What, you think I can’t defeat her?” she scoffed at her sister, “I’m more powerful than you.”

“Oh, really?” Regina challenged, “Is that why I had to rip out my own heart to save you and Nicholas from the Evil Queen?”

“Look, I would have been fine without your help. And we wouldn’t have been in that predicament if it weren’t for you in the first place.” she snapped.

“Believe what you want. You’re not going down there.” Regina ordered as if she were their mother.

“Ugh, can’t the two of you just have one conversation without attacking each other like rabid dogs?” Nicholas groaned in annoyance, “I swear, you’d think I was the oldest sibling. You two are in need of serious damage control, if you ask me.”

“Nobody’s asking you.” Regina retorted.

“Well, I wasn’t waiting for an invitation.” Nicholas shot back.

“Okay, sibling rivalry and squabbles aside,” Emma interjected as the siblings were about to really mouth off at each other, “Regina’s right. We need a plan of attack before we go up against her, and when we come up with one, we’re going to do this together.”

“Thank you.” Regina nodded as she looked down her nose at her older sister.

“Okay, fine. Have it your way, but you’re doing it without me.” Zelena huffed as she picked up Robin.

“Actually, Zelena.” Ariel interjected, “Killian and I can look after Robin for you.”

“You can?” she asked in surprise. She wasn’t really close with anyone in the room besides Nicholas, but the Hooks were the ones she least interacted with.

“Yeah, we, uh, kinda need the practice.” Ariel bashfully smirked as she patted her now flat stomach.

“Aw, guys!” Nicholas said happily as some of them gave him a weird look for his reaction, “What? I like babies.”

“Um, fine. Sure. Just don’t take her out on the water too much.” Zelena relented as she handed her baby over to the seafaring couple, “And, Jones, either wear the fake hand or use one of your rum corks to cover that hook of yours; otherwise, I’ll shove it up your urethra.”

“What’s a urethra?” Killian asked in confusion before Nicholas whispered it in his ear, causing him to turn pale and tremble in fear while Zelena stormed out. As soon as she did, Nicholas went after her.

“Sis, wait up!” he called out to her once they were outside.

“Don’t try to stop me, Nicholas.” she warned as she continued to stomp away.

“I’m not, just-just stop for a sec.” he said as he rushed in front of her, “Look, I know you want to prove to everyone you can handle this. I’m not saying you can’t, just…just be careful, okay? For my sake and Robin’s?”

“As if I have anything to fear from that middle aged, gothic Lolita.” Zelena scoffed with a roll of her eyes. However, when she looked back to see her brother’s concerned face, her expression softened and let out a deep sigh. “I’ll be careful. I promise. Now, will you let me pass?”

“Yeah, go ahead. That’s all I wanted to hear.” he nodded with a small smile as he cleared away. After walking a few paces forward, Zelena let out another sighed and turned back around to give her little brother a hug and peck on the cheek.

“Congratulations on your engagement, little brother. I’m happy for you.” she said, slightly embarrassed that she was showing anyone but her daughter affection in public.

“Thanks, Z.” he said warmly as hugged her back and kissed her head. After they parted ways, he went back inside to the others.

“She gonna be okay?” David asked.

“Yeah. She just needs to cool off.” Nicholas nodded, “No thanks to Regina, here.”

“Excuse me?” she asked.

“Save it.” he snapped, “Stop trying to scold and lecture the two of us like you’re Cora. Okay? You’re the middle child, not our mother. Get over yourself.”

“Fine.” she huffed, “If any of you need me, I’ll be in my vault to see if I can find a way to send our uninvited guests back to where they came from before the Final Battle; or before a certain group of ‘gentlemen’ wreck the whole town, again.”

“Bout the only thing you’re good for right now.” he bluntly remarked as he cleaned his ear and flicked the wax away. Much to everyone else’s relief, Regina let that comment pass and poofed away to her vault.

“So, what about us?” David asked trying to move past the awkward moment, “I mean, we can’t just sit around here doing nothing.”

“Well, we won’t be. We have plenty to do to keep us busy.” Snow pointed out to her husband.

“We do?” Nicholas asked.

“Well, you’ve obviously never planned a wedding.” Snow retorted.

“…I actually haven’t, now that you mention it.” he realized, “But you really want to pick out centerpieces on the eve of the Final Battle?”

“I do.” Snow nodded firmly, “David and I went through with our wedding after Regina threatened us. It gave people hope. Why should yours and Emma’s wedding be any different? So, who’s ready to put their hearts into some wedding planning?”

“Hmm, I don’t know.” Nicholas hesitated.

“Come on, it’ll be fun.” Snow urged with a wide smile.

“It’s better than following your sisters around all day and listening to them argue.” Emma offered with a sheepish grin. Clearly, she was just a little bit excited to start planning for their big day, as well.

“Oh, alright. What the hell. I’m in.” Nicholas laughed as all the other joined with smiles before he pulled out a stack of green, blue and pink note cards held together in rubber bands, “Here’s a little list of requests, suggestions, and negotiable/non-negotiable demands the team made for the ceremony.”

“Requests?” Snow asked as her expression faltered.

“Demands?” David asked flatly as he raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms.

“Well, they were pretty adamant about being involved and wanting to do their part for me as my extended family. The blue ones are the requests, greens are the suggestions, and pinks are the demands.”

“Like what?” Snow asked.

“Okay, uh,” he trailed as he flipped through to a blue card, “Okay, here’s one. ‘Gilles would like to be the minister for the wedding.’ If not, he’s okay with us going with somebody else.”

“I don’t really have an issue with that.” Emma shrugged to her parents.

“Emma, he tried to fill you with buckshot the day after you met.” David bluntly reminded.

“Yeah, but, to be fair, I did try to break his neck and crush his heart. Besides, he’s a really sweet and nice guy.” Emma sheepishly defended.

“He is. He really is.” Nicholas nodded, “He’s actually the most cheerful out of the eight of us.”

“…If that’s what you want.” Snow said with another big smile; although it seemed a tad forced.

“Right.” Nicholas nodded as he sensed the tension radiating off his future mother-in-law/step-niece before turning back to coo at his niece in Ariel’s arms, “You know, if you were just a little bit bigger and could walk, you could’ve been the flower girl! But you’re too little and still can’t completely hold your little head up. Your cute, soft, wittle head!”

“Okay, let’s get out here before he really starts acting weird.” Emma suggested to her parents who eagerly nodded.

After literally dragging the dazed Nicholas out by his collar, David went back to the loft to grab his wallet. However, when he made it up the stairs, he noticed the door was slightly open.

“Hello?” he called out as he drew his weapon. When rushed in, he exhaled in relief when he saw it was just Henry sitting by himself with his Author’s pen. “Henry. Henry!”

“Grandpa.” he said as he snapped back to his senses.

“Didn’t you hear me?” he asked as he holstered his weapon and closed the door.

“Sorry. I was writing.”

“That’s your Author’s pen.” David stated, “Henry, I know there’s been lot going on lately, but please tell me you haven’t tried to change things. You know how dangerous that can be.”

“Of course no. I know better than that. Plus, Nicholas would scalp me.” Henry assured.

“Good.” David exhaled.

“Also, I already tried a few days ago, and it didn’t work.” he added, “Please don’t tell him I said that. Look.” he said before writing that Emma would win the Final Battle, only to see it vanish into the page as if it was never written.

“See? I couldn’t change things even if I wanted to. She had to fight in the Final Battle. There’s no escaping it.”

“Okay. So, what are you doing?” David asked.

“Trying to translate this.” Henry sighed as he gestured to his strange page, “Isaac said the Author’s powers are trying to tell me something. I thought maybe they came out like that because I was using a regular pen. But this one’s not working any better. What’s the point of having these powers when I can’t use them to help anyone?”

“We’re gonna help her, Henry, but we can’t drive ourselves crazy while we’re doing it.” David soothed.

“That’s a lot like what Nicholas said.” Henry sighed.

“Yeah, well, he’s a pretty smart guy.” he admitted as he patted his grandson’s shoulder, “Don’t tell him _I_ said that.”

“Deal.” the teen laughed.

“Sometimes the best thing you can do is step away.”

“Step away?”

“Yeah.” he nodded, “You know, live life, which is why I came back here. I forgot my wallet, and I’m probably gonna need it. We’re looking at wedding venues today.”

“Wedding venues? Living our lives?” Henry smirked, “This reeks of Grandma; not giving up hope and all that stuff.”

“She’s usually right about these things. Now come on. Leave this here. You can come back for it all later.” David said as they walked out, but not before he took a lingering glance at the strange symbols.

Meanwhile, after poofing herself to one of the entrances to the tunnels, Zelena furiously marched through the darkness in her search for the woman who threatened her only child. It didn’t take long for her to hear something echo down a nearby cavern. Thinking it was the Black Fairy, she hustled down it, ready to kill. However, it wasn’t Fiona that she found; it was Sawyer.

“She’s the sweetest little rosebud that Texas ever knew

Her eyes are bright as diamonds

They sparkle like the dew~

You can talk about your Clementine and sing of Rosalie

But the Yellow Rose of Texas is the only girl for me~” he sang without a care, as if he were anywhere but a villain’s lair.

“Dammit, Sawyer!” Zelena cursed as she extinguished her green fireball.

“Ah, Your Wickedness. Fancy meeting you here.” he playfully greeted with a tip of his hat, “Nicholas told you’d be heading down here. Didn’t think it’d be this quick.”

“That’s my line, you hic.” she snapped, “And aren’t there supposed to be a bunch of turban wearing sailors with you?”

“Ah, I ditched them. Too much noise.” he waved off.

“Said the yokel singing in place that’s prone to echoes.” Zelena remarked.

“I’m perfectly fine, thank you very much.” he retorted with an amused grin, “Besides, you’re about to make even more noise with your screams here in a minute.”

“What’s that supposed to mean? Think you can make me scream?” she hotly asked, thinking he was trying to imply something perverted.

“Nope.” he said, popping his p before casually pointing behind her, “But she can.”

“Zelena!” Regina barked as she stomped over to her sister.

“Regina, what are you doing down here?” Zelena asked in irritation.

“Isn’t it obvious? I came to get you out of here before you get yourself killed.” she scolded.

“I’m not going anywhere. Just get out of my way.” Zelena said trying to push past her.

“It’s for your own good.”

“Oh, so-so now you care about my own good?” Zelena asked, “You’re not gonna blame me for something?”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Regina asked, completely oblivious to her attitude.

“It means that in all your sobbing over Robin’s death and your broken heart, all you did was blame Nicholas and I. I sacrificed Hades for you, the man I loved, to save your life. And in return, I get blamed. And now you’re here to lecture me? Ha! No, thanks. I’m not welcome the hero’s table? Fine. I’ll just take care of this by myself.”

“Zelena-”

“Sis, please. I’ve got work to do.” Zelena said before brushing past her sister.

“No.” Regina refused as she wrestled with her sister.

“Get off me!” Zelena gritted before she was thrown against the wall.

“Oh, this won’t end well.” Sawyer mused in his head as he watched from the sidelines.

“You shouldn’t have done that.” Zelena spat as she picked herself up. However, before either sister could strike again, the entire cave began to quake as the entrance caved in. Meanwhile, Snow was leading everyone around the venues she thought were best for the wedding; starting with Granny’s.

“So, what do you think?” she asked happily.

“It’s nice.” Henry nodded, “You’re at least guaranteed good food for the reception. Unless you want to do it at the mansion, Uncle?”

“Ah! That reminds me.” Nicholas said before flipping through the cards to pull out a non-negotiable pink card, “‘Under no circumstance is any part of the wedding to be held at the mansion.’ Well, that one seems obvious, so no arguments here.”

“I think Granny’s will be perfect.” Snow beamed, “We can have the ceremony outside. After dinner, we push the tables aside for dancing. There’s music on the jukebox. What do you think, David?”

“Eh.” he stammered in reluctance, “I don’t know.”

“What do you mean, you don’t know?” she asked still smiling as if he were teasing, “We have shared so many happy memories here together. Don’t you wanna have one more?”

“Let’s be honest. Not all of them have been happy, and not all of them have been together, either.” he pointed out.

“What are you talking about?” she asked in confusion.

“For starters, how about your first date with Whale?” he asked.

“Ouch.” Henry remarked.

“Dad!” Emma said in surprise.

“We were cursed. Are you really bringing that up right now? That can’t possibly be the reason.” Snow countered.

“To be fair, _that_ Granny’s was destroyed by Hyde on the Promised Day. This is, technically, Granny’s _2_.” Nicholas reminded, “Not to mention, you were sleeping with Kathryn shortly after.”

“You’re not helping.” Emma whispered.

“Sorry.”

“Okay, well, how about this?” David asked, completely ignoring the alchemist, “Repaired or not, this place is still a scrap heap. You want another one? It’s not big enough. Emma is a princess, and her wedding is a royal affair.”

“You want to find someplace bigger, fine. Let’s go find one.” Snow offered before heading out the door.

“Happy to.” David agreed as he followed her.

“What’s going on?” Emma asked, absolutely confused by her father’s behavior.

“I don’t know, hon. I really don’t know.” Nicholas replied before they followed. Back in the tunnels, Sawyer was keeping himself preoccupied with tossing and catching a piece rubble while the sisters resumed their argument.

“This is exactly why I told you not to come down here.” Regina scolded.

“Are you implying that this is my fault?” Zelena scoffed.

“Oh, I’m not implying anything. I’m saying it.” Regina shot back, “If you had just listened to me, we wouldn’t be trapped half a mile under Storybrooke.”

“ _You_ threw _me_ against the wall!” Zelena shouted, “And if you hadn’t crashed my party, I’d be wiping the mine floor with the Black Fairy by now.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t be so sure about that. She’s the most powerful, magical evil we’ve ever faced.” Regina stressed.

“Which is why I was launching a sneak attack.” Zelena sneered in retort.

“What I wouldn’t give to be at Aesop’s right now.” Sawyer dryly thought as the bickering was beginning to annoy him.

“What is this even about, Zelena? What, are you trying to prove to everyone that you’re better than them all?” Regina asked.

“No. It’s about stopping the woman who threatened my baby.” she spat.

“Yeah. On your own. Why does it matter so much, Zelena? Why do you have to be better than everyone else?”

“Because I am.” she scoffed, “Now, I’m going to find the Black Fairy and destroy her before she finds us. So, unless you want the rest of these mines to come crashing down on top of us, don’t try to stop me.”

“Zelena-”

“Let her go.” Sawyer said, finally intervening, “You’re not helping. And you’re certainly not making any head way with her.”

“She’s going to get herself killed.” Regina exasperated.

“Then you’ll have the chance to save her when you do catch up with her just before that happens. In the meantime, why don’t you and I have a little chat.” he suggested.

“I don’t want to talk to you.”

“Alright then, I’ll talk and you’ll just shut up and listen.” he bluntly replied, “I beginning to understand what Nicholas meant when he told us you don’t know how to properly blame people.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked defensively.

“You blame your siblings for Loxley’s death. Why? Because you didn’t get to kill Hades and avenge him, yourself. You blamed Snow White for the deaths of your lover and your mother when it was actually your mother and the Dark One who were responsible for all that. You blame others when you realize you can’t hurt the people truly responsible because to you, hurting someone is the same as blaming them.” Sawyer lectured, “You’re an overly emotional woman with a temper hotter than the fires of hell.”

“That’s not true.” she defended.

“No?” he asked, “Then tell me, why did you still blame your brother and sister _after_ you purged yourself of your dark half?”

“I…”

“What? Nothing to say?” he asked, “Now, I’m really not the kind of man who goes around lecturing people I barely know just because I’ve seen them mouth off against their siblings. However, I consider your brother to be my own kin, and I’ve had enough of you treating him like dirt just because you’re angry at him and afraid of him.”

“…Emma told you.” she accused with a snarl.

“No. You’re just that easy to read.” Sawyer flatly corrected, “You’re letting your fear of what he can do cloud your judgement and fuel your anger; that’s why you keep acting hostile towards him.”

“So, what? You’re saying that if I change my behavior, he won’t destroy the world and rebuild it in his own image?” Regina scoffed.

“Ugh, why is it that y’all keep fretting over that ludicrous fear?” Sawyer sighed into his hand.

“You don’t think he would?”

“Oh, no. He’s going to.” Sawyer corrected without missing a beat, “Make no mistake, Your Majesty. It won’t be today, tomorrow, or anytime soon, for that matter. But one day, he _will_ do just that.”

“I don’t understand.” Regina waved off, “You people are his closest friends and confidants, and yet you believe he’d actually give in and destroy the world so he can rebuild it?”

“Yes. Just not the way y’all have been thinking.” Sawyer nodded, “Back before I joined the League, I used to run around my realm with a group of people much like the original Texas Rangers. We saw a lot of terrible sides of men during those days, and some of us teetered on the edge of doing terrible things ourselves. My Captain always used to say that all it takes is just one bad for someone to go insane. I, on the other hand, always disagreed.”

“How so?”

“Everyone endures plenty of bad days in their lives. There’s not just one bad day for each life. You could have as many bad days as life throws at you. It don’t matter. But here’s the thing, everyone has their breaking point. It doesn’t matter how many you had before, but there will always be one bad day that tops all the rest. One that makes all the other pale in comparison. It’ll be so horrible that all the bad days you had before, all the torment and suffering you endured, all the negative emotions you felt on each day will come together and come crashing down to add themselves to the pain you feel on that last bad day. And then, when all that’s consumed you, when you can’t feel anything else, all you can say is, ‘ _I don’t care anymore._ ’ And when that happens, when there’s nothing left holding you back, you just give in and do what you and everyone else feared you’d do.”

“And you believe Nicholas will have a day like that?” Regina asked.

“We of Branch Quartermain know more than any of you just how many bad days Nicholas has had over the years. He’s nowhere near his breaking point, but I can tell you what it might be that finally sends him over the edge. When Emma, Henry, maybe you, Zelena, and all the other people his loves are long dead and gone, or if all of y’all get murdered, that’s when. His loved ones are the only things keeping him sane. But trust me, he’ll have that final bad day at some point in his life; everyone does.”

“And I suppose you did?” Regina asked.

“How do you think I gained the League’s attention?” he asked as images flashed in his mind, “But the point I’m trying to make, Regina, is that your resentment and squabbling with your siblings is only gonna cause him pain. And that’s the last thing he needs with the looming threat of the Final Battle weighing over his fiancé’s head. Trust me, I speak from experience, when siblings don’t reconcile their differences, it always ends badly. Always.”

“I take it that happened with you?”

“I don’t have siblings.” Sawyer curtly replied as images continued to flash through his mind. Some of an angry young man yelling at a beautiful young woman followed by that woman in a white dress that was soaked with blood. “But someone I knew had a brother who never even tried to make peace with them, and it ended badly. Don’t do the same to yourself and your family, Regina. You’ll never forgive yourself if you do.”

As they continued to walk through the tunnels, they spotted a vein of fairy crystals running along the cavern’s walls. After examining the vein, Regina broke off a crystal to see if the Black Fairy had tampered with it.

“Well, at least now we know why the Black Fairy’s holed up down here.” she remarked.

“What would she want with all this light magic?” Sawyer asked.

“That’s what I want to know.” Zelena added as she joined them.

“No luck finding her?” he asked.

“None. Or any of her henchmen, for that matter, either.” she sighed in irritation.

“Oh, I’m flattered that all of you went through the trouble for little ol’ me.” Fiona arrogantly teased as she and Gideon emerged from the shadows to join them. As she did, they all readied themselves for a difficult fight.

“But to answer your question, I’m not interested in light magic. So, you’re the big, bad Evil Queen who cast my curse. No wonder it was such a pathetic failure.” she mocked.

“Is that so?” Regina asked as she summoned a fireball.

“Gideon.” she simply ordered. In response, her grandson obediently obeyed and used his magic to blast her away with force. However, Sawyer got in the way and blocked the attack, not even moving a centimeter.

“Good try,” Sawyer taunted as he rolled his sleeve to reveal a bracelet made of black mithril, “But no.”

“Finish him.” Fiona ordered as Gideon unsheathed his sword and engaged the gentleman, “So, does this mean you’re here to take me up on my offer then, Zelena?”

“Afraid not.” she said, “See, I’m not inclined to work with people who threaten my daughter. Which is exactly why I came down here; so I can kill you.”

“Not today.” Fiona smirked before ducking away with the sisters running after her. After maneuvering through the twists and turns of the cavern, Regina and Zelena finally caught up with the fairy in a cavern absolutely riddled with fairy crystals of all kinds of sizes.

“What was the point in all this?” Regina demanded as she and her sister readied their next attacks, “What do you plan to do with all these crystals?”

“Allow me to show you.” Fiona smiled as she sauntered over to a vein, “Consider it a demonstration of how pointless your attempts to stop me truly are.”

Playfully wetting her index finger with her tongue, the Black Fairy twirled it around before gently placing it on a single crystal. As soon as she made contact, it and all the crystals in its vein, followed by every crystal in the room changed from their pretty, magical blue hue to obsidian black.

“No!” Zelena cried as Regina gaped in horror.

“What? What is it? What happened?” Sawyer asked as he ran in to join them. As soon as he saw the black crystals, he understood the situation. “Oh. Well, this isn’t good.”

“You played your part well, dearest grandson.” Fiona praised.

“Happy to help.” Gideon graciously bowed as he joined her side.

“So that’s it?” Regina asked trying to get over her fear at the display of power.

“Not quite.” Fiona tisked. With a raise of her hands, the entire room began to shake as a high-pitched ringing pierced through their ears. It was so loud, the two sisters slammed their hands over their ears in a desperate attempt to lighten the pain; even Sawyer struggled to withstand it. In a matter of seconds, the ringing stopped and all of the crystals shattered into dark fairy dust. Glittering around them, the trio looked in horror before the dust was siphoned into the sleeves of Fiona’s dress.

“You’re probably wondering why I allowed you to bear witness to all this.” she said to the speechless interlopers, “It’s quite simple, really. I want you to understand that there is nothing you can do to stop me, or prevent the Final Battle from taking place. And with the dust I’ve collected on this day, I have everything I need to succeed and achieve my goal. The Age of Light is over. Following my victory of the Final Battle, the Age of Darkness will begin. But worry not. You won’t be around to witness its glory. No denizen of light will.”

With a wave of her hand, the harbinger of darkness sent all three of them back outside, leaving her to relish in her brilliance and success. Once they were back out where they started, the two sisters looked at each other in fear over what just happened. Sawyer was no less nervous. None of them could bring themselves to say anything, but they were all thinking the same thing. They were screwed.

On a lighter note, the oblivious Charmings and soon-to-be Flamels were continuing their search for a wedding venue that pleased the father of the bride. If anyone had asked the couple which parent they thought was going to be the most controlling that day, they would have said Snow. However, David just could not be pleased.

“Well, it’s definitely…” Emma trailed as they all stood in the center of town hall’s meeting room.

“Bigger.” Nicholas nodded.

“Well, I think this space has great potential.” Snow positively said, “We could string lights from the ceiling, put some trees around. It could be transformed into something really magical.”

“Yeah. I think it could be.” Emma agreed as she looked around to visualize her mother’s ideas.

“Oh, and it works with card number forty-three.” Nicholas realized as he pulled out a green card and read it, “A. Nemo has his crew create an arch of ceremonial swords for Emma and I to walk under after we say our I dos. Or B., and this one’s kind of oddly worded, Nemo and his crew announce our entrance. I really don’t know what he means by that, but something tells me it’d be overly elaborate.”

“Let’s just put that one off to the side for right now.” Snow smiled, not really hiding her irritation at the cards as well as she thought she was.

“Anyone else feel a draft?” David asked, still looking displeased.

“It’s probably just a window open somewhere.” Henry assured.

“And look at the walls; the whole place needs a paint job.” he added.

“Didn’t it use have the same wallpaper as Regina’s office?” Nicholas rhetorically asked as he studied the room.

“Okay, Dad, I know that technically we’re all royalty or whatever, but unless you want to do a destination wedding at your castle in the Enchanted Forest or, like, Excalibur in Vegas, I don’t think we’re gonna find what you’re looking for.”

“That’s not a bad idea.” he said.

“Vegas?” she asked.

“No. The Enchanted Forest, our castle. How many beans would it take to get everyone back there?” he asked Nicholas.

“David,” Snow briskly interrupted with a stern smile, “May I speak with you outside for a second?”

“Sure.” he said as he followed her out.

“So…elopement?” Emma teased as she leaned against her fiancé’s chest.

“Okay, but you’re gonna have break the news to Bluey, and he is a crier.” Nicholas joked. Once the usually happy couple were outside, Snow began to speak to her husband in a blend of her teacher voice, her bandit voice, and her pissed off wife voice.

“What is really going on?” she demanded to know.

“You can’t really believe this place is good enough.” he scoffed, “This isn’t some town meeting about parking regulations. It’s our daughter’s wedding.”

“And if she wanted to get married in our bathroom, it would be perfect and exactly what it’s supposed to be. None of that matters, and you know it. So, what is this really about?”

“I just-I don’t know why we have to rush into this.” David struggled to explain.

“Rushing?” Snow asked before her eyes widened, “Oh, David, if this is about Nicholas, that ship has sailed, and there’s an alchemist on it. Deal with it.”

“No, this has nothing to do with Nicholas. This is about why we insist on doing this with everything else going on right now.” he argued.

“Well, because, David, we agreed that we don’t give into fear, and our people need hope.” Snow retorted.

“Well, what about what we need, Snow, what our family needs?”

“What are you talking about?!” she shouted.

“…Our weddings were the happiest days of my life…until the Evil Queen burst through those doors and threatened everyone we loved, and…when we looked back to see my mother’s face filled with joy only to see she already…” he said trying to push past the pain, “I don’t want that for Emma. I don’t want her wedding day to be the day before she gets pulled into a war, or fight some climatic battle against an unrelenting evil. When I walk her down the aisle, the only thing she should be thinking about is wonderful years ahead, not Gideon or the Black Fairy, not some fiery monster, or us not being there with her, not any of it. With everything she’s been through, the least we can do is give her a real wedding day.”

“But what…what if we’re _not_ around to give her that? What if we do wait and she _does_ lose us? What if we lose _her_?” Snow asked struggling not to even think about such horrible things.

“Dad.” Emma said, surprising her parents as the three of them joined them, “Mom’s right. We don’t know what’s going to happen. It’s not like before. We’re not prepared for any of this. I want to think about all the good that’s meant to come next as much as you guys, but until we defeat the Black Fairy, I at least want some good to happen before the Final Battle begins.”

“But what if we can’t stop her?” David asked.

“Well, then it would be a really short marriage anyway.” she said trying to lighten the mood, “We love each other. We wanna do this because it’s the right time, not because we’re scared. Besides, we have to believe we’ll win. Otherwise, the Black Fairy’s already won.”

“That might be more true than you think.” Sawyer said as he and the two sisters joined them.

“What happened?” Nicholas asked him, taking on his League persona, “Did you find the Black Fairy?”

“Oh, we found her.” Sawyer nodded, “But it didn’t end well.”

“What do you mean?” Emma asked.

“It was a set up. She wanted us to follow her into the mines, all so she could display her power.”

“What does that mean? What did she do?” Snow asked.

“She turned all of Storybrooke’s fairy crystals into dark fairy dust.” Regina finally spoke.

“All of them?” David asked in shock.

“With ease.” she nodded, “And she claims that was the last things she needed to achieve her goal for the Final Battle.”

“And Dark One junior was there to help.” Zelena bitterly snapped.

“He was?” Nicholas asked through his gritting teeth.

“Of course he was.” Emma sighed.

“We underestimated her.” Regina admitted, “I didn’t think we did, but she’s far more powerful than we imagined. Now she has a magical nuke primed and ready for whenever she needs it.”

“So, what do we do now?” Henry asked.

“I don’t know, Henry.” she confessed in fear.

“Okay, let’s, uh, let’s head back to the house and see if we can come up with a plan.” Snow suggested, grasping at straws at this point. Since the tone of fear was so overbearing, none of them noticed that Nicholas and Sawyer stayed right where they were standing, not out of fear, but hardened rage.

“What are you gonna do?” Sawyer asked his friend.

“What I should have done weeks ago.” Nicholas harshly whispered before transmuting away. When he reappeared, he found himself standing before the building that had been the center of all assistance and darkness in Storybrooke ever since the town came into existence; Mr. Gold’s Pawn Shop. Taking a deep breath, Nicholas hardened what was left of his heart and swung the door open with an expression he only saved for LXG business. When he did, he startled Belle who was the only person in the shop.

“Ni-Nicholas, you startled me.” she said with an embarrassed smile.

“Where is Rumple?” he asked.

“Um, out? Why? Did-did you need something?” she asked.

“Yes. From both of you.” he replied, “Are you aware of what your son and his grandmother did today?”

“Oh, what now?” she asked, her mood deflating.

“They turned all the fairy crystals in Storybrooke into dark fairy dust for the Final Battle.” he harshly replied.

“Oh, no.” Belle groaned, “It-it’s not his fault. The Black Fairy must be making him do these things.”

“My god. Do you have any idea how stupid you sound?” Nicholas bluntly asked.

“E-Excuse me?” she asked. Since she had been in the box the entire duration of the Homunculi’s attack, she never really saw this side of him before.

“You keep making excuses for him, despite all the horrible things he’s done, and you expect us all to just…well, frankly, I’m not sure what you want us to do. Do you want us to save him? Accept him as he is and turn a blind eye? What-what-what do you want from us? Because from what I can tell, you’re just unwilling to admit he’s not as innocent and good as you keep claiming and trying to convince yourself with.”

“…Why are you here, Nicholas?” she asked cautiously.

“Well, much to my embarrassment, I haven’t been able to get a good lock on his scent. So, tracking the little bastard down has proven to be more difficult than it should be. But if I use your DNA and Rumple’s to blend together in a locator spell, I’ll be able to find him.”

“And do what?” she demanded.

“Do you really want to know?” he coldly asked.

“…You’re going to kill him, aren’t you?” she asked in fear for her child’s life.

“I will not lose Emma again, Belle. I absolutely refuse to let anything like that happen again.” Nicholas replied, his nostrils flaring in anger.

“You don’t have to do this.” she stressed as she came around the counter with a pleading expression, “There-there’s always a third way. You-You just haven’t looked hard enough. He can still be saved!”

“For his sake, or yours?” Nicholas challenged, “Belle, he’s tried to kill Emma twice, already! He brought the Black Fairy and her followers to Storybrooke and just helped her get her hands on a magical nuke. Not to mention what happened to Blue? Yeah, I noticed her scent coming from the back before I even walked in here. How blind can you be not to see he’s doing this of his volition?! He needs to be stopped before he helps that fairy any further.”

“But he’s my son.” Belle said on the verge of tears.

“That’s no excuse.” Nicholas dismissed, “I understand your predicament isn’t what you wanted, but it’s the way things are. You would rather let him keep doing what the Black Fairy allows him to do, regardless of what happens to the town, just because he’s your son? You’d cast aside the innocent people of Storybrooke just because it’s _your_ son causing us all trouble?”

“Yeah, and what about me? Huh?!” she shouted as frustrated tears fell from her face, “What about my feelings?! He’s still my-”

“I don’t care!” Nicholas shouted hotly, causing her to stop, “Your feelings mean nothing to me, Belle! I don’t care if he’s your son. I don’t care if he was raised to be this way. I don’t care that you still see him as the infant you sent away because you could never settle your disagreements with your husband! That brat means nothing to me, and neither do you! Did you really think I would just let you walk all over me because you’ve had some emotional troubles these past few weeks? I don’t care what you’re going through, or how difficult it’s been. All I care about is keeping Emma and my family safe, and I will eliminate any and all threats against them; including your son. I came here to find a way to track him down, and I’ll rip out all the hair from your head if that’s what it takes.”

“…You’re a monster.” Belle whispered in disbelief.

“No. If anything, I’m a realist.” he sighed in annoyance, “You, on the other hand, are delusional, cynical, and hypocritical. You keep calling yourself a hero because you think you have a strong set of morals. And you think that anyone who doesn’t share your sentiments is either evil, a monster, or, as you so affectionately call your husband, a beast. You spent years trying to change Rumple only to push him away and make him worse because he could never meet your impossible standards! But now that it’s your son that’s causing all the trouble, you’re just writing it off as-as some kind of childish phase he’s going through. You have deluded yourself into thinking he’s completely innocent and that everyone needs to be convinced you’re right. You wanna know what you are, Mrs. Gold? You’re a bookworm with access to the library, meant only to be called on when the so-called ‘heroes’ need information regarding the current threat, or when one of them needs a babysitter! You’re an idiot! A stupid, stupid idiot just like Snow and Charming were before I, literally, had to knock some sense into them! Now, either tell me where Gideon is, or give me your hair.”

“What if I refuse?” she asked, now angry at the man yelling at her and calling her and her son names, “Huh? What if I tell Gideon you’re coming and that he should go ahead with whatever it he’s planning next?”

“Is that a threat?” Nicholas darkly asked as he shadows pooled behind him and blocked the exit with its many fangs and eyes, “Because I don’t appreciate threats, Belle. And even if you do warn him, I’ll still kill him. In fact, if you do warn him, I’ll bring him here, and kill him right in front of you as I make him experience one of the slowest and most painful deaths I can inflict on a person, and then dump his mangled corpse right in front of you. Is that what you want? Is it? I’ve put up with your husband far longer than I have tolerated, but at least he has never gone after Emma. Gideon, on the other hand, has no qualms in doing whatever dark deeds his grandma orders him to do. I’m killing that brat with, or without, your approval; same goes for me taking your hair. I tried my best to be civil, but you’ve made me just as angry as the rest of your family has. Hand it over.”

“No.” Belle firmly said, not allowing her fear to take over, “No. I won’t let you hurt my son. I’ll stop you, myself if I have-agh!”

Whatever speech Belle was about to give the Immortal Alchemist, it was cut short when he backhanded her across the face so hard, it knocked flat onto the store’s floor. It wasn’t entirely hard enough to cause any damage aside from a slight bruise, but it was hard enough to stun her. But then, why should he care if he harmed her? She meant nothing to him. 

As she laid there, gasping in shock and pain, Nicholas coldly stared down at her before reaching to pluck a single strand of hair off of her head. Since Henry shared DNA with both Rumple and Gideon, the teen’s hair would suffice in the locator spell he and the other agents would be using to locate the servant of the Black Fairy. Having no further reason to remain, Nicholas transmuted himself away.

While all of this happened, the others failed to come up with a plan against the Black Fairy. That much was obvious when Nicholas returned to his house and read each of their expressions.

“No luck?” he asked Regina who was the closest.

“No luck.” she sighed, sneaking a few guilty glances at him, “Listen, Nicholas, there’s something I need to tell you.”

“Oh, don’t tell me that bitch did something else while I was gone?” he asked with a tired groan.

“No.” Regina said trying to keep hold of her bravery, “Agent Sawyer and I shared an…enlightening conversation earlier today.”

“Really?” he asked, genuinely surprise that one of his friends actually got involved with his self-absorbed sister, “And what did you talk about?”

“A couple of things. Most of which involved my behavior lately. And what with everything happening, the wedding, the Final Battle, it’s…it’s made me think about what really matters.”

“Like?”

“My family.” she said sincerely, “Abba, there’s something you don’t know about what happened _that_ day.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, dropping his hostile disposition.

“Before you fell, when you were chasing after me…I did something that I have been ashamed of all these years and I feel that now is the time for me to tell you.”

“What are you talking about?” he asked, “Was this before or after you jumped down from the tree and scared the crap out of me?”

“Wait. You knew?! I mean, you know?” she asked flabbergasted.

“Regina, it was _the first_ traumatic day of my life.” he all but chuckled, “Granted, I’ve had a hell of a lot since then, but still. I remember every single moment of that day. Have you been under the impression I didn’t know you did that?”

“Well, I just assumed since you never said anything, and…”

“I never said anything because, as I said, it was the _first_ traumatic day of my life; you know, the one that led to all the others.”

“So…you don’t blame or hate me for what happen?”

“Sis, we were kids.” he deadpanned, “You were just playing around and trying to surprise me. Yeah, you may have startled me, and that may or may not have been the cause of me tripping, but it was an accident. It’s not like you pulled a whole ‘Lion King’ bit with me and pushed me in your quest for power. The reason I’ve been pissed at you these past couple of months is because you’ve been treating our sister like dirt. I get that you were still in pain over Robin’s death, but she didn’t kill him. Okay? We may not be the family our mother wanted us to be, but at least you were able to forgive and lover her even though _she_ was the one who killed Daniel. Zelena did not kill Robin; Hades did. And she killed him for us; for _you_. And-and if you can’t understand that…I don’t know what else to say to you. I don’t care if you blame me for what happened; I was the one who drove you guys to the Underworld. But her? She sacrificed the man she loved for us. Nothing would make me happier to have both my sisters sitting there at my wedding, but not if you’re still unwilling to fix this mess you made. Can you do that? Not just for me, but for our entire family?”

Instead of verbally answering her brother, Regina took a deep breath and swallowed her pride and made her way to their elder sister. After weeks of accusations and cold shoulders, Regina took Nicholas and Sawyer’s words to heart and finally made the effort to apologize and rekindle the relationship between her and Zelena.

“Hey.” she awkwardly said as she joined her sister in Emma’s living room.

“Hey.” Zelena stiffly said back.

“Listen, about today in the mines-”

“What? You gonna blame me for that, too?” Zelena scoffed.

“No.” Regina sighed, slightly irritated but letting it pass, “I actually want to apologize, believe it or not.”

“Not.” Zelena snipped, “After everything you’ve accused and blamed me for, why now all of a sudden?”

“Look,” she sighed, “I know I haven’t been fair to you. I was wrong. You were right.”

“Oh, my god. I must be dead.” Zelena remarked.

“Alright.” she snapped, “Maybe Nicholas was right. Maybe I don’t always assign blame to the people who are really at fault. I shouldn’t do that, least of all to my own family. So, what I’m trying to say is…I’m sorry. I’m sorry for everything I’ve said and done to you, Zelena. You’re-you’re my sister, and I-I love you.”

By this point, both sisters had tears in their eyes, threatening to spill and flood the place. If it hadn’t been for their little brother watching them from the kitchen, and his following comment, slightly ruining the mood with his sense of humor.

“My god! Will you two just hug, already?” he laughed. Normally, either of them would have retorted, but they just laughed and did as he suggested. Happy that his family was the way it should be, the alchemist made his way over and joined in the group hug. It was a happy moment for the Mills siblings. However, in the depths of Storybrooke, the Gold family was having a different kind of moment.

Still wearing the bruise Nicholas gave her, Belle Gold maneuvered her way through the mines’ tunnels to the crystal chamber Fiona and her followers had set up as their base of operations. However, her expression was almost as dark as her husband’s, as opposed to her usual disposition. Once she spotted her mother-in-law, she tried to approach her, only to be stopped by two of her robe-clad worshipers.

“Belle, what an unexpected surprise.” Fiona warmly greeted before dropping her smile at the sight of her bruised jaw, “My dear, whatever has happened to you?”

“You have plans for Storybrooke, yeah?” she asked curtly.

“Yes, of course.” Fiona said, waving at her guards allow the woman to pass.

“Whatever you have planned, it won’t go as smoothly as you think. Not with those gentlemen in the way.”

“I appreciate your concern, dear. But I can assure you that I have nothing to be worried about with those so-called ‘extraordinary’ people,” Fiona assured.

“Yes, you do.” Belle said flatly, “I may have been asleep during the Promised Day, but Rumple showed me his memories of that day. I know just as much as he does on how they fight, how far they are willing to go, and what they are capable of. But most of all, I know one thing that even Rumple doesn’t know. Something that can turn the tide in your favor for when you fight them, and you will.”

“Know what?” Fiona asked, slightly intrigued.

“First I need your word you will keep my son safe.” Belle flatly demanded.

“Trust me, sweet girl, nothing will-”

“Your word.” Belle interrupted, “I need your word that you will keep Gideon, Rumple and I safe from the League; specifically, the alchemist. He has already threatened to kill me son and I don’t doubt he will try to make good on his promise. So, I need your word that you will use all your power to keep Gideon safe.”

“Alright. Let’s say that I do give you my word and accept your offer.” Fiona mused, “What would you offer me in return?”

“The one thing that will allow you to defeat Nicholas.” Belle spat in resentment, “I can give you the weakness of his alchemy.”


	99. The Black Fairy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB or LXG

The day following Belle’s betrayal, the soon-to-be married couple, their friends and family were making the final preparations for the wedding. Even with Fiona’s looming threat weighing on their shoulders, Emma and Nicholas were adamant about following through with their plans. Fortunately, their morning was going off without a hitch. _Unfortunately_ , this was not to last on account of the current residents of Storybrooke’s diamond mines.

Sharpening his enchanted blade with a whetstone, simply so he could enjoy the sound of the blade becoming sharper, Gideon maliciously grinned as he stared at his weapon. He had been waiting for the Final Battle his entire life. He had devoted every moment of his training to grow stronger so he could ensure victory to his dark mistress. His entire reason for coming to Storybrooke was to fulfill that goal. While the Final Battle may not have started yet, the Black Fairy had informed all her children and her grandson they would be participating in something fun before it started.

“I have wonderful new, my darlings.” Fiona said to them all earlier that morning, all of them gathered together to listen to her as though it were a dark sermon, “I was given the most delightful bit of information last night. As you all know, before the Final Battle can truly begin, we will need to eliminate this ‘League of Extraordinary Gentlemen’ as they call themselves. And thanks to my darling daughter-in-law, I now know the secret to defeating the most troublesome of them. With that, nothing will stand in my way.”

“Glory to the Black Fairy.” they all recited in worship, “Praise be to our dark mother.”

“Yes. Which brings me to why I have gathered all of you. The Final Battle must not be interrupted. We cannot allow the release of Algmata Tier to be prevented. That is essential to bringing about the age of darkness upon the realms. Therefore, I am entrusting the rest of you eliminate the remaining six agents. Algmata Tier’s host must not be touched. Do so, and I will kill you.” Fiona said with a dark smile, “In the meantime, I will deal with this alchemist of theirs, personally. Prepare yourselves, dear ones. We will begin our assault soon.”

His grandmother’s words brought joy to his dark heart. He had been wanting to kill someone ever since he arrived, but he knew he was forbidden to kill Emma. But his patience had finally paid off. He could finally let loose and kill someone in this sickeningly bright town. As he prepared his weapon, a few of his fellow worshipers joined him.

“Today’s the day, huh?” one of them asked. She was a young woman, roughly Gideon’s age named Isabelle. She was something of an admirer of Gideon since they were children being trained for the Final Battle. Despite her perky smile and giddiness, she was almost as sadistic and bloodthirsty as the Evil Queen.

“Took long enough. I’ve been waiting for Grandmother to give us permission for ages.” Gideon smirked arrogantly.

“I know! I’m so excited.” she squealed.

“Calm yourself, Isabelle. We haven’t even started yet.” a large, imposing, muscular man chided with a faint smirk. At one point, this one known as Hector had been Gideon’s biggest tormentor. He was several years older and took pride in his impressive strength over his skills in magic and lorded it over everyone who was younger than him. However, when Gideon finally had enough, he beat the brute black and blue and proved he was the strongest of all the worshipers. From that point on, Hector pledged his services to Gideon, in addition to Fiona.

Finally, the third worshiper, who gave off a silent, aloof persona based on his posture and dry expression, Jasper simply stood by and listened as he twirled a small, black throwing knife around his finger. There wasn’t precisely any reason why he followed Gideon. He just felt drawn to him on account of his power. Also, the way he figured, the closer he was to the strongest of them, the better chance Jasper had at being brought along to kill people. That was enough for him.

“Who should we go after first?” Isabelle asked, bouncing on her heels in anticipation.

“I heard they have a monstrous behemoth locked away in their mansion. I want that one.” Hector grinned wickedly as he cracked his knuckles.

“They do have a vampire with, supposedly, unique qualities if that interests you, Isabelle.” Gideon informed.

“Tempting. Tempting.” she mused, “What about you, Jasper?”

“Makes no difference to me. As long as I get to kill one of them.” he darkly replied as he finished spinning the knife.

“Ah, the joy we all hope to have on this fine day.” Gideon teased, “I do envy Grandmother, though. She’ll be the one to kill the Savior, whereas we will only be able to watch. I rather enjoyed having her at my mercy that night at the mansion.”

“Hmph! I don’t like that you were all by yourself with that light worshiping tramp.” Isabelle pouted in jealousy, “You should’ve just killed her when you had the chance, Final Battle or not.”

“You’re only saying that because the only woman you don’t mind being alone with Gideon is Her Holiness.” Hector mocked.

“So?” she snapped.

“Doesn’t matter. Soon Emma Swan will die, Algmata Tier will be unleashed, the age of darkness will begin, and Her Holiness will ascend to her rightful place as the one, true almighty power to preside over all.” Gideon said in revere to the woman he worshiped.

Meanwhile, the members of the opposing side of this upcoming conflict were split between to planning teams, the battle planning, and the wedding planning. Since Emma and Nicholas were so determined to proceed with the wedding, the bride-to-be was working with her mother and future sisters-in-law on the ceremony. While that was happening, Nicholas and his fellow gentlemen devised a plan of attack against Fiona and her followers. After their plan was established, Nicholas used the locator spell to track down Gideon and put an end to him.

Off on his own, while the others began their search for Fiona and her cult, Nicholas followed the enchantment out to the abandoned cannery near the docks. It seemed as though he was being led to the docks before the spell suddenly stopped at the old playground. However, Gideon was nowhere to be found; but his dad was.

“Do you remember the last time you and I were here, five years ago?” Rumple asked from behind Nicholas next to the old tire swing, “You, your sister and I were watching Henry play on this very swing before the two of you were captured by Greg and Tamara.”

“I remember.” Nicholas nodded with his guard slightly raised, “I also remember how I found it odd that you were randomly standing here watching my nephew.”

“Well, I suppose there’s no harm in admitting my reasons now.” Rumple scoffed, “I was under the impression the boy would be my undoing, so I considered killing him. Coincidently, it appears no one has ever even noticed the strands I broke on this rope. Surprised?”

“That you were willing to kill your only grandson and make it look like an accident? Not really.” Nicholas dismissed, “You’re a man with few qualms in your life, Rumplestiltskin. Plus, you’ve made it abundantly clear over the years that your own ambitions and interests take priority over your family.”

“Oh, I don’t think you have very much room to talk to me about a lack of qualms, Nicholas Flamel.” Rumple darkly countered, “A point you made very clear to my wife yesterday.”

“Ah. So that’s what this is about.” Nicholas nodded in realization, “Don’t expect an apology.”

“Oh, I don’t. It’s not in your nature.”

“Not in my nature?” Nicholas scoffed, “What do you know about my nature? I had you fooled just like everyone else in this town about my ‘nature’ for over thirty years; even longer if you count what little interaction the two of us had back in the Enchanted Forest. You think just because you caught a glimpse at my work-persona you finally have me figured out?”

“Not for that, no.” Rumple replied, “It’s because you’re more like your mother than I originally believed. You were the only child she had that understood the pain she went through, and drew the same strength from it.”

“Well, obviously, I’ve used that strength to serve different purposes. You didn’t come here simply to trade banter with me, though. So, let’s cut to the chase, Rumple. You’re here to stop me from killing your son.”

“You don’t have to do this, Nicholas.” Rumple said, actually surprising Nicholas with how casually the man spoke to him after years of irritated and arrogant tones during their past conversations.

“Frankly, Rumple, I do. He’s trying to kill the woman I love. I don’t care what the circumstances are. At the end of the day, he’s doing this willingly. I’m more than justified to end his life.” Nicholas coldly retorted, “I don’t show mercy to anyone who threatens the people I love. And the only member of your family that is forever safe from my wrath, is Henry.”

“So, I can’t change your mind?” he asked calmly.

“That was never a possibility, and you know it.” Nicholas glared.

“I know.” he nodded with a tired exhale, “I just wanted to confirm it before the end.”

“Of what?” Nicholas asked.

“You.” he spat, his eyes now filled with dark rage.

“Is this the part where I’m supposed to chatter my teeth and knock my knees in fear?” Nicholas mocked, “Our deal’s conditions still stand. You can’t attack me; or even this town, for that matter.”

“No. But _I_ can.” Fiona giggled wickedly as she appeared behind Nicholas, wickedly smirking at the sight of her new prey.

“You sided with _her_?” Nicholas asked, not at all impressed, “After what she did to your son? After abandoning you with your deadbeat, man-child of a father?”

“Turns out, it wasn’t as cut and dry as I once thought.” Rumple shrugged, “Besides, she can do what I cannot; finally kill you.”

“…I will never meet a man more pathetic than you, Rumplestiltskin.” Nicholas sighed in disappointment before the Dark One poofed away, leaving the alchemist with his mother, “So, you’re here to teach me a lesson for smacking around your daughter-in-law, huh?”

“Let’s just count that as just one of the reasons why I’m here, dearie.” Fiona darkly smirked.

“Oh, of course he inherited his catch phrase from you. How cliché.” Nicholas sighed in annoyance, “Alright, listen, lady. I still got to go over the plans for my rehearsal dinner before this afternoon, so do me a favor and let me kill you quickly.”

“My, my.” Fiona chuckled with a slightly impressed look, “You are quite the violent type. You would have made an excellent addition to my family. It’s a shame I didn’t find you as a child.”

“Believe me, one sociopathic, murderous mother in my life was enough. I’ve never needed another. But, frankly, I’ve enough stand-off monologues for one morning. So…” Nicholas trailed before quickly extending his spears directly at Fiona’s chest, only to watch them bounce off some sort of magic barrier. In response to his attack, Fiona smirked at him before flicking her finger and sending him flying to the shore.

“Ugh!” Nicholas groaned as he coughed up wet sand and sea water while picking himself up off the coast, “That bitch flicked me like a freaking booger. I hate that family so much!”

“So, is this all the Immortal Alchemist can do?” Fiona asked as she suddenly appear before him, “How odd. My son and daughter-in-law made it sound like you were some great warrior.”

“You ain’t seen nothing yet.” he growled before transmuting a giant hand made of sand to crush her. As it did, Nicholas also transmuted a large coral reef to rise from the ocean, break into fragments and fire its shards like a hail of needles.

However, before the needles could imbed themselves into the sand, and into Fiona, they all stopped in midair before disintegrating. From there, the sand burying her erupted into a sphere surrounding both her, and her arrogant smirk. Enraged, Nicholas charged at her and wildly threw punch after punch, which she easily dodged and transitioned into a spinning back-kick. Now even more enraged, Nicholas snarled at the fairy and transmuted his hands to the material he used for his gloves before sending fiery explosions at her. And, for good measure, he even threw in a lightning attack or two.

“Impressed now?” he asked as the smoke and sand cleared his vision, only to see Fiona still standing without so much as a scratch.

“I will admit, you are very skilled, Mr. Flamel.” she said with a patronizing smile while dusting off her dress, “However, it’s not enough for the likes of me. It’s a shame that even with all the knowledge you gained from your Portal of Truth, it isn’t enough to take me on.”

“Oh, so you’re familiar with Portals of Truth?” he asked slightly impressed that a magic user knew this.

“I’m familiar with a great many things, actually. For instance,” Fiona smiled darkly before unleashing a burst of energy at Nicholas. However, he was not impressed with the results.

“Ha! That’s it? You’re capable of making me taller?” he asked when he noticed he was roughly two inches taller than before.

“Check again.” she recommended as she pointed at her feet. With a raised eyebrow in confusion, Nicholas looked down at his boots before gasping in panic and bending over to look at his feet. When he did, he noticed that instead growing two inches, Fiona had used her magic to keep him levitating two inches above the ground.

“Oh, shit!” he whispered in fear.

“Hiagh!” Fiona cried out as she delivered a powerful, jaw-breaking punch to Nicholas’ face when he raised back up. From there, she slammed down both her clasped hands onto his head, and slammed him into the ground. However, despite feeling the impact of the ground hit him, Nicholas did not make contact with the beach. Instead of making physical contact, Nicholas was slammed into some invisible force field meant to keep him off the ground.

“H-how?” he struggled to ask, “How did you know?”

“Perhaps next time, you’ll think twice before striking a member of my family.” Fiona smirked as she used her magic to hurl Nicholas across the beach, to the cliff-side wall, still not making contact past the barrier.

As this one-sided fight was going on, and while her family was putting the finishing touches on the wedding plans, Emma was mulling over the surprise revelation Quartermain gave her the other night at the mansion. While her parents and friends were going over the details that concerned them, and the ones she did not want to deal with, Emma was off to the side trying to make sense of what the old man told her.

“It’s inside him?” she asked herself in her head, “All this time, Algmata Tier’s been inside Allan Quartermain?!”

“I don’t care what the catalog says, Snow! I am not wearing anything lighter than a red wine shade!” Regina shouted in irritation at her step-daughter as she made her way to her future sister-in-law, “I swear, if your mother doesn’t loosen the reigns on this ceremony, I’m gonna go apple picking.”

“Uh-huh.” Emma nodded, not at all listening.

“You okay?” she asked in concern, “You’re not getting pre-wedding-jitters are you? Because Zelena and I _will_ kill you if you leave our baby brother at the alter.” she joked.

“Do you know what Quartermain told me the other night at the mansion?” Emma rhetorically asked.

“I can’t imagine much else beyond an insult.” Regina scoffed.

“He said,” Emma said before pulling her aside so the others could not hear, “He said, Algmata Tier is sealed away inside of him.”

“What?!” Regina exclaimed before Emma frantically shushed her, “What do you mean? What brought that up?!”

“Okay, listen. I haven’t told Nicholas, or anyone else for that matter, about what happened in the wish realm. Not his evil twin, not Mama Odie, and especially not Algmata Tier.”

“Why the hell not?!” Regina asked with her lowered voice.

“I didn’t want things to escalate into another Promised Day, alright?!” Emma retorted before taking a breath, “And it doesn’t help that we’re planning a wedding on top of everything else. He’s been freaking out about everything ever since we all went to Shamballa.”

“He’s gonna throttle you for that.” Regina warned with a pointed look, “But I don’t understand. Quartermain just told you out of nowhere that Algmata Tier is sealed away inside him?”

“No, and that’s the worst part. The Black Fairy didn’t send Gideon here just so he could kill me. She wants Algmata Tier, and whatever power it holds, for herself. That’s why she’s here in Storybrooke. She probably knows it’s inside Quartermain, and now she’s here to get it, herself.” she explained.

“Wonderful.” Regina sarcastically sighed, “What are you gonna do? You’ve seen Quartermain in action. If he’s gonna try to kill you, you don’t stand much of a chance; no offence.”

“Believe me, it’s not something I’ve been looking forward to.” Emma assured, “I don’t know why he would want to kill me. We’ve barely interacted with each other, let alone talk to each other.”

“Well, maybe you need to change that.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, we don’t know anything about Algmata Tier. But, its host, or whatever he goes by, is the only person in town who does. I think you may want to consider paying Agent Quartermain a visit today.”

“Pay Quartermain a visit?” Emma dryly asked, “Pay a visit to the man with the monster destined to kill me, literally sealed inside him. That’s your idea of the day? You’re slipping, Madam Mayor.”

“You got a better one, Ms. Swan?” she retorted as David came over.

“Hey, everything okay?” he asked in his casual-dad voice.

“Yep. Everything’s fine.” Emma lied, failing to play cool.

“Really? ‘Cause, I could’ve sworn I heard the two of you arguing about something involving Quartermain.” he said.

“Um,” Emma trailed.

“It’s alright, Emma. I know.” he said with an understanding nod.

“You do?” they asked.

“Of course I know.” he shrugged, “I’m surprised Nicholas didn’t mention my involvement.”

“Just to be clear, what are you referring to, David?” Regina asked.

“That Quartermain was the one who killed my father.” David replied.

“Oh, my god. Dad, I’m so sorry.” Emma said in sympathy before hugging her father.

“How are you holding up?” Regina asked.

“It’s…it’s been difficult. Doesn’t help that he’s still walking around town, going unpunished for what he did. But, I’m pushing through it.” he admitted as he hugged Emma back, “Wait a minute. If you two didn’t know about that, what were you talking about?”

“Well,” Emma struggled to say before coming up with a lie, “Since Quartermain isn’t really getting involved with the wedding like the rest of the team, I was gonna ask him to keep an eye out for the Black Fairy, and maybe try taking her out. But-but, if you don’t feel comfortable with him getting involved, I completely understand.”

“All I want is for you to be safe, and have your wedding without our typical family drama. And if that old bastard can keep that from happening, it’s alright with me.” he said before kissing her head and leaving to rejoin the others.

“Well, I guess I’m going to see Quartermain.” Emma said with a very forced, and very fake smile before grabbing her coat and heading out the door.

Meanwhile, Nicholas was still getting the snot kicked out of him as Fiona tossed him around like a ragdoll. Not being able to touch anything connected to the ground proved to be quite the handicap for him; not that Fiona gave him much chance to try anything with as rapid as her attacks were. The fight was so one-sided, the demented fairy carried the fight from the beach to the ravines in the woods.

“You know, it’s very unsporting if you don’t participate in this.” Fiona taunted as Nicholas’ wounds healed.

“As opposed to you not giving me a turn?” he wheezed in pain, just barely floating over the ground.

“Oh, very well.” she sighed before craning her neck and pointing at her jaw, “Go ahead. Lay one on me.”

Struggling to pick himself up, Nicholas staggered to his feet, covered his fist in the Ultimate Shield, and weakly threw a punch. However, instead of giving the battered man a chance, Fiona sucker punched him in the stomach and knocked the wind out of him.

“Oh! Oh, you whore!” he wheezed as he fell to his knees.

“Well, I didn’t come all this way to play fair with the people I’m going to destroy.” she smirked, “You’re all going to suffer, and I’m going to show anyone any mercy.”

“Explain it to me, then.” he coughed as he tried to compose himself, “Why did you come all the way here? Even with everything that’s happened here, Storybrooke’s not exactly a hub center of magic. Besides your son and killing the Savior, there’s nothing for you here.”

“No, that’s where you are wrong, Mr. Flamel.” Fiona corrected as she waved her finger, “There is something else in this town. Something I have been wanting for a very long time. It’s what shall allow me to achieve my destiny.”

“Puh.” he scoffed.

“Oh, so you’re one of those sorts, are you?” she asked in disappointment, “You don’t believe in destiny?”

“Do I look like the kind of schmuck that concerns himself with something as transparent and unpredictable as what people call ‘destiny?’”

“No, you actually strike me as more of a cynic, than anything else.” she replied, “Regardless, you, and every other denizen of light will understand what I mean very soon. And then, when I have achieved my destiny, the age of darkness will begin. Here, have a taste of it.”

Coating her fist in her dark magic, Fiona delivered a powerful uppercut to Nicholas’ lower jaw, sending him straight up into the air. As this was happening, Emma was, reluctantly, off seeking answers regarding a certain nature spirit that was destined to kill her. Over at the mansion, Emma was sitting across from Quartermain in the debriefing room. It was, honestly, a surprise for the Savior that the coldest and grumpiest member of her fiancé’s team was willing to talk with her over tea on the matter.

“Is the tea to your liking, Savior?” Quartermain suddenly asked, still wearing his sour expression.

“Um, yes. Thank you.” Emma awkwardly replied, “I wasn’t expecting you to have orange tea, though.”

“I like what I like.” he gruffly replied.

“Uh, right. So, anyway,” Emma trailed, “I wanted to talk to you about that little, uh…bombshell you dropped the other night with the whole spider-incident.”

“You mean about Algmata Tier?” he asked before sipping his tea.

“Yeah. That.” Emma nodded, “What exactly did you mean when you said it’s sealed inside you?”

“Exactly what I said. Algmata Tier is bound to me, and I to him. Been that way for roughly…a little over eighty years.” Quartermain answered.

“Well, now I know what Mama Odie was talking about.” she muttered into her tea.

“You met the original fifth seat?” he asked in surprise, “Oh, Nicholas is going to have a fit once he hears that.”

“Okay, beside that. Just what the hell is Algmata Tier, and why is it in you of all people?”

“At one point in history, Algmata Tier was revered and worshiped as a god. It was the spawn of two powerful nature spirits in a realm that has long since faded away.” he began to explain.

“I didn’t think a realm was capable of fading.” Emma remarked.

“Nothing lasts forever, Savior.” he reminded, “Anyway, because the realm faded, along with every living thing in it, Algmata Tier traveled to another realm that you and the natives of this realm would consider a mythical, magical version of Africa. The natives of that realm worshiped and drew their magical strength from the voodoo spirits of their realm. As you can imagine, Algmata Tier was quickly accepted by the people.”

“I guess.” she shrugged.

“Well, he was.” Quartermain remarked with a roll of his eyes.

“Okay, but that doesn’t explain why it’s in you.” she retorted.

“I’m getting to that. In my youth, I discovered there were realms beyond my own, and how I could travel to these places. As fate, or whatever you want to call it, would happen, I traveled to that particular realm quite often. I was familiar with the tribes and considered a close friend to many of their leaders. One thing led to another, a cult of dark voodoo practitioners came along and started causing trouble, and I ended up getting an all-powerful nature spirt sealed inside of me.”

“…That explains nothing at all.” Emma deadpanned, “First off, why the hell would a nature spirit allow itself to be bound to you? Or, what exactly was it that cult, or whatever, was doing that caused Algmata Tier to be bound to you? Or, most importantly, why the hell does the Black Fairy want the damn thing, and why was it attacking me in my vision?”

“The reasons why I have Algmata Tier inside of me are irrelevant. The Black Fairy’s reasons for wanting him, also irrelevant.” he shrugged nonchalantly, “But what I can tell you is this; there is no way for Algmata Tier to be unleashed unless we both want that to happen.”

“What?”

“He’s not bound to me because I’m imprisoning him, if that’s what you’ve been thinking. The reason why is because we are keeping something else held inside. I’m the prison, he’s the key. If we were to become separate, what we keep locked away would be unleashed, and anything the Black Fairy has planned would be child’s play compared to that catastrophe. But I can promise you this, Emma; Algmata Tier has no desire to kill you. And neither do I.”

“Oh, my god.” Emma flatly said as she placed her tea on the table, “You are even more cryptic than Nicholas. Quartermain, whether you give it permission or not, that thing is destined to kill me if the Final Battle actually happens.”

“And you think that will happen all because you saw it in a dream?” he asked in a bored tone.

“No, because Rip Van Winkle showed it to me.” she retorted, “Nicholas said-”

“Flamel says a lot of things, Savior. But do you want to know just how many times the predictions he’s made over the years have actually turned out exactly as he’s said?” he asked before coiling his hand, “Exactly zero. Not even for the damned Promised Day. As for Van Winkle, despite him being one of the founders, he’s about as credible for predicting the future as Nostradamus. He’s a specter-vagabond that peeps into people’s dreams. Do you want to know what every doom-sayer prophet has in common, Ms. Swan? They were all wrong. No one knows what will happen in the future. Not you, not Flamel, not Van Winkle, nor anyone else in this, or any world.”

Before the debate could continue any further, the ground suddenly trembled, sending both of them on high alert.

“Oh, great. Now what?” Emma groaned. Before the ground began to shake, the remaining five members of Branch Quartermain, and Bluebeard, were getting fitted for their attire for the wedding.

“You know, it’s a good thing Nicholas is so old fashioned and that Emma’s mother ain’t too demanding about what we do.” Sawyer said as he was tying a new tie around his collar in front of a mirror at Storybrooke’s tailor, “Otherwise, I reckon we’d be gettin’ gussied up in something foolish.”

“I’m just glad the ceremony’s at sunset and I can still wear black.” Mina quipped from a lounge chair.

“Speaking of the ceremony,” Skinner interjected, “Has, um, has Nicholas given any indication who the best man is?”

“Sorry, my friend.” Jekyll said with a sympathetic smile, “But Nicholas told me earlier that there will be no best man at this wedding.”

“What?!” the Invisible Man exclaimed.

“He said he didn’t want to make it look like he plays favorites.” Jekyll chuckled.

“Eh, just as well.” Sawyer shrugged, “Besides, we all know he’d have picked me.”

“Puh!” Skinner scoffed. With an amused look on his face, Sawyer turned to his pouting companion with a cocked eyebrow.

“You think he would’ve picked you, _Rodney_?” he asked.

“Well, unlike you, I’ve never shot him.” Skinner smoothly retorted with a smirk of his own.

“And now we know the real reason why Nicholas decided not to have a best man.” Nemo discreetly said to Mina as they watched their friends bicker.

“Indeed, my good captain.” she nodded before they lightly laughed. As they did, Skinner suddenly stiffened and drop all of his playful attitude.

“Oi, lads.” he alerted in warning, “Something’s wrong.”

“What is it?” Jekyll asked.

“I’m sensing a large amount of dark chi nearby.” he replied. In response, they all took cover while keeping their eyes locked on the store windows for any suspicious activity.

“How much are we dealing with, Skinner?” Gilles asked as he loaded his shotgun.

“If I’m right, and I hope I’m not, almost as many clones we have left from the Promised Day.” he replied, “Wait.”

“What now?” Mina asked.

“…It’s gone.” he informed, “Th-the chi. It’s all gone. It just vanished.”

“Oh, joy. Hide and seek. My least favorite game.” Jekyll dryly remarked.

“Sawyer, go check outside.” Nemo ordered.

“Man, why do I have to go look?” Sawyer complained.

“Because I’m the second seat, and you’re the seventh. Now, look!” Nemo barked.

“If I get killed, I’m gonna be pissed.” Sawyer spat as he maneuvered over to the front door, “It was bad enough the shit I went through during the eclipse. I don’t need this kinda stress in my life.”

Once he was safely positioned, the LXG agent opened the door and took a quick glance around the store’s proximity.

“I don’t see anything, guys.” he said with a shake of his head. However, as soon as he turned his head towards them, a black projectile flew past his ear into the store. At the center of the team’s small huddle, they all looked down to see a gothic-looking throwing knife imbedded into the floor.

“What the-” Skinner began to ask just before the knife started to magically glow and expand; like an explosive.

“Shit!” Mina cursed before dissolving into a swarm of bats and flying out the door. Following her lead, the others scrambled to dig out their transport rocks and crush them just before the blast engulfed them. Once they were outside, they looked at the burning and crumbling building in surprise.

“There goes our deposits.” Sawyer dryly remarked.

“I don’t think now’s an appropriate time for witty remarks, Sawyer.” Jekyll scolded, “Where the hell did that come from?”

“Why don’t we ask them?” Gilles suggested as he pointed to the group of hooded figures standing on the roofs of the buildings across the street. With the way they were all lined up in their black robes and hoods, they almost resembled a murder of crows.

“Something tells me that won’t be necessary, Gilles.” Nemo dryly retorted.

“Oh, well. We were bound to kill someone again, eventually.” Mina sighed as she drew her daggers and the others readied themselves for battle. Up on the roof, leading the surprise attack, Isabelle sadistically gleamed down at the denizens of light she and her siblings were sent to kill.

“By our dark mother’s will,” she said through her grin, “Kill them!”

Obeying the order, all the other Black Fairy worshipers leapt from the roofs and charged at the gentlemen. Meanwhile, Nicholas was still getting throttled by Fiona as she beat him and tossed him around like a rag doll. One thing was absolutely certain to the alchemist; unlike her son, the Black Fairy actually knew how to fight and incorporate her magic into her attacks.

“Come now, Mr. Flamel. I expected more from you.” she said in disappointment, “I mean, if what my son and his wife told me is true, you practically beat a godlike being single-handedly with not but your bare hands! Was that a fluke, or am I just too much for you?”

“Well, you do have me at a disadvantage he didn’t really exploit.” Nicholas rasped in pain, “I’ll give you this, though; you don’t really hold much back like he did. Can I ask you another question?”

“Oh, by all means.” she allowed.

“Why do you want to kill the Savior?” he asked as he tried to pick himself up, “Based on your strength, and the size of the army you brought with you, you’ve already got yourself a powerful empire. And it’s not like she would have gotten in your way. No one-no one knows how to get to your realm, and only a handful of people even know you exist. So, what’s the point in all this? You don’t strike me as someone who just causes chaos for fun.”

“Hmm…I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to let you in on my intentions for your fiancé.” Fiona relented, “It has to do with a very old, and very important prophecy.”

“Ooh, does this come with popcorn?” he teased through his grunts of pain before the fairy began to choke him with her magic.

“The fairies once prophesized the coming of a harbinger of light; a Savior. A child born with the most powerful light magic, destined to defeat a great, dark evil.”

“And let me guess,” Nicholas wheezed, “You heard about this prophecy, feared the child would destroy you, and then you tried to kill it before it killed you. That right?”

“No.” she said, “I wanted to save that child and prevent him from ever setting his eyes upon the evil that was destined to kill him. That is what drove me to become the Black Fairy.”

“What?”

“You see, I wasn’t always a fairy.” Fiona explained as she paced in front of the battered alchemist, “I was once just an ordinary woman, who wanted nothing more than to live a quiet, peaceful life with my beloved husband. We lived a humble life. We were in love, and so…so happy. Even more so when we learned we would have a child. It was so cold that night. It was the worst pain I had ever experienced…so far. But it was worth it once I was able to hold my baby for the first time. And then, just as quickly as my happiness came, it was taken away by that wretched Blue Fairy. She told us our baby was destined to be a great hero, one who would bring about peace and light throughout the realms. She told us our perfect child was the Savior.”

“Oh, my god.” Nicholas said in genuine surprise, “Rumplestiltskin was a Savior?”

“ _The_ Savior.” Fiona hissed, “Or at least, the first Savior. All who came after him were just replacements.”

“You’re telling me that the most powerful and evil Dark One of them all was originally the Savior?” he asked, “That’s got to be the most ironic messed up shit I’ve ever heard. So, if you were a human, and the Savior was your son, why the hell did you become this way?”

“…For love. When you are a parent, nothing else in the world matters except the safety of your child. No one else matters compared to your child. You cannot understand this unless you are a parent; a true parent.”

“Believe me, I know.” Nicholas said with sincerity.

“…Yes, you do.” she realized as she looked into his eyes, “So, then, you know there are no limits to protecting your child.”

“I do. And I’m beginning to understand what happened to you. You turned yourself into a fairy to gain the power to protect your son. But you didn’t stop there. You kept attaining more power out of desperation to keep your son safe, and so that you would be the one to face and defeat the evil he was meant to fight. But it still wasn’t enough. You didn’t believe you were strong enough because you had no idea how strong the evil was, so you created the dark curse to take you, your son, and the unknown evil to this magicless realm. But the Blue Fairy was against this, and you were declared the great evil and banished to another realm. That about right?”

“More or less.” Fiona nodded stoically, “Very astute of you.”

“What I don’t understand is how Rumple didn’t become the Savior like Emma did, or why you’ve decided to wreak havoc on everyone, not just the fairies.”

“After my magic turned itself and I dark, I realized that my child was in even more danger. Not from me, but from the fairies. They would have raised him to be a weapon meant to kill his own mother. So, to spare us both their torment, I used their Shears of Destiny to destroy his fate, and prevent him from ever becoming the Savior. And then they banished me, right after ripping away my baby from my arms. Those vile denizens of the light!” Fiona snarled past her gritting teeth.

“You were dealt a bad hand by the fairies; I understand.” Nicholas said in sympathy, “Personally, I’ve never cared much for the fairies, either. To this day, I still believe they never came to help me as a child because my mother was a practitioner of dark magic, and your son’s star pupil. But that doesn’t mean everyone else has to suffer. It was centuries ago. There’s no point.”

“Oh, but there is.” Fiona corrected, “You see, I realized something as I was building my realm, brick by brick, for all those years. If I was turned into a fairy through magic, so were they. So, at one point or another, they were all humans, too. But they were blinded by the light, and saw themselves above everyone who did not meet their standards. So, I realized, even if I killed those who betrayed me, as long as there was light in the realms, there would be others like the fairies who would want to destroy anyone who does not bask themselves in their precious light. It was then that I vowed to destroy not the fairies, but the light they, and so many others, so ignorantly worshiped. Every single denizen of light is my enemy. I will destroy them all and bring about the new age of darkness over all the realms.”

“I hate to break it to you, but not even a fairy is capable of accomplishing something like that.” Nicholas informed, “Not even all the past Dark Ones banded together could accomplish this. It would take a higher being than what you are to fulfil your wish.”

“Yes, I know.” Fiona smirked wickedly, “That’s exactly what I realized. But, I also realized that if I, as an ordinary, powerless human, could turn myself into the most powerful fairy of them all, what was stopping me from ascending into that very being you spoke of?”

“…You don’t mean-” Nicholas gasped in horror.

“Oh, I do. I do.” Fiona softly said causing the man to pale even further.

“And you believe that killing the Savior is going to accomplish that?” he asked.

“Not exactly, but it is necessary for the process.” she answered, “Either way, by the end of the Final Battle, I shall achieve my goal.”

“You’re psychotic; and just a little bit genocidal.” Nicholas remarked, “We’re not gonna let you even try it, let alone go through with it.”

“Ha! You really think I’m concerned about any of you ‘gentlemen’? I’ve just spent the past half-hour tossing you around like a ball.” she scoffed.

“Well, it’s like you said earlier, I beat a godlike being with not but my bare hands. Lady, I’ve been holding back.” he corrected before retaliating with a powerful uppercut of his own to her chin. From there, he grabbed her face, pulled it down as he delivered a knee-strike to her abdomen, followed by a back-kick that sent her flying through a tall, thick tree.

“Were you seriously so arrogant that you believed I was _that_ dependent on my alchemy?” he asked in a very insulted tone, “I’ve spent my entire life as an alchemist pointing out how magic users, like you, are way too dependent on their powers in a fight. And I’ve spent just as much time trying not to be as big a hypocrite as my soon-to-be-in-laws. You’re not gonna take me down so easily, toots.”

“Is that so?” Fiona asked from where she landed, “Well, in that case, I should probably take things a little more seriously.”

As if to further her point, Fiona lifted the fallen tree, that was seemingly crushing her, with only one hand and tossed it aside with little effort. Upon closer inspection, Nicholas also noticed there was not even a single scuff on the woman’s skin; as if his attacks and surrounding environment did her no harm at all.

Once it was her turn to retaliate, Fiona created a large ball of black fire, then condensed it into the size of a tennis ball. However, instead of hurling the ball, like everyone else normally did, the attack was an eruption of fire, like a dragon’s, directed towards the alchemist. Despite the current handicap Nicholas was dealing with, he stood, or hovered, firm in place and readied his counterstrike. Bracing himself, Nicholas simply stuck out his hand as the flames came closer and closer.

“Fool.” Fiona arrogantly thought. However, her thoughts quickly changed when she watched her black flames be absorbed in some sort of vacuum-like force. After the flames disappeared, she saw Nicholas standing there with a smug look on his face. But what really gained her attention was the bizarre change on his hand. In the center of his palm was a second mouth with long fangs was wide open with a single, grey eye staring directly at her.

“You know, I’m actually a little embarrassed that I never thought to use this ability like this until recently.” Nicholas admitted, “It really comes in handy for attacks just like yours; and, as you can see, it doesn’t have the same limitations as some of my other abilities. Oh, I’m sorry. I’m being rude. Here. Let me return this to you.”

With a few crackles of red, alchemic lightning, the mouth on his hand widened and belched up all the flames it swallowed, with a little extra push, right back at the deranged fairy. However, since it would be far too easy for things to end so simply, Fiona evaded the attack by shrinking down into her fairy form and quickly flew around the attack, and behind Nicholas. As she resumed her larger form, Nicholas swerved himself around to continue his attack. But, as he did, Fiona simply shot her index and middle fingers straight up, thus launching the alchemist high into the air, with her flying after him. Not too far from that battle’s location, Emma and Quartermain were outside trying to figure out what was causing all the noise and ruckus.

“Oh, god. Is this it?” Emma rhetorically asked, “Has she already started the Final Battle?”

“No.” Quartermain said as he assessed the situation, “This doesn’t feel like any typical battle. She’s probably just assessing our strength; and seeing whether or not any of us are weak enough for her to take out before the Final Battle. And it looks like she’s personally assessing Flamel’s strength.”

“What?!” Emma exclaimed before poofing a pair of binoculars to her hands and looking in the same direction the old man was craning his neck, “Oh, my god! He’s actually fighting her up there?”

“Oh, he’s up there, but he’s definitely not fighting.” Quartermain scoffed, “Can’t believe she actually figured it out.”

“Figured what out?” she asked.

“His alchemy’s weakness.” Quartermain curtly replied.

“It doesn’t have any weaknesses.” Emma argued.

“Everything has a weakness, Ms. Swan.” Quartermain pointed out, “Case in point: Flamel’s alchemy. He needs tectonic energy to perform transmutations. Without it, he can’t transmute. And tectonic energy can only be pulled from the ground, or anything touching the ground. Since he’s up in the air like that, and since the Black Fairy seems to be intentionally keeping him away from the ground, he can’t use his alchemy. If you pay close attention to the way he fights, you’ll notice he’s never performed one transmutation without being connected to that energy.”

“But-but does that mean he’s…” she trailed nervously.

“Mortal? No.” he assured, “I asked him that very question once. He told me the Philosopher’s Stone is what sustains him, and that it is its own energy source. He may not be able to transmute, but his immortality, healing ability, and all the other strange abilities he has do not require tectonic energy the same way his alchemy does. He’ll be fine; or, at least, he’ll live.”

“Ugh, she’s beating him like a drum.” Emma cringed. Coincidentally, just after Emma said this, Fiona sent Nicholas flying right in front of the two of them, creating a crater he just barely hovered in.

“Having a good day so far, Flamel?” Quartermain casually asked while Emma looked aghast at the sight. In response, Nicholas raised his shaking arm out of the crater to flip off his superior.

“You shouldn’t give him too much trouble, Mr. Quartermain.” Fiona said from the sky as she walked down to them, as if she were on invisible stairs, “After all, he lasted longer than most ever have.”

“What the hell are you doing all this for?!” Emma shouted at the smirking fairy.

“Why don’t you ask your precious alchemist after he regains consciousness?” she suggested, “It’s only polite considering he just put himself through all that so he could gain some information from me. I’ll give him credit; it was a unique method. But it was fairly obvious. Don’t worry, though. Everything I told him is the truth. Granted, I didn’t tell him everything regarding my plans, but it should be enough to satisfy your curiosity until tomorrow.”

“What happens tomorrow?” Emma said with a glare.

“When the sunsets over Storybrooke, it will be the last day of the era of light. Then, and only then, will the Final Battle begin. Ta-ta, dearies.” Fiona laughed before flying away. As soon as she did, the force keeping Nicholas suspended wore off and dropped him on the ground. Once he made contact, his body surged with tectonic energy that he used to speed up his healing process.

“I’m alive!” he shouted as he sprang to his feet, “Ugh! That was freaking ridiculous!”

“Are you okay?” Emma asked in concern.

“Physically? Always.” he replied as he repaired his clothes and dusted himself off, “But, after that rather painful interrogation session, I’m really concerned about what’s gonna happen during the Final Battle.”

“What did you find out?” Quartermain asked.

“First, I think you ought to call in everyone over here; except Belle and Rumple!” he warned. As Emma helped her fiancé inside the mansion, Quartermain took the liberty to call all the others over. Thankfully, Isabelle and the rest of Fiona’s followers didn’t do too much damage to the town, or to the other agents, so they were able to respond just as quickly as the citizens. Once they were all the in the debriefing room, Nicholas began to explain the situation.

“Okay, I think I’ve finally figured out what it is the Black Fairy wants and why she’s come here.” he began.

“Did you seriously let her beat the crap out of you just so you could figure this out?” Sawyer bluntly asked.

“Yes. Shut up.” he curtly replied, “Even though she caught on to what my intentions were, the Black Fairy humored me enough to unveil the reasons why she’s so obsessed with Emma and the Final Battle; and I think it’s because she’s that confident she’s going to win.”

“Did she give you any inclination what she’s gonna do with all that dark fairy dust?” Regina asked.

“No, but I think she’s gonna reveal that at some point tomorrow.” her brother replied, “Now, before I get too far ahead, let’s review what we all know so far. Before coming here, herself, she sent Gideon in her place to kill Emma. She then had us believe Gideon was some kind of tragic hero with misguided intentions after he failed. Then, Gideon tricked Emma into believing his tragic story and used his sword and her power to open a portal for the Black Fairy, and many if not all of her followers to Storybrooke. Then, she revealed herself, and her followers, to Emma to try and intimidate her. Then, she provoked Zelena into going after her just so she could demonstrate her powers by turning all the fairy crystals in Storybrooke into dark fairy dust, for a purpose we yet do not know. But, at the center of all this, is that each of these instances are meant to serve her chances in winning the Final Battle.”

“She also sent a group of her forces to attack the six of us, earlier.” Nemo added as he gestured to himself and the other agents.

“Thank you, Nemo.” Nicholas nodded, “And while that was going on, she and I were engaged in a pretty one-sided-fight. But let me set the record straight, I held back on purpose.”

“Mate, just get to the point.” Killian sighed, shaking his head.

“Right. Apparently, everything she’s done is related to an old prophecy the fairies made, a long time ago. The prophecy says, the Savior is destined to fight a great, dark evil in the Final Battle. And Fiona’s been preparing for this fight ever since she first heard about it.”

“You can’t mean she’s been waiting all these years for Emma?” Zelena asked as she bounced Robin on her knee.

“She hasn’t. And this is where it gets crazy. Apparently, the first Savior was none other than Fiona’s own son; Rumplestiltskin.” Nicholas revealed.

“What?!” Emma and Killian exclaimed louder than all the others who reacted to this revelation.

“I know, right?” he asked.

“Rumple was a Savior?” Snow asked in disbelief, “The _first_ Savior?!”

“That’s what she told me. Ironic, huh?” he asked, “That’s why she became the Black Fairy, in the first place. She told me, she was just an ordinary human when the Blue Fairy told her on the night Rumple was born. She wanted to protect her son from the, at the time unknown, evil. So, she turned herself into a fairy and dedicated herself to becoming the most powerful fairy of them all so that _she_ would face the evil, not her son. That’s why she created the dark curse; to bring everyone, including the evil, here where there’s no magic.”

“I don’t believe this.” Regina exhaled.

“There’s more.” he continued, “As soon as that happened, she turned dark, Blue declared her the great evil, then Fiona used the Shears of Destiny on Rumple to keep him from being raised as a weapon to fight her, and then Blue took him from her and banished her. So, really, this all Blue’s fault.”

“Nicholas.” Snow admonished.

“Well, it is.” he defended, “So, now Fiona wants revenge on not just the fairies, but everyone who she considers a ‘denizen of light.’ And if that whole ‘accelerated time’ thing is true, she’s probably been preparing for this for millennia.”

“Denizens of light?” Ariel asked confusion.

“Her words.” he said, “In her eyes, anybody is capable of becoming like Blue; cynical, and blinded by the light. Which makes everyone her enemy. That’s why, she’s planning to bring about an age of darkness over _all_ the realms.”

“And just how is she planning on accomplishing that?” Jekyll asked.

“She didn’t give explicit details on how she was going to gain the power to do it, but she did heavily imply what her ambition is that will give her the power to do it.” Nicholas replied.

“What?” Regina asked.

“She’s going to turn herself into a Djinn.” he answered. As soon as he did, both of his sisters, and all the agents in the room, paled and nearly fell to their knees; even Zelena nearly dropped her precious baby after hearing those words. Only Emma, her parents, Henry, and the Hooks were unaware of what that meant.

“W-what’s a Djinn?” Hook asked in confusion, “You mean a genie?”

“No. If it was a genie, she wouldn’t be going through all this trouble, and it’d be easier for us to deal with.” Nicholas calmly corrected, despite how nervous he was, “Djinns are like…let’s see how do I explain it? Djinns are like…well, not exactly gods, but something much more powerful. Okay, Djinns are like the primordial beings of magic. Each one reigns over a specific field of magic and is the most powerful wielder of that field.”

“How many are there?” David asked.

“Seventy-two.” he casually replied with a shrug.

“Seventy-two?!” David exclaimed.

“What? Were you expecting twelve?” Nicholas asked.

“You’re absolutely sure that’s what she plans to do?” Regina asked, looking more afraid than anyone had ever seen her.

“There’s no other being that could be capable of extinguishing all light on their own besides a Djinn. Or rather, maybe a more accurate way to say it is that she plans on turning herself into a _Dark_ Djinn.”

“What’s the difference?” Hook asked.

“Dark Djinns reign over the domains of all dark magic. I figured that was fairly obvious.” Nicholas replied.

“But she can’t really turn herself into one of those things. Can she?” Snow asked, her question laced with desperate hope.

“Well,” Nicholas trailed rubbing his chin, “In theory, it’s possible.”

“Oh, god.” Snow exhaled, “What do you mean, in theory?”

“Well,” Mina interjected giving her friend a break, “Despite how there are few people who have even heard the word Djinn, there are some cultures that worship these beings; although, many of them are nearly extinct, if not already. And in all those cultures, the legends say this about the Djinns. In a realm that has long since faded away, the Djinns were once humans who naturally possessed magic. They all hailed from a very magic-dependent society that used all seventy-two of them as, basically, power sources. Eventually, some of them broke free and began to liberate their fellow captives. However, instead of leaving them all weakened after a lifetime of being drained, they all gained more power than ever once their magic had finally stopped being continuously drained. So much so that, eventually, they somehow evolved into the magical we now know as Djinns. After their realm faded, they traveled to other realms and brought magic with them. Since they were practically made of magic, it remained in the places they visited, and seeped into the natives. At some point, they could no longer physically exist in this plane and ascended into a realm of pure magic, that they created to sustain them.

“People who practiced magic heard of this, and how they became Djinns in the first place, then began to recreate what happened to them, in hopes they too could become Djinns. This created the Dark Djinns, and they, too, created their own plane of dark magic to sustain them and make them stronger. Though those methods for creating Dark Djinns have long since been lost, or destroyed, there have been people who have tried their own methods to become Light or Dark Djinns. Of course, that rarely happens, anymore. It’s rare to happen even once during a millennium.”

“But Fiona thinks she can?” Emma asked.

“The fact that she’s been growing in strength and preparing for the Final Battle for all these years indicates she does.” Nicholas nodded, “And from the way she was talking, she thinks all she needs to do to finally become one is win the Final Battle. In fact, she said she needs something here in Storybrooke to complete the process. What that is, I don’t know. She purposefully kept that a secret. We’ll probably find out tomorrow.”

“She meant Algmata Tier.” Emma realized, “That’s why she wants it. She’s gonna add its power to her own so she can become a Djinn!”

“Do you think she was talking about the dagger?” Ariel asked.

“If she was, that’s gonna be an awkward conversation between her and her son.” Nicholas sighed, “Which brings me to the next thing I need to tell all of you. Rumple and Belle have joined up with the Black Fairy.”

“After everything she put Gideon through?!” Snow asked in disbelief, “Why?”

“Well, for Rumple, she probably told him the truth and it actually warmed his black heart enough to choose her over remaining neutral.” he shrugged, “Or…it might have to do what I did to Belle last night.”

“What did you do?” Quartermain asked as he narrowed his eyes.

“I, uh, I may have let my temper get the better of me when I paid a visit to the pawn shop yesterday.” Nicholas sheepishly confessed before explaining his confrontation with the woman; and how he struck her.

“You seriously did that to her?” Emma asked.

“It’s not like she was gonna help us.” Nicholas defended, “All she’s done these past few weeks is defend Gideon and make excuses for him every time he tried to kill you! She was a liability. And I barely hit her.”

“You hit her hard enough to make her side with her crazy mother-in-law!” Sawyer retorted.

“Point taken.” Nicholas noted.

“How do you know Belle’s working with them?” Snow asked.

“Fiona implied it before tossing me around all over the woods. And since she knew the weakness of my alchemy, something Rumple clearly never picked up on, my options were that she was smart enough to figure it out on her own. Or, Belle figured it out and told Fiona because she was pissed at me for threatening to kill Gideon.”

“So, what do we do now?” Henry asked.

“…Wait until tomorrow and see what happens?” Nicholas shrugged, “Despite the similarities, this isn’t like dealing with the Promised Day. We’re unprepared, out-numbered, and we have no idea what kind of traps are waiting for us in those mines if we go in after them.”

“I never thought there’d come a day where a Djinn, of all things, would come to our town.” Regina remarked in fear.

“She’s not a Djinn, yet.” Nemo reminded everyone, “And that means, we can still kill her.”

“Chances are she’s not going to risk losing any of her forces again until the Final Battle.” Skinner pointed out, “So, we’ve probably seen the last of her today. Hmm. It’s rather odd. We normally don’t finish these sort of things so early in the day.”

“Why don’t continue with the final preparations for the wedding?” Mina suggested to the downcast civilians. As they were all filing out, Emma stayed behind to have another chat with Quartermain; something her father noticed and stuck around to keep an eye on.

“Well, I think it’s safe to assume why the Black Fairy wants your little friend.” she bitterly said to the old man.

“Yes, I suppose so.” he nonchalantly nodded.

“Do you really think it’d be enough to turn her?”

“If turning into a Dark Djinn is indeed the Black Fairy’s goal, then yes. Algmata Tier’s power would be exactly what she needs to fulfil her goal.” he said.

“Great.” Emma sighed, “Just do us all a favor, make sure she doesn’t do anything to let that thing loose.”

“Concerned for me, are you?” he asked.

“I’m concerned for me and the people I love. You, on the other hand, are the bastard who killed my grandfather and made my father struggle and suffer for the rest of his life on that farm.”

“The struggles of life are what make us stronger, Savior.” he coldly retorted. Not wanting to carry the conversation out any further, Emma just walked away, past her father who decided it was his turn to speak with the old hunter.

“You mind telling me what the hell that was about?” he hotly asked.

“Yes, I do mind.” Quartermain curtly replied as he poured himself a drink.

“Listen, I don’t know what the hell is going on in your head, but if you have any thoughts in there about my daughter, forget them.” David warned.

“Oh?” he asked.

“I know what you did. You’re the reason I grew up without my father and brother.”

“That was as much as your father’s fault as it was mine, boy.” Quartermain retorted as he sipped his drink and sat on a love seat. In his anger, David flared his nostrils at the old man as he tried to keep himself from lashing out.

“Just stay away from my daughter; and everyone else in my family. Got it?”

“You’re either very bold, or very stupid to threaten me in my own home, Mr. Nolan. Depending on your next actions, I believe I’ll know which it is.” Quartermain coolly said as his eyes met with David’s piercing gaze.

“You’ve been warned.” was all he said before storming out after his family. Not at all fazed, Quartermain simply sipped his drink and sat alone in the empty mansion. 

As he did, in the depths of the mines, Fiona was watching the entire scene play out through her black, crystal ball, smirking as she did. However, a moment later, Quartermain’s eyes seemed to lock with hers before glowing purple, thus cracking the ball and rendering it useless.

“Oh, I think we can use this to our advantage.” she smiled with a sinister giggle.


	100. The Song in Your Heart Pt.1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything from OUaT, FMAB, LXG or The Prince of Egypt

Over twenty years ago, in the Land Without Magic, a little girl with an unknown destiny found herself gazing longingly at a scrap of paper in her bedroom. Despite the difficulties she had been facing her entire life, little Emma Swan was actually letting herself dream a little. Earlier that day, she noticed a talent show flyer at her school and, surprisingly, found herself interested. So, with a tape recorder and mic, the little blonde girl began to hum a cute little tune. However, as soon as she started, one of her foster sisters barged in.

“What’s this?” she rudely asked after snatching the paper.

“It’s none of your business.” little Emma sneered.

“What, think you’re gonna be the next Madonna?” the girl mocked, her own hopes and dreams crushed a long time ago.

“What do you know?” little Emma retorted, “Maybe people actually want to hear me sing.”

“Who? As soon as you get up on that stage and look out at the audience, you’ll realize the truth, Emma. You’re just like the rest of us; all alone.”

After the door was slammed shut, little Emma gave in and crumpled the flyer and threw it away, already giving up before really even trying. Little did the girl know, she’d be singing a very important song in her future for a very grateful audience.

**OUaT**

Over thirty years ago in the Enchanted Forest, a pregnant, and very flustered, Snow White stormed into her bedchamber with her Prince Charming at her heels. They had just returned from enchanted prison they were keeping Rumplestiltskin locked away in. As they had done when he was free, they sought out information from the Dark One in hopes to get an advantage over the Evil Queen. However, this time, he all had terrible news for them.

“Snow!” Charming called out to her as she barged into their room, “Snow, it’s going to be okay.”

“No, Charming, it’s not!” she exclaimed in panic, “You heard Rumple. There is nothing we can do to stop the Evil Queen.”

“I promise you, we will protect our daughter. But right now, she needs her mother to rest.” he soothed.

“Alright. I just need some air.” Snow White relented before heading to their balcony. As she gazed out to the starry night, in a desperate act of hope, the princess looked to the first star she spotted and made a wish with all her might. “I wish we had what we needed to help Emma. To give her a chance at a happy ending.”

As soon as she said the words aloud, she felt silly for resorting to such childish antics. However, the next morning, she would immediately realize that it may not have been as silly as she thought. With a happy little bluebird chirping to wake her up, Snow White greeted the day in a…unique way.

_[Snow White]_

_Good morning, friend  
Oh, my dear!  
There’s something wrong_

_‘Cause all my words  
Are coming out in song~  
A rhythm stirs deep inside my soul_

_I’m saying things in ways I can’t control!_

As she covered her mouth in shock, Charming came bursting into the room, singing as well.

_[Prince Charming]_

_What’s going on?!  
Someone cast a spell or curse  
‘Cause what I say is coming out in verse_

_My voice just soars~  
Had no idea it could  
Now I’m singing out, and my, do I sound  
Good~!_

_What could be the reason?_

_[Snow White]_

_I think I know, my love  
It’s all because the wish I made upon the star above  
With music in our hearts, we’ll defeat the Evil Queen.  
  
_

_[Prince Charming]  
How?  
  
_

_[Snow White]  
‘Cause love expressed through song  
Is a weapon like the Queen has never seen~  
  
_

Moved by his wife’s singing, Charming joined her in singing their hope filled plan.

_[Snow White & Prince Charming]  
There’s a powerful magic when two hearts are one  
A powerful magic bright as the sun  
  
[Prince Charming]  
Goodness will triumph and evil’s undone  
When you dare to heed love’s call~!”  
  
[Snow White & Prince Charming]  
‘Cause love is the most powerful magic of all~  
  
It’s a powerful magic when two voices soar  
  
[Snow White]  
I’m ever more hopeful for what lies in store  
  
[Prince Charming]  
Nothing will stop us, no, not anymore  
Watch the wish you made come true~  
  
[Snow White & Prince Charming]  
That is what love and its powerful magic can do~  
Feel the song inside our hearts  
That is where the magic starts  
  
[Snow White]  
Oh, it grows with every note  
  
[Prince Charming]  
Soaring sweetly from my throat  
  
[Snow White]  
Every line ends with a rhyme  
  
[Snow White & Prince Charming]  
Don’t know how, but it’s sublime  
With a melody so strong  
How can we go wrong?  
  
With our powerful magic, we now have the means  
‘Cause love can defeat curses, potions or beans  
And the unhappy ending let that be the Queen’s  
With our daughter’s fate at stake, seems we found a lucky break  
Now let our song show the powerful magic… we can make!_

**OUaT**

In Storybrooke during the present, after receiving an alert from one of the sailors stationed in town, led by Emma, her mother, the Mills sisters, and Ariel rushed over to the clock tower to inspect it. Originally, they were all together getting prepared for the ceremony. But, when Gilles and Sawyer spotted the Black Fairy entering the clock tower, they all dropped everything and rushed to the tower. When the elevator brought them to the top, they all looked up in horror.

“Neptune’s beard.” Ariel softly cursed.

“Is that all-” Snow asked.

“Black Fairy dust.” Regina said. Contained in a large, glass sphere, all the dust Fiona had created in the mines was wildly swimming in a torrent, “I’d say enough to curse Storybrooke ten times over.”

“Well, I think we now have a better understanding of her plans for the Final Battle. She’s going to cast another curse and separate us all.” Sawyer estimated.

“Mainly, separate us all from Emma, you mean.” Regina pointed out after waving her hand across the sphere, “Its tied to the clock tower. The moment it strikes 6:00, it’ll be released.”

“That’s when Nicholas and I are getting married.” Emma reminded.

“Well, you have to admit, she’s got a flair for the dramatics.” Zelena dryly joked, “As soon as you say your I dos, everyone but you, Emma, will be off god knows where. And if things don’t turn out like we hope, we may just come back in time to see the face of a new god.”

Naturally, that little remark added to the nervous tension in the cramped space they were all standing in. After taking a deep gulp, Sawyer spoke up.

“It’s times like this I wish I was a religious man like you, Blue-Bluey?” he began to say before realizing Gilles was gone. After climbing up the stairs, they opened the clock window and saw their friend running through the street in a panic.

“It’s all over, people! We don’t have a prayer! Ahhhhhhh!” he cried as he ran.

With his cheeks flushed in embarrassment over the lack of professionalism and composure from his fellow gentleman, the remaining agent had his own embarrassed expression while trying avoid eye contact with the ladies.

“Right…” Sawyer trailed while the mayor rolled her eyes. All Regina wanted was for her brother’s wedding to go off without a hitch, unlike what she did to his future in-laws. But that was probably too much to ask for considering their track record of bad luck.

**OUaT**

The same morning Snow and Charming awoke with their newfound magic, the Evil Queen stomped through her dark castle in irritation and annoyance. Much like her step-daughter and her husband, she discovered a certain change after waking up.

_[Evil Queen]  
Mirror, mirror on the wall  
I’m tortured by some spell  
Mirror, mirror on the wall  
Please, save me from this hell!  
  
_

From the wall, the Magic Mirror began to sing, uncontrollably, as well.

_  
[Magic Mirror]  
Snow and Charming made a wish  
Now everything has changed  
  
[Evil Queen]  
Oh great, you’re singing, too  
This whole thing is deranged  
  
[Magic Mirror]  
A spell as strong as this won’t be easy to defeat  
Your curse might not succeed when your kingdom’s singing songs so sweet  
  
_

In order to show her what he meant, the Magic Mirror began to show his queen Snow and Charming’s friends singing through his many mirrors.

_  
[Grumpy]  
It’s time to work, let’s go, not a thing to make me bristle  
With a heigh, heigh, heigh and a ho, ho, ho  
I’ll mine that mine and whistle  
  
[Geppetto]  
He’s really not a toy, there’s a lifetime to enjoy  
The happy things, he’s got no strings  
‘Cause he’s my real boy  
  
[Granny]  
La la, princess on her way  
La la, though I’m old and gray  
Happy times are here to stay  
  
[Snow White & Prince Charming]  
Seems we found a lucky break  
Now let our song show the powerful magic… we can make!  
  
[Evil Queen]  
Enough!_

_So, the Charmings think  
their love is strong enough to defeat me?  
Well, there’s one thing they don’t know…  
  
Mirror, mirror could not be clearer  
that love is waste of time  
I’m here to tell you with love’s magic spell,  
you cannot match the power of mine  
Once I loved and once I learned  
Love is weakness, love will leave you burned~_

Using her magic to transport her to the locations she saw in her mirrors, the queen continued to sing in the Dwarf Mines where she scared the dwarves and broke their pickaxes. _  
  
_

_[Evil Queen]  
Down with love, down with hope  
Don’t need blind faith to cope  
Or inspiring songs in my heart  
  
Got the magic I need for my darkest of deeds  
Love at times can entrance  
But love doesn’t stand a chance  
  
_

Using her magic, again, the queen brought herself to Geppetto’s shop to scare him and his son.

_[Evil Queen]_

_Mirror, mirror, the time draws nearer  
for me to enact my curse  
Those happy feelings that send them reeling  
will soon become the reverse  
  
_

This time, she was in Granny’s cottage and ripped to shreds the baby blanket the old woman was making for the new princess.

_[Evil Queen]_

_Down with love, down with hope  
Don’t need blind faith to cope  
Or inspiring songs in my heart  
  
Got the magic I need for my darkest of deeds  
Love at times can entrance  
But love doesn’t stand a chance  
  
Stole my shot at one true love   
That’s what she did to me  
Now that little bitch will wish  
She never ever knew me  
  
_

Back in her castle, as she sang and danced in anger, the queen was completely unaware that her younger brother had just walked in. As he did, he kept his distance while looked at his sister with an absolutely flabbergasted expression.

_[Evil Queen]_

_Down with love, down with dreams  
Down with goodness’s schemes  
Gonna rip the song right from their hearts  
  
Got the magic I need for my darkest of deeds  
Watch my curse kill romance  
Oh, love doesn’t stand a chance  
No, no, love doesn’t stand a chance~!_

As she panted, after using her magic to shatter one of her mirrors, the Evil Queen found herself embracing the strange magic flowing through her. However, her adrenaline filled rush immediately left her once her brother made himself known.

“…What the hell was that?!” he exclaimed, surprising her.

“Nicholas!” Regina cried, “I, uh, I-I was-”

“Father!” he shouted down a corridor, “Regina’s finally lost her mind!”

“Be quiet!” she ordered in embarrassment.

**OUaT**

Following the discovery of the Black Fairy’s wedding gift, Emma realized she had to weigh her options between following through her original plan to carry on with her life, or give in and bring the fight to the Black Fairy. As much as she wanted to stick to the former, she knew she had no other choice but to accept the latter. So, with a heavy heart, she decided to pay her fiancé a visit at the mansion. As she did, once she found the room he was in, she heard him debating with her father and their friends.

“What’s wrong?” David asked, “You normally wear this kind of stuff on a daily basis. Just pick something.”

“I know, I know.” Nicholas admitted, “I just want to make sure it’s the right decision. You don’t know what I’m going through, man. I can practically hear mother’s condescending voice telling me, ‘Oh, no, no. That will never do.’”

“Mate, no matter what you pick, you’ll still be wearing black and red. Just pick something, already.” Killian sighed.

“Say ‘yes’ to the suit!” Skinner joked, actually causing the others to laugh.

“Do you honestly think Emma will care, either way?” Nemo asked.

“I don’t think she will.” Emma said as she made her presence known.

“Damnit, Em!” Nicholas jolted before transmuting his eyes away, causing everyone else to react in disgust.

“Oh, god!” David exclaimed in disgust.

“That’s disgusting!” Jekyll retched.

“Bring them back! Bring them back!” Killian shouted. Giving in, Nicholas brought back his eyes and bashfully looked away.

“What is wrong with you?” David rhetorically asked.

“What? You all know it’s bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the wedding.” he defended.

“Guys, can you give us a minute?” Emma asked, not at all fazed at her alchemist’s antics.

“Take as many as you want.” Skinner remarked as he pushed past them all to get out of the room as fast as he could, “Ugh, I’ll never get that image out of my brain!”

“What’s wrong, Em?” Nicholas asked after everyone left.

“We found out what the Black Fairy’s gonna do with the Black Fairy dust. She’s going to use all of it to cast a curse that’s going to separate me from everyone, so that I have to fight the Final Battle alone.”

“Not on our wedding day, she won’t. Let’s go.” he said, ready to fight only to be stopped.

“Nicholas, this is one fight I need to win on my own.” she said gently.

“Isn’t that what she wants?” he asked.

“If you come with me, it just gives her a chance to hurt one more person I love. And I can’t let her do that.”

“Well, you’ve obviously made up your mind,” he said, none too happy about it, “So, why did you come here then?”

“To tell you not to worry. And at 6:00pm, I will be there to say ‘I do.’” she assured. However, Nicholas wasn’t buying it.

“No, that’s not it.” he realized, “You’ve come to say goodbye in case it doesn’t work.”

“Nicholas-”

“Let me help.” he pleaded, “I may have let her kick my ass yesterday, but I can still fight. I can’t lose you, again. It would be far worse than before. Ever since I gave you the Stone and you returned it to me, we’ve been connected; our souls have been connected. I can’t go through that.”

“You won’t lose me.” she softly promised with love in her eyes, “I love you.”

Despite her warm words, Nicholas couldn’t shake the feeling of dread coursing through him. He already lost one loved one to dark magic, he wasn’t about to lose another.

**OUaT**

“Haven’t you noticed what’s happened throughout the Enchanted Forest?” Regina snapped after she managed to calm down her bewildered little brother.

“I just got back from my research trip. Low and behold I find you singing and dancing like you were in a play.” Flamel retorted, no less concerned.

“Snow and Charming, apparently, made a wish that’s made everyone start singing spontaneously. You just happened to walk in when it was affecting me.” she explained.

“Everyone?” he asked in shock, his eyebrows almost reaching his hairline.

“Yes. Which means, you’re bound to start singing, too, if you keep talking, little brother.” she warned.

“NO!” he cried as he covered his mouth with both hands, “Do something! I don’t wanna sing spontaneously like some kind of minstrel!”

“Oh, don’t worry. I very much intend to do something.” Regina snarled as she stomped over to her main mirror.

“Good. Good.” Flamel exhaled in relief before his eyes widened in panic, “Oh, no, wait, not good! Regina, please! Don’t do anything drastic. You don’t need to drag innocent people into this.”

“Innocent?” she snapped, “Those treasonous peasants have defied me long enough! If Snow and Charming have finally decided to use magic against me, I should provide them a demonstration of what real magic is. I’ll bring an end to this war. And I’ll use their own magic to do it! Mirror, Mirror on the wall, deliver this message to everyone and all.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” He devout servant obliged. Using his magic, throughout the entire kingdom, every mirror in the land that belonged to the average peasant showed not their reflections, but that of the Evil Queen’s.

**(Cue “The Plagues” from Prince of Egypt)**

_[Evil Queen]_

_(I siege the land  
I siege the land  
I siege the land)  
Since you refuse to be my people  
(I siege the land)  
All through the Enchanted Forest!_

As the multitude of her voices sang her threats, the Evil Queen used her magic to inflict them all upon the land.

_[Evil Queen]  
I send a pestilence and plague  
Into your house, into your bed  
Into your streams, into your streets  
Into your drink, into your bread!  
Upon your cattle, on your sheep  
Upon your oxen in your field  
Into your dreams, into your sleep  
Until you break, until you yield!  
I send the swarm, I send the horde  
Thus end the war~!_

As she sang, Flamel looked to his sister in shame. Not shame directed towards her, but shame towards himself for failing to keep her off this path.

_[Flamel]_

_Once you called me brother  
Once I thought the chance to make you laugh  
Was all I ever wanted…_

_[Evil Queen]_

_I send the thunder from the sky  
I send the fire raining down_

_[Flamel]_

_And even now  
I wish the Dark One chose another  
Stoking both your hatred and your wrath  
Was the last thing that I wanted…_

_[Evil Queen]_

_I send a hail of burning ice  
On every field, on every town!_

Transmuting himself to the worst area, seeing the homes of innocent people burn and watch as burning hail fell from the lightning filled sky filled Flamel with deep sorrow.

_[Flamel]_

_This was my home  
All this pain and devastation  
How it tortures me inside!  
All the innocent who suffer  
From your stubbornness and pride!_

From the balcony of her castle, the Evil Queen unleashed a massive swarm of locusts from her mouth to engulf the lands where her brother was. As they flew, they not only engulfed the land, but many of the people, as well.

_[Evil Queen]_

_I send the locusts on the wind  
Such as the world has never seen  
On every leaf, on every stalk  
Until there’s nothing left of green!  
  
_

_I send my scourge  
I send my sword  
Thus end the war!_

_[Flamel]_

_You who I call sister  
Why must you call down another blow?_

_[Evil Queen]_

_I send my scourge!  
I send my sword!_

_[Flamel]_

_Let your hatred go!_

_[Evil Queen]_

_Thus end the war!_

_[Flamel & Evil Queen]_

_Thus end the war!_

As the Evil Queen was beginning to enjoy the torment she was inflicting upon the realm, in one of her mirrors, she saw her younger brother helping the peasants she was torturing. In her madness, and rage, this was an act of betrayal against her and her goal to rule the kingdom. After using her magic to kill the peasants he was helping, the queen showed herself to him in a nearby, shattered mirror.

_[Evil Queen]_

_You who I call brother  
How could you have come to hate me so?  
Is this what you wanted?  
(I send the swarm  
I send the horde)  
Then let my heart be hardened  
And never mind how high the cost may grow  
This will still be so  
I will never let my hatred go!_

_(Thus end the war  
Thus end the war)_

_[Flamel & Evil Queen]_

_I will not  
Let my (your) hatred  
Go!_

Looking around at the carnage his sister wrought upon the land, Flamel could only bring himself to look in the direction of her castle and shake his head in sadness.

“Oh, Regina. What have you become?” he softly asked.

**OUaT**

After leaving the room her fiancé was in, Emma headed downstairs to leave the mansion. However, as she did, she came across a certain agent who seemed to be waiting for her.

“So, you’re giving in and voluntarily walking into the insect’s trap, are you?” Quartermain asked from his seat.

“Don’t try to stop me, Quartermain.” Emma said, not even bothering to stop walking away, “Right now, my options are to fight now, or fight later. I’m done waiting.”

“You go out there, Savior, and you’ll die sooner than you’ve been fearing these past few months.” he pointed out.

“Well, do you have a better idea?” she snapped, stopping to face him, “Because I’m open to suggestions. Or, you know what? You’re so powerful. Why don’t you go out there and face her? It’s you she’s really after.”

“In my experience, you’re better prepared for a fight you know that’ll happen come for you rather than going after it. If the Black Fairy brings the fight to me, then I will respond in kind. I would advise you to do the same.”

“In case you haven’t been paying attention, she already has!” Emma barked, “And what do you care? Why the hell do you care whether or not I go fight her?”

“I don’t.” he coldly replied after slightly hesitating, “I just don’t want to listen to Flamel’s sobbing if you get yourself killed on his wedding day. Do what you want. You’re a grown woman. I don’t care. Enjoy getting yourself killed.”

“Unbelievable.” Emma scoffed as she shook her head, “You really are a heartless bastard.”

Leaving it at that, Emma stormed out of the mansion, leaving Quartermain alone, once again. Meanwhile, on the other side of town, the Hooks were taking either a brave, or grave, course of action. Having enough of their truest and closest friends being pushed around by the Black Fairy and her family, they decided to barge into the pawn shop in hopes to find something to give their side the advantage.

“Show yourself, Dark One.” Killian demanded as he and his wife stormed in. Coming from behind the back room’s curtain, the notorious villain met his challengers.

“It takes a lot of bravery for anyone to walk into my shop like that.” Rumple remarked.

“You betrayed us. You betrayed us all, and for what? So you could side with your deranged son, and even more deranged mother?” Killian asked.

“I simply did what was necessary to keep my family together. Not that I’d expect a pirate and his fish-wife to understand.” he sneered.

“Oh, we understand plenty.” Ariel disagreed before drawing blow tube and firing a poisoned dart at the man’s neck when his back was turned. “A little bit of Dreamshade. Courtesy of a little trip I recently took to Neverland. My husband tells me it almost killed you once before.”

“But it didn’t, as I’m immortal.” Rumple reminded as he struggled to remain conscious.

“Well, we don’t need to kill you now.” Killian smirked as his old enemy collapsed, “Just, you know, knock you out long enough for Emma to defeat your mother. And then…I’m gonna finally skin myself a crocodile.”

“There’s just one problem.” Fiona’s voice warned as she appeared behind them, “My son’s not the only one looking out for his family.”

As this was going on, Emma was rummaging through an old box in her office at the station. Not because there was some secret weapon tucked away, but because she needed something to give her emotional strength before confronting her preordained mortal enemy. As she did, her son came in to check on her.

“Mom.” he said, slightly startling her.

“Hey. Let me guess, you’re here to talk me out of going up against the Black Fairy.” she guessed.

“No.” Henry said with a knowing smirk, “I’m here to tell you you’re doing the right thing.”

“Really?” she asked.

“The Final Battle; it’s why I brought you to Storybrooke in the first place. I know you can do it.” he praised.

“Thanks, kid.” she said to her son.

“So, what are you doing here?” he asked.

“Well, I can’t go into battle with the people I love, so I was just reminding myself of all the things I have to fight for.” she explained as she showed him a picture of them together when he was younger. After putting it away, Henry spotted the tape recorder she once tried to use.

“What’s this?” he asked as he pressed play. As soon as she heard her younger self hum, Emma immediately stopped the recording. “Are you okay? What was that?”

“Nothing.” Emma dismissed, “If I’m gonna do this, I need to do this now. I don’t have a lot of time before her curse hits.”

After giving her boy a hug to reassure both him and herself, Emma steeled herself and headed out to face her destiny. Meanwhile, down in the vault, Regina and Zelena were working on a way to prevent the Black Fairy’s curse from happening.

“I can’t find anything to stop the Black Fairy’s curse.” Regina said in defeat.

“Think about it.” Zelena coached, “You were the first person to cast her original dark curse. You know her magic better than anyone. There has to be something you learned back then that you can use against her this time.”

“Time.” Regina realized, “That’s it! The first curse stopped time. If I can isolate that part of the spell, it’ll stop the curse from happening.”

**OUaT**

In the depths of the prison of the Dark One, the Evil Queen stomped through the tunnels to meet with her old teacher. Since she was still pissed at her brother’s interference, she decided to leave him behind at the castle.

“Show yourself, dearie.” she demanded as she approached the magical prison.

“The Queen!” Rumplestiltskin said impishly as he emerged from the shadows, “The queen, the queen, the queen!”

“It’s the Charmings.” she said, getting straight to the point, “They cast a spell so everyone breaks into song. They plan to use it to stop my curse; the curse you gave me. Which means you’re going to tell me how to stop them. Now sing!”

Humoring his former pupil, Rumple pretended to clear his throat and prepare himself for his dance. Just as it seemed he was going to give a silly, yet dark, song, he burst into taunting giggles.

“Sorry, dearie. Do you think the Dark One sings?” he asked, “I’d rather gouge my eyes out with a rusty fork. And I didn’t choose you to cast my curse so you could come crying to me at every itty-bitty sign of trouble.”

“Oh, please.” she scoffed, “I’m the best student who ever walked through your door.”

“I wouldn’t be too sure of that.” he taunted.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked, slightly offended and curious.

“It means if you want to prove I chose the right witch, go fix it.” he suggested before giggling as she left. As he did, in an emerald castle in another realm, they were both being watched by a pair of envious eyes.

_[Wicked Witch]_

_Finally, the moment I was hoping would come  
The moment he would realize he chose the wrong one  
There isn't any curse I could cast to match this feeling  
  
The pain I knew when Rumple turned his back on my heart  
At last will be Regina's when her life falls apart  
Suddenly the future's looking more appealing  
  
Once I was filled with rage  
Now I enjoy the ride  
It's so electrifying  
Watching all her dreams denied  
  
Oh I will fly into tomorrow  
My sister full of sorrow  
Finally paying for her sins  
  
I'll smile, all the while she is crying  
Inside she's slowly dying  
Learning wicked always wins  
  
Oh evil may be powerful  
But wicked always wins~!  
  
If Mum could see me now, she would ache with regret  
'Cause she'd witness all the glory wickedness gets  
She went and made Regina queen, and my blood boil  
  
But that's all history  
Time they all understood  
What they call ‘green with envy’  
I just call ‘looking good’  
  
Oh I will fly into tomorrow  
My sister full of sorrow  
Finally paying for her sins  
  
No strife, her life was so enchanted  
She took it all for granted  
Now she'll dream of could-have-beens  
  
Oh evil may be powerful  
But wicked always  
_Wait... Why just revel in her demise when I can use it to my advantage? _  
  
I'll give her a magic gift to bring the Charmings down  
When Regina stands victorious I'll swoop right into town  
When he learns this spells was mine  
Oh Rumple he will see he should've chosen me  
  
So I will fly into tomorrow  
Delighting in her sorrow  
As a better day begins  
  
This time nobody's gonna stop me  
No evil's gonna top me  
Oh wicked always wins  
  
Her happy ending will be mine  
'Cause wicked always wins~!_

After completing her spell, the Wicked Witch of the West held aloft a gilded, green music box whose sole purpose was to bring an end to the magic of song flowing through the realms.

**OUaT**

After concocting a potion to isolate the time freezing aspect of the curse, Regina called the Charmings over to explain the plan to them.

“Is that it?” Snow asked as she looked at the vial.

“Yes, the answer to stopping the Black Fairy’s curse.” Regina grinned in triumph.

“Okay, now we’ll fight the Black Fairy together. Good work.” David praised.

“Well, I had a little help.” Regina admitted as she gestured to her smiling sister.

“Well, I wonder what our sorry excuse of a teacher would say if he could see us now?” Zelena joked.

“Knowing my father, he’d say thank you.” Gideon said as he summoned the potion to his hand and crushed it. When the others looked in his direction, they saw he had brought his lackeys along with him. “Take them.”

Outside on Main Street, Nicholas was getting some much needed fresh air. However, as he was clearing his head, a sudden chill ran down his spine bringing him to duck just before a blast of black fire could strike him. Swerving his head, he found himself face to face with the Black Fairy, once again.

“You’re persistent. I’ll give you that.” he said as he covered his arms in his shield and tethered himself to the ground with his shadows.

“I’ve come too far to stop now, dear boy. As admirable as your attempts to stop the Final Battle are, I cannot let you interfere with my plans any further.” Fiona said as she paced in front of him.

“You honestly think we’re just gonna roll over and let you become a Djinn?” he asked as he kept his arms raised to attack.

“So, you surmised what my goals are. Good. I was worried they might have gone over your head.” she smirked.

“Do you have any idea the kind of chaos you’ll bring if you do this?” he asked, “Even if you do manage to become one, it’s not like you’d be the only Dark Djinn. You’d attract the attention of all the other Dark Djinns and direct them to you. Even in a world of darkness, that would upset the natural order. You’re messing with forces beyond your comprehension, Fiona.”

“You underestimate me, Mr. Flamel.” she arrogantly smirked.

“You overestimate yourself!” he shouted, “Do yourself, and everyone else for that matter, a favor and just go back to wherever the hell you came from.”

“I shall.” she agreed, “ _After_ the Final Battle.”

Leaping across the ground in a single bound, Fiona spun in the air and delivered a powerful roundhouse kick to Nicholas’ head. The impact was so strong, he was severed from the shadows keeping him from the ground. Wanting to make this quick, Fiona straddled him on the concrete road and opened his mouth.

“I heard you were once rendered to a helpless piece of jewelry once.” she said as she created a small ball of dark magic above her raised index finger, “Let’s see if I can’t recreate that experience.”

Just as Nicholas was about to break free, he noticed something out the corner of his eye and smirked. With a slight chuckle, he spoke to the deranged fairy straddling him.

“Hey, Fiona? Ever hear of a game called ‘Punch-Buggy?” he asked before transmuting away. A split second after he did, Fiona was struck by a large, powerful, speeding object which she rolled over before falling on her back on the road.

Roughly twenty yards in front of her, all the remaining agents, except Quartermain, opened the doors they were closest to inside the Leaguemobile which was blaring loud 80s music. As they did, Nicholas transmuted himself inside and looked through one of the sliding doors with Mina.

“Is she dead?” Skinner asked from the opened hatch on the roof of the rolling arsenal. In response, Fiona raised her torso to glare at the team for hitting her.

“No!” Nemo said before shifting in reverse and speeding back to run the woman over. Just as they were about to run her over again, Fiona stuck out her hand and made the vehicle, and everyone in it, vanish.

“The Final Battle couldn’t come soon enough.” she muttered as she picked herself up and dusted off her dress. Surprisingly, she still had not a single scratch or scuff on her. After poofing herself to the mayor’s office, she eagerly waited for Emma to arrive. Sure enough, she did.

“So, have you finally come to your senses and decided to surrender?” she asked the Savior.

“Hardly.” Emma shot back, “Why wait for the curse to hit, or for Algmata Tier to show up? Let’s start the Final Battle now.”

“Funny,” she said, “I was thinking the same thing. I was planning to wait for my curse to separate you from your loved ones, but they ended up doing my work for me.”

With a wave of her hand, Fiona summoned everyone, except Quartermain, in an orderly formation; all of them frozen in place. In her anger, Emma could barely bring her voice to raise past a soft, but powerful threat.

“I’ll kill you.” she promised.

“Will you, now?” Fiona asked in amusement, “Because I’ve been watching you, Emma. Or should I say, listening?”

Summoning another one of her crystal balls, Fiona played the sound of little Emma humming.

“Do you know what I hear?” she asked mockingly, “A little girl who’s all alone in this world. A girl who’s weak, without hope. I used to go to sleep to the sounds of misery like that every night in my realm.”

“I’ll show you misery.” Emma threatened before trying to strangle the woman with her magic. However, nothing happened. “What did you do?”

“Oh, I didn’t do anything, just made you face the truth. You can’t do this alone.” Fiona taunted.

Scared over her lack of power in the face of her greatest enemy, Emma saw no other choice but to retreat. Back at the station, her hand continuously trembled, cutting off her magic and increasing her fear.

“What did she do to you?” Henry asked.

“She just reminded me what it was like to feel something I haven’t felt in a really long time. She reminded me what it felt like to be alone.” Emma said, no less shaken.

“Even if she froze our family, you’re not alone.” Henry reminded.

“The reason I didn’t want to listen to the tape is because it reminded me of a time when no one even cared enough to listen to me sing a song.” Emma explained as she sat in front of her son.

“I don’t understand.” he said, confused, “What does it have to do with fighting the Final Battle?”

“It’s not about the singing. It’s just where it started.” she clarified, “It’s not about the little things that I couldn’t do on my own. It was every time something big came along, I ran from it. Henry, I wasn’t even brave enough to keep you.”

“Mom.” Henry gently said as he saw his mother on the verge of tears, “That was a long time ago. You’ve changed.”

“Because you came into my life.” she smiled, “And you helped me build a family, and that let me do things I never thought I could.”

“You’re the Savior. You can still beat her and save everyone.”

“The only way I can do that is if I give the Black Fairy my heart the way she wanted in the first place.” Emma realized.

“But she’ll kill you.” Henry stressed in protest.

“You brought me here to bring back the happy endings. Maybe this is the way I was supposed to do it.”

“This isn’t how the book’s supposed to end.” Henry argued.

“Because if I fight and I lose, then I know you won’t have anyone. At least this way, I know you’ll have the rest of our family.” Emma tearfully defended before kissing her boy’s forehead.

**OUaT**

After sneaking into the Evil Queen’s castle, Snow White and Prince Charming made their way through the halls until they found themselves in Regina’s den. Once in the room, the swiftly searched for their target.

“Looking for me?” she asked arrogantly from behind, “Snow White. I haven’t had a chance to congratulate you on that little bundle brewing inside.”

“That’s far enough.” Charming warned with his sword at the ready, “You should make it easy on yourself and come with us now.”

“Oh, you mean like this?” she asked as she summoned a ball of fire. In retaliation, the royal couple began to sing in order to nullify her magic.

  
_[Snow White & Prince Charming]  
  
_

_There's a powerful magic  
When two hearts are one   
A powerful magic   
Bright as the sun   
  
Goodness will triumph, and evil's undone   
When you dare to heed love's call   
  
Cause love is the most powerful magic of all~  
  
[Evil Queen]  
Down with love, down with hope   
Don't need blind faith to cope   
Or inspiring songs in my heart   
  
Got the magic I need   
For my darkest of deeds   
Love at times can entrance   
But love doesn't stand a chance   
  
No, no, love doesn't stand a chance   
  
[Snow White & Prince Charming]  
It's a powerful magic   
When two voices soar   
We're ever more hopeful   
For what lies in store   
  
[Evil Queen]  
Once I loved and once I learned   
Love is weakness   
Love will leave you burned   
  
[Snow White & Prince Charming (Evil Queen)]  
Nothing will stop us, no not anymore   
With our daughter's fate at stake (Happy endings you will see)  
Seems like we found a lucky break (Your happy end will end with me)  
Now let our song show the powerful magic (Love doesn't stand a chance)  
We can make~!  
  
[Evil Queen]  
Got you where I want you now   
Your spell will soon be broken   
Let us see how strong you are   
When everything is_ spoken!  
  


Using the enchanted music box, unknowingly given to her by her long-lost half-sister, the Evil Queen opened the lid and absorbed not only Snow and Charming’s song, but all the songs flowing throughout the kingdom, as well. After the lid was slammed shut, Snow and Charming tried once again, only to hear themselves speak instead of sing.

“There’s a powerful magic-” they both said loudly, only to stop.

“Snow, the song; it’s gone.” Charming said in panic.

“I don’t understand.” his wife stuttered.

“What’s there to understand? I won.” the Evil Queen taunted.

“You took our song from us.” Charming accused.

“Oh, not just yours. Everyone’s.” she said in triumph.

“How?” Snow White demanded.

“With a little something I happened to find in my vault.” she said, “Green isn’t my color, but it seems to have done the trick.”

“No!” Charming shouted in defiance as he tried to charge at the queen, only to be stopped via magic.

“I guess this proves love isn’t the strongest magic of all. Enjoy what little time you have left as a family.” she sneered before sending the couple back to their own castle with her magic, “Alright, Nicholas, you can come out now.”

In response, Flamel came in from another room, but lacking a mouth on his face. Clearly, it was an attempt to keep him from randomly singing again. Checking to make sure the coast was clear, Flamel returned his mouth and spoke to his sister.

“Is it over?” he asked.

“Yes. It’s over. No more singing.” she assured, “Just please don’t ever do that again. That was disgusting.”

After appearing back in their bedchamber, Snow White immediately headed to their balcony. Clearly, she was very upset about how their day turned out.

“Snow, are you okay?” Charming asked as he followed her.

“What do you think?” she sarcastically asked, “What happened? The wish should’ve worked. You felt how powerful that song was.”

“Snow, look.” Charming alerted as he saw a familiar blue light fly down to them. In a bright flash, the Blue Fairy warmly greeted them.

“Blue. You granted the wish.” Snow White realized earning a nod and a smile.

“But it didn’t work.” Charming pointed out, “The Evil Queen took the song from us.”

“No one can do that. It’s still inside you. It’s still inside everyone.” Blue chuckled. To further her point, she even summoned the music box to her hands, “This magic was never meant for you to use against the Evil Queen.”

“Then, who is it for?” Charming asked.

“Emma.” Blue said with a warm smile, “You wished that she could have a chance for a happy ending. And now, with everyone’s song in her heart, she will.”

“I don’t understand. Why?” Snow White asked, “I mean, how does that help her?”

“One day, she will face a battle like no one has ever faced before. And I’m afraid she will have to face it alone.”

“But she won’t be alone.” Snow White denied, “She’ll have the voices of the people who love her inside of her heart.”

“In the morning, we’ll have forgotten that we ever sang in the first place.” Blue explained, “Not even the Evil Queen or her brother will remember. That way, until the time comes if the box ever needs to be opened, it will remain safe.”

“Then, how will Emma know she has them inside her?” Charming asked.

“We will just have to hope that they find their way to the surface when she needs them the most.”

**OUaT**

As his mother was off on her own, Henry felt completely helpless as he waited in the sheriff’s station with only his book and his mother’s belongings to keep him distracted.

“There has to be a different ending to this story.” he said to himself before his frustration caused him to throw the book across the desk. After taking a moment to compose himself, Henry noticed a new page he had never seen before fall out of the book. After taking a quick read, Henry realized something very important. “She’s not alone. She never was.”

As Henry made this discovery, Emma was bursting through the mayor’s office door once again. This time, she was prepared to put an end to this darkness, no matter what.

“Welcome back.” Fiona teased, “Here to spend a final moment with your family before my curse hits?”

“Just let them go.” Emma said, “This could be over before it even started. You could have what you came for. My heart.”

“It’s a deal.” Fiona softly said in triumph. As the fairy sauntered over to claim her prize, Emma took one last look at her beloved alchemist and gently kissed his frozen lips. “It’s alright, Emma. At least one of us is getting our happy ending.”

“Just get it over with.” Emma dryly demanded. With a sinister giggle, Fiona viciously drove her hand into the Savior’s chest and ripped out her pure heart. However, no matter how hard she squeezed, the heart could not be crushed.

“No. Why won’t you die?” she growled before a burst of light magic burned her hand, causing her to drop the organ.

“Cause her heart’s stronger than you think.” Henry declared as he came in with the new page.

“Henry, what are you doing here?” Emma asked.

“You don’t have to be afraid of being alone because you never have been.” he said as he showed her the page, “Look. Their song has been inside you the whole time. It’s not your weakness. It’s your strength.”

As if recalling a distant memory, Emma began to hum the same tune she once hummed as a little girl. Only this time, she was going to follow through.

_[Emma]_

_Once I lived in darkness  
Out there on my own  
Left to brave the world alone_

_Everything seemed hopeless  
No chance to break free  
Couldn’t hear the song inside of me~_

In her arrogance, the Black Fairy tried to blast her nemesis, only to see it do nothing.

_[Emma]_

_Once upon a time  
A song inspired them  
Be brave_

_They gave me up because my fate was as the one who’d save  
The worlds from your dark magic and the wicked things you do  
They placed a song inside my heart more powerful than you!_

Using her own magic, the Savior began to weaken Fiona’s hold over the others.

_[Emma]_

_All the years of running  
No, not anymore  
I know what I’m living for_

_I’m no longer searching  
Turns out all along  
The answer was inside me  
With a song~!_

Blasting the entire room with her magical song, Emma undid the spell binding everyone and confronted the Black Fairy face to face.

“Looks like I’m not alone anymore.” she declared as her son returned her heart.

“You should’ve done this the easy way. Because my curse is still coming. And the Final Battle is going to be worse than you could possibly imagine.” Fiona warned before poofing away. As soon as she did, the Savior’s parents threw their arms around her.

“Emma.” Snow said in relief as she and her husband hugged their little girl, “How did you do it?”

“It was the song you gave me.” she said.

“What do you mean? What song?” David asked.

“It doesn’t matter. It’s not important.” Emma waved off, “What matters is you were with me. You were with me my whole life!”

“Em?” Nicholas spoke up.

“Nicky!” Emma said happily before throwing her arms around him. Later that day, as the sun was beginning to set over the town, giving it a beautiful shade of orange, the wedding was about to begin on the very decorated rooftop of Granny’s.

Wearing a black suit and tie with a red-wine shade of red shirt, and an embroidered plum blossom from his tree pinned to his collar, Nicholas Flamel was eagerly waiting for his bride at the end of the aisle.

Standing next to him, dressed in his priestly robes, Gilles de Rais smiled happily at his friend, feeling above honored to officiate their wedding. Off to the side, all of them dressed their best, were the remainder of the agents of the LXG in Storybrooke; except Quartermain.

After everyone was freed, Mina personally went over to the mansion to fetch her surrogate-brother’s father figure. However, when she spoke with him, she was given unfortunate news.

**OUaT**

“What do you mean you’re not attending the wedding?!” she shrieked at the old man who hadn’t changed from his usual clothes.

“Just as I said, I’m not going.” Quartermain gruffly replied as he prepared ammunition for his riffle.

“Allan, this is Nicholas’ wedding day!” Mina cried in outrage, “We’re his family! You’re the closest thing he’s had for a father for decades. And now, you’re suddenly refusing to attend his own wedding?! What is wrong with you?!”

“My reasons are my own.” he snapped, “At least one of us should be prepared for the Final Battle. If the rest of you want to waste time at a ceremony that might not even mean anything if the Savior gets killed, go on ahead. I’ll, at least, be the one doing something productive and relevant to our current situation.”

“…I don’t understand you.” she said in disbelief, “You were as heartbroken as the rest of us when he sacrificed himself to save this town from the Dark Ones. You wept in joy when he returned, like the rest of us. After everything the seven of us have been through for over half a century, you’re just going to look the other way and make excuses for…honestly, I don’t know your reasons. I don’t think I want to. You’re going to break his heart the moment he realizes you’re not there with the rest of the people he loves. I can’t believe that I, of all people, am saying this, but you, Allan Quartermain, are dead inside.”

“Took you this long to figure that out?” he coldly asked with an icy look. With no other words, Mina just stormed out of the mansion leaving the bitter old man alone. After she left, he pulled out the locket he kept around his neck and gazed sadly at the pictures he kept inside.

**OUaT**

Shaking her head of those negative thoughts, Mina smiled happily at Nicholas as his sisters and niece joined them; Granny had taken the liberty to hold his new baby brother-in-law in his parents’ stead. As they sat, Henry came up and gave his uncle/new father the wedding rings before joining the rest of their family. As soon as he did, everyone rose from their seats and looked to the end of the aisle to see the beautiful bride.

Escorted by both her parents, Emma Swan strode down the aisle in a pure white, sleeveless, collarless dress that hugged her beautiful, slender body. Though she did not have a veil, her hair had been done in a loose bun on the back of her head. And just as Nicholas had hoped, she had only a touch of makeup on to compliment her natural beauty. To the smiling alchemist, his bride was absolutely breath taking.

When they reached the end, both her parents took turns to kiss her cheek and give her away to the man she loved. Once everyone took their seats, Gilles began to speak.

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here in the sight of friends, family and God to bear witness to the union of this remarkable couple. Though their journey has been long and filled with hardships, they have grown together and become even stronger than they ever thought possible alone. I think I speak for everyone when I say, it has been an honor to be a part of their journey and to see them come this far. The groom may begin his vows.”

“Emma, when we met, I was man forcing himself to live a lie and hide who he truly was, all for the sake of winning a fight I didn’t believe I would survive. But as I grew closer and closer to you, I began to feel something I thought died in me so long ago; hope. I began to hope and have faith that I would survive, and be with you forever. I never believed in the wonder of magic until I met you. If you’ll have me, I will spend every moment of my immortal life making sure you never lose sight of the magic and love you have given me, and I will give you. For alchemists, a circle, or ring, symbolizes the unity and bonds inside it. With this ring, I forever unify and bond the two of us together.”

“Nicholas, I spent so much of my life on my own. And then, Henry found me and brought me to Storybrooke, and helped me find the rest of my family. But just because you learn that you come from true love doesn’t mean that you believe that you’ll ever find it. But thanks to you, now I have.”

After they each placed the rings on each other’s fingers, Gilles continued the ceremony with a wide and happy smile under his bushy beard.

“Do you, Nicholas ‘Abba’ Flamel, take this woman to be your wife and to love her for all eternity?”

“I do.” he said without hesitation or regret.

“And do you, Emma Swan, take this man to be your husband and love him for all eternity?”

“I do.” she said feeling in both her heart and her soul that there was no other man she would make this vow to.

“Then it is with great pleasure that I now pronounce you husband and wife.” Gilles said, his smile never breaking.

Without his, or anyone’s permission, the now married couple took their first kiss as husband and wife. The sound of everyone on the rooftop applauding them filled their air, but the two of them were in their own little world now. Caught up in the moment, Nicholas dipped his wife and looked happily into her shining eyes.

“You did it, Em. You got your happy ending.” he said with love as they raised up and began to slowly dance.

“That’s not what this is.” she happily corrected.

“What, then?”

“A happy beginning.”

_[Emma]_

_Tomorrow is uncertain  
Who knows what it may bring?_

_[Nicholas]_

_But one thing is for sure, my love  
With you I have everything_

_[Emma and Nicholas]_

_A happily ever after  
Is the way these stories go~_

_[Emma]_

_Used to think  
That’s what I wanted  
But now I finally know~_

_There’s no storm we can’t outrun_

_[Nicholas]_

_We will always find the sun~_

_[Emma & Nicholas]_

_Leave the past and all its scars  
A Happy Beginning now is ours~!_

_[Snow & David]_

_We celebrate together  
A longtime wish come true~_

_What it makes it even better  
Today our story starts anew~_

_[Regina & Zelena]_

_Let villains cast their curses  
We can overcome them all~_

_If we all stand strong together~_

_[Henry]_

_There’s no way  
We can fall~_

Surprised at the sudden burst of song, the other LXG agents looked at each other before shrugging their shoulders and joining in, along with all the other wedding guests.

_[Everyone]_

_There’s no storm we can’t outrun  
We will always find the sun~  
Leave the past  
And all its scars_

_A Happy Beginning now is ours~!_

_If we face  
The endless night  
Take my hand  
And join the fight_

_Past the clouds  
We’ll find the stars_

_A Happy Beginning now is ours~!_

_There’s no storm we can’t outrun!  
We will always find the sun!  
Leave the past   
And all its scars_

_A Happy Beginning now is ours~!_

_If we face  
The endless night  
Take my hand  
And join the fight~!_

_Past the clouds  
We’ll find the stars~!_

_A Happy Beginning now is ours~!_

_A Happy Beginning now is ours~!_

As the hope filled and happy song came to an end, the sound of the clock tower ringing filled the entire town. Everyone looked to see the face of the town’s landmark shatter as tendrils of Black Fairy dust broke free.

“The Black Fairy’s curse. It’s here!” Leroy shouted as the dust came towards them all.

“Where do you think it’s taking us?” Nicholas asked his wife.

“It doesn’t matter. Wherever we end up, we’re gonna win.” Emma said to her husband before they were all engulfed.

As the town became covered in black, magical dust, only two specific spaces were left unaffected; the space in the mansion where Allan Quartermain was sitting, because the powers of Algmata Tier burned away the dust around him, and a small shelf at the fairies’ monastery. On that shelf was the very same music box Zelena once created for her sister. But before everything faded into black, the box’s lid flew open, and unleashed the magic sealed inside so that it would blend with the curse engulfing the town.


	101. The Song in Your Heart Pt.2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay! After spending the entire day uploading 100 chapters, I've finally caught up to the most recent. Now then, for those of you who have been reading this on FFN, here's the reason why I'm now on Ao3. I think FFN may be having some issues that may or may not be getting taken care of. I mean, it's been almost a whole year since the PM alert glitch and it still hasn't been resolved. Not to mention, lately when I enter in filters, I'm seeing stuff that was updated several days ago show up at the top as if it was the last ones to be posted. So, with that in mind, I have decided to post on FFN and Ao3; the latter being a backup in case something horrible goes wrong with FFN.  
> Bear in mind, I'm new to this site, so it may take me a little while to get everything nice and orderly; like the formatting on the previous chapters. I just copy what I wrote from Word, and I'm so used to FFN just pushing everything to the left when I post, so It may take a bit to fix that.
> 
> Any who, I won't keep you, so here's the disclaimer.
> 
> I do not own anything that is not my own original work. All the songs and OUaT/Disney characters in this chapter rightfully belong to their legal owners. I just own Algmata Tier.
> 
> Enjoy!

Roughly forty years ago in the Enchanted Forest, a younger Nicholas Flamel was casually reading a book by candlelight in an old tavern he and his fellow LXG agents owned and ran. It was not nearly as successful as the dwarf tavern just a few miles away, and certainly not as magnificent as Aesop’s Tables in the Land of Untold Stories. But, for the seven of them, it was their home. Thankfully, Flamel had just gotten back from a solo mission that day and was taking some time off to relax before he had to return to his kingly brother-in-law’s castle. However, as he was reading, he felt a small hand grab onto his red coat and gently tug.

“Nica?” a child’s soft voice asked with a tremble. Looking up from his book, Flamel softened his expression as he looked at the frightened, tear covered face of a small, blonde child he knew.

“What are you doing up, little one?” he gently asked.

“I-I had a bad dream.” the toddler hiccupped.

“You did? Oh, those are never fun, are they?” he cooed as he picked the child up, “How come you didn’t go to the others, first? I know their rooms are closer.”

“I wanted you.” the child sniffled, burying into Flamel’s chest.

“Well, you made the right choice.” Flamel gently soothed, “I know just what to do to make those nasty, bad dreams go away. You remember?”

“Hmm. You sing them away.” the blonde nodded, looking up into the alchemist’s warm eyes.

“That’s right. All those nightmare baddies don’t like songs for good dreams. So, Nica has to sing to make them stay away tonight. Which one do you wanna hear this time?”

“My fav-o-rite song.” the child cutely said, struggling to say the word “favorite.”

“Okay.” Flamel softly whispered before gently kissing soft, blonde curls.

**(Cue “The Song of Hope” from The Lord of the Rings Musical, s.t. #6: Recommended start at 00:50)**

_[Flamel]_

_At the edge of darkness  
Hope is whispering still  
Tender, honoring, gently stirring  
Memories unfurling in the mind~_

_Warm winds  
From a far forgotten country  
Long left behind~_

_Wandering the empty road  
In twilight’s silver shade  
Following the hidden paths  
Slow and unafraid_

_Let the sunlight free the heart  
Forever bound to roam_

_And let the waking morning find  
The weary traveler  
Returning home~_

After finishing his gentle song, the young alchemist noticed the little one had fallen asleep in his arms. Despite the unorthodox circumstance behind the child, Flamel was grateful for the time he and the others shared with the little one. 

Placing the toddler back in their bed, Flamel pressed a gentle kiss and wished for sweet dreams. Little did he know, but one day, he would need to hear that song, himself, to vanquish his fears and give him the hope he would desperately need.

**OUaT**

Waking up in a jolt, Nicholas groaned in ache as he raised up from the hard, stone floor he had been unconscious on. As the fog in his head began to clear, he noticed just exactly where he was and who was with him.

Dressed in the same clothes he wore during the Promised Day, something he knew to have been destroyed, Nicholas Flamel saw that he, and several other citizens of Storybrooke were in the cathedral of Snow and David’s castle in the Enchanted Forest. As he looked at the others, he noticed they were all returned to their un-cursed appearances; Snow and Regina with their longer hair, the dwarves with their beards and large ears, and even Archie back in his cricket form. However, he noticed that not everyone from Storybrooke was with them.

“Is everyone alright?” he asked as the rest of them began to awake, “What happened? Emma? Emma?!”

“She’s gone.” Regina said as she gained her bearings, “That fairy; she’s as good as her word. She ripped us apart.”

“David?” Snow called out as she held her two-year-old son, “David?!”

“Where is everyone else?” Grumpy asked in confusion.

“Ariel!” Killian called out when he failed to see his wife, “Luv, where are you?!”

“I don’t smell the others.” Nicholas said as he deeply inhaled the air, “Not Emma, not David, not Ariel, not Zelena or Robin, not anyone on the team; not even Henry.”

“Then where the blazes are they?!” Killian shouted in frustration.

“I think this is like what happened after the incident with Pan’s curse.” Nicholas theorized, “Everyone in town must’ve been sent back to their native realms. And we’re all natives of this land.”

“That doesn’t explain why David isn’t here.” Snow said with worry.

“It’s just a guess.” Nicholas shrugged, even though he was just as worried, “But that bitch certainly has panache. She took me from my wedding to yours; this is where you and David got married. Question is, where the hell are the others?”

“If your theory is correct, Nicholas, it’s possible the Black Fairy kept Emma in Storybrooke for the Final Battle.” Jiminy offered as he flew up to Grumpy’s shoulder, “And if Henry isn’t here with the rest of us, like Neal, he may also be there.”

“Was there anyone else on the team from our land, too?” Grumpy asked.

“Just Quartermain.” he replied, “But there’s no telling where the hell he is in this land.”

“But what about the others?” Killian asked.

“No one really knows where Nemo’s from. Mina, Skinner and Gilles are all from the Land Without Color. Jekyll’s from the Land of Lost Time, and Sawyer’s from the Wildlands. And we can’t get to any of those places, or Storybrooke for that matter, without a portal.”

“And chances of the Black Fairy leaving us any way to open a portal are slim, at best.” Regina sighed, “But maybe Ariel will still be able to travel to other realms. Maybe she’ll find her way to us or Storybrooke if she can.”

“Aye.” Killian nodded, taking in some relief at that possibility, “She would do that.”

“Hey,” Grumpy said to them all, “Not to get too off topic, but did anyone get some weird memories of us all singing after they woke up?”

“For a second there, I thought I was going crazy. Yeah, I have those, too.” Nicholas nodded, “Why the hell are we remembering that now, of all times?”

“The wish.” Snow said to herself, “The wish I made that made us all sing; it was meant to give Emma the hope and strength for all this, for the Final Battle. Blue told us the music box containing its magic might open someday if she ever needed it. It must’ve opened as we were all getting swept into the curse.”

“So, what? We’re all gonna start spontaneously singing, again?” Grumpy asked with an uncomfortable look.

“Dear, god, I hope not.” Regina muttered with a roll of her eyes.

“Can we focus, please?!” Nicholas snapped, “We need to figure out a way back home before it’s too late. Let’s just hope that wherever the others are, they can still help us.”

**OUaT**

Back in Storybrooke, waking up in a very uncomfortable place and position, Henry Mills found himself on the roof of Granny’s in his trademark clothes while clutching his story book tightly against his chest. Thankfully, he still retained all of his memories, as far as he knew, from before his great-grandmother’s curse hit. However, he quickly realized he was all alone, and that his town had returned to the same bleakness it he had seen every day for the first ten years of his life.

After coming down from the building, and walking the streets, Henry kept his eyes peeled for any of his family or his uncle’s associates, or just anyone he recognized from his years living in the town. Much to his surprise, he managed to spot his maternal grandfather walking down the sidewalk, with a cup of coffee in his hand, his sheriff’s badge on his belt, and a black armband over his jacket sleeve.

“Grandpa!” he called out as he rushed over to intercept David, “Grandpa! What happened?! What’s going on? What did the Black Fairy’s curse do?”

“Really, Henry?” David asked with an unamused expression, “Black Fairy? Curse? I thought you were past all this? How many times do I have to tell you? I’m not your grandfather. I’m not even old enough to have an infant grandson, let alone a teenage one.”

“She’s done something to you, to-to everyone.” Henry said in realization, “Where is everyone?”

“Who?” David asked, already having enough of the conversation.

“Our family!” Henry stressed, causing David roll his eyes in annoyance, “My moms, Nicholas, Zelena, the Hooks, your wife-”

As soon as Henry said the word wife, David snapped his fingers in front of his face and gave him a threatening look.

“You need to stop. Right now, Henry.” he said, not playing games, “It was one thing when you were a little boy, but you’re old enough now to know better. You know damn well where my wife is. She’s…”

Whatever David was about to say, he struggled to finish. In fact, he looked like he was on the verge of frustrated, heartbroken tears. It was then that Henry was able to put the pieces together. The bitter persona, the black armband. It was obvious. The Black Fairy, for whatever reason, cursed David to be both Storybrooke’s sheriff, and a widower. He wholeheartedly believed that his wife, Mary Margaret Blanchard-Nolan, was dead.

“Is everything alright, Sheriff?” a soft voice Henry recognized from behind. As he turned around, for the first time in almost a week, he saw his step-grandmother Belle. Only this time, she was wearing clothes and jewelry far fancier than he had ever seen her wear; almost as if her husband had paid for everything she was wearing.

“Mrs. Gold.” David nodded as he swallowed the lump in his throat, “Just educating Mr. Mills here about the importance of manners.”

“I see.” she said, “Perhaps I could do that for you? A man as busy as yourself shouldn’t concern himself so much with unimportant matters like this. I’ll take things from here.”

“Very well.” he nodded before storming off to continue his patrol. Once he was gone, Henry turned to the woman with a glare.

“Hello, Grandma.” he said in spite.

“Hello, Henry.” Belle said back, in a somber tone.

“You betrayed us.” he spat.

“Betrayed is a strong word to use in this instance. I like to think I’m simply returning the favor for how the others have been treating me lately.” Belle coolly rebuffed, “Why don’t we go in someplace warm? It’s a bit damp and chilly out.”

Following the former librarian, Henry followed her to a business he had never seen in Storybrooke before; a tea house, naturally, called “Mrs. Potts.” As soon as they entered and took their seats in a private room in the back, without even having to order, a maid brought them a fresh pot of Belle’s favorite tea and snacks.

“Really?” Henry asked, unimpressed at the references to the movie based on her life.

“You can blame your grandfather for this. He thought it would be a nice little surprise for me.” Belle shrugged as she gently sipped her tea, “Although, I can’t say that I don’t enjoy it.”

“Is this the part where you tell me to try the gray stuff?” he asked in false humor.

“It really is delicious.” Belle assured as she gestured to the tray of snacks, “But I suspect you have some questions you want to ask me. So, go ahead.”

“Alright. First off, why?” he asked.

“Why did I choose the Black Fairy’s side over Emma’s? Simple; your Uncle Nicholas made it abundantly clear that no matter what happened, he was going to kill my son.” Belle bitterly replied as she thought of the last time she saw the alchemist, “It didn’t matter to him at all what Gideon had been through, or what I had been through; he was still going to kill him. I had a choice to make: do nothing and let Nicholas murder my only child, or choose the one person who was willing and able to fight against him, and all the rest, and keep my son alive. That was my one and only reason, Henry.”

“And the fancy clothes and jewelry?” he asked.

“It’s part of the ‘perks’ she gave us in this altered version of the town. Instead of some mental patient, or bar skank, I’m Mrs. Belle Gold; wife to the owner and benefactor of Storybrooke, and mother to Storybrooke’s deputy mayor.”

“Let me guess. Gideon?” Henry flatly asked. In response, she raised her tea to him in praise. “And you’re okay with all this? The Black Fairy cursing the town? Killing my mom? You don’t care?”

“It’s as I said, Henry. I had a choice to make. I chose my son.” Belle cryptically replied before sipping her tea.

“Where is Emma? Where is everyone else? Why is only David here?” he demanded.

“Fiona has plans for David she’s not divulged to us. I assume it was a last minute decision. Everyone else has been returned to their native realms, kingdoms and lands. As for Emma, she’s been in the same place, she’s believed to be, for the past three years: Storybrooke’s Mental Institution.”

“Why? As payback for all the years you were there?” Henry snarled.

“I had nothing to do with that.” Belle defended with her hands raised, “Everything regarding the conditions of the curse were made solely by Fiona.”

“Do you even know what she plans to do? Why she’s doing all of this?” Henry asked loudly.

“She wants to become a Djinn.” Belle answered, shocking the teen that she knew this and was still on her side, “But in order to do that, she needs two things: Emma’s death at her hands during the Final Battle, and a powerful being known as Algmata Tier.”

“Never heard of it.”

“Very few have. Not even Rumple or I knew about it until Fiona explained it to us.” Belle said before drinking more tea, “She needs its power to become a Djinn. But the only way to unleash it, is to kill Emma.”

“What does that have to do with it?” he demanded, “And why her? Because she’s the Savior?”

“Actually, it has to do with Algmata Tier’s host.” she corrected.

“Its host?” he asked.

“Yes. You see, it’s actually sealed away in someone you know. Someone who, apparently, is in love with Emma.”

“Nicholas?” Henry asked.

“No. Quartermain.” Belle replied.

“What?!” Henry exclaimed in shock and disgust, “What gave you that idea?!”

“It’s what Fiona thinks.” she shrugged, “She believes that old man is in love with your mother, and if he witnesses her death, the shock will cause him to unleash Algmata Tier, thus giving her the chance to take it for herself.”

“So, that means he’s still in Storybrooke, too?” he asked, his nostrils flaring in anger.

“Yes, that’s correct.” she said before her step-grandson rose from his chair and stormed towards the door, “A word of warning, Henry. This isn’t the Storybrooke you know. The Black Fairy runs this town, and all who are loyal to her run it in her name. Don’t do anything foolish, or they will retaliate.”

“Good.” he spat over his shoulder, “Because I wanna make them regret hurting my family and wrecking my town.”

After making his way to the town’s mental wing of the hospital, the young Author let one of the nurses know he wished to see his birth mother. After waiting a few minutes, Henry was greeted by his miserable-looking mother dressed in the hospital’s provided clothes. It was very obvious that she had been greatly affected by the curse.

“Mom.” he said in relief.

“Henry.” she said evenly before they hugged.

“Thank God, you remember me.” he exhaled.

“Of course I remember you.” she said in the same slightly rude tone she had when they first met.

“Good, ‘cause I just found out some really bad news about the rest of our family; Snow, David, Nicholas-”

“No, no. Stop.” Emma flatly cut off.

“What?”

“I’m not going down that road again. I’ve worked way too hard for you to undo my progress.” she dismissed.

“Progress?” he asked.

“You know what I mean.” she said as she led him to take a seat with her, “Those people; Snow White, Prince Charming, Nicholas Flamel. None of them are real. My parents are not fairytale characters. No one in Storybrooke is. There’s no curse. This is just a regular town.”

“Mom…what happened to you?” he asked in concern.

“What happened to me is I’m getting better. I ended up in this nuthouse because I believed you back then, bought into all of it.” she explained.

“No, this is the Black Fairy.” he argued, “She said she would take away your family, and this is how. She cursed you.”

“No! No more curses. I just,” she trailed so she could calm down, “I just want to get well so that maybe-maybe I can be your mother.”

“Okay,” Henry nodded as he recalled all the holes the first curse failed to fill in peoples’ lives, “How long have you been a patient here?”

“You know how long I’ve been here.” she said, the curse fueling her answer.

“Maybe it’ll help you relive it.” he offered.

“Ever since you tried to prove that fairytales were real by eating a poisoned apple turnover.” Emma sighed, “You ended up in the hospital for weeks. You barely made it through.”

“No, that’s not how it happened.” he argued, “Don’t you remember? I did eat the turnover, but you fought a dragon and woke me with true love’s kiss. You woke me, and you-”

“Oh, my god. Henry, stop!” Emma snapped in irritation, “This is crazy. You’re the one who’s supposed to be getting better. Don’t go back.”

“But it’s true.” he stressed.

“Henry, you were not saved by a kiss. That’s ridiculous. You were saved by medicine, by Dr. Whale before he died in a car…accident.” Emma halted when she saw one of her nurses bring her medicine. Although, this nurse certainly wasn’t certified.

“Time for your pills, Ms. Swan.” Isabelle said with a very fake and malicious smile.

“Stop it!” Henry snapped as he knocked away the unknown drug, “You can’t take that. You can’t take anything they give you. She’s one of them. She’s one of the members of the Black Fairy’s cult.”

“My goodness. Sounds like someone has a very overactive imagination.” Isabelle lightly chuckled before giving him a dark look, “I just hope it isn’t anything this young man can’t handle.”

“He’s fine. He’s just practicing for a play. He’s a method actor.” Emma lied in her son’s defense. But Henry was not letting up.

“Look.” he said as he flipped open the book and showed her the strange symbols he made, “This page I wrote; it means that the Final Battle is coming. The key to winning it is in here. But we can’t do that until you start believing.”

“Sorry about him.” Emma apologized to the fake nurse as she shut the book and took her pills, “You have to stop doing that, or your mother’s not gonna let you keep visiting me.”

“Regina? She’s here?” he asked.

“Who’s Regina?” Emma asked.

“Henry.” a smooth, dark voice said as a familiar face joined them, “How’s my boy?” Fiona asked in her black pantsuit.

“Madam Mayor, I’m sorry. I didn’t know he was coming today.” Emma sheepishly apologized in fear.

“How many times have I told you? It’s Fiona. No need for titles here.” she said with a fake smile, pretending to be friendly, “Now, Henry, shouldn’t you be at school?”

“Of course.” he lied, playing along with the obvious farce, “I just wanted to see my…other mom.”

“What’s that?” Fiona asked as she noticed and reached for the book, “Where did you find that? Oh, no. I think I’ll hold onto this. Nothing but trouble seems to come from this book. Now, Henry, back to school. I’ll see you at dinner. Emma and I have some business to discuss.”

“Okay, Mom.” he said before giving Emma a hug and whispering in her ear, “Whatever she wants you to do, don’t do it.”

“Now then,” Fiona said after Henry seemingly left, only to stay behind and eavesdrop out of sight, “I think somebody needs to take their medicine.”

“Thank you, Madam Mayor, but I’m fine. Really.” Emma tried to assure.

“All due respect, Emma, but you did seem quite agitated when you were speaking to my son.” Fiona pointed out.

“Not at all.” she defended in fear.

“Are you sure, dear?”

“Yes. Everything is okay.” she promised.

“Well, I just want to make sure you’re still making progress. As mayor of Storybrooke, can you blame me for taking a keen interest in all of our residents? And as Henry’s biological mother, your well-being matters to me almost as much his does. I just want our son to know both his mothers are well. And, based on your reports, I feel very assured. In fact, I don’t think I’m talking out of school to say you might be eligible for release soon. Wouldn’t it be nice to gaze at a different view than these dreary, old hospital grounds? Perhaps even the Boston skyline? As I recall, you had a lovely apartment overlooking it all. Wouldn’t it be nice to go back?”

“Yeah. It would be nice.” Emma nodded, almost hypnotically.

“Good. Because, as I said, I’m concerned with both your well-being and Henry’s. He’s clearly still clinging to the delusion that these stories are real. Now, I’d hoped we were past all that. But now, thanks to you, I have a fifteen-year-old boy who still believes in fairytales.”

“Hey!” Emma gently admonished, her old self almost breaking through the curse. Catching this, Fiona corrected herself.

“Forgive me. I just get so emotional when it comes to my son.”

“I never meant to do any harm.” Emma weakly said.

“Of course you didn’t.” Fiona falsely assured, “But as luck would have it, his book has given me an idea of how we could cure him of all this nonsense.”

“What do you want me to do?” she asked.

“Burn it.” Fiona said without missing a beat, “Show him that you’ve truly embraced reality and then he will. Because belief in something, something that isn’t real, can be dangerous. Crush both his, and your delusions.”

“…I’m not ready for that.” she said in defiance, albeit weakly.

“Really?” Fiona asked, very unhappy, “You might not be ready now, but you will be. Of that, I am quite certain. Until then, I’ll just hold onto this. Because, Ms. Swan, until you destroy this book, and make a clean break from this fantasy world, you’ll remain locked up.”

“Quartermain, wherever you are, I hope you’re in better shape than my mom.” Henry muttered to himself as he left the building. 

Coincidently, miles away from the hospital, peering through its windows with his telescope, the hunter in question gazed directly at the beautiful Savior he was drawn to. At that moment, whether he was aware of it or not, the magic that had been unleashed from the music box the previous evening began to fill Quartermain and give him the hope and strength he needed on this perilous day. But, unlike all the other songs that magic made, this was not a joyful tune. His heart ached as memories of the past and Emma’s face filled his mind.

**(Cue “Evermore” from 2017 Beauty & the Beast)**

_[Quartermain]_

_I was the one who had it all  
I was the master of my fate  
I never needed anybody in my life  
I learned the truth too late  
I'll never shake away the pain  
I close my eyes but she's still there  
I let her steal into my melancholy heart  
It's more than I can bear~_

_Now I know she'll never leave me  
Even as she runs away~  
She will still torment me  
Calm me, hurt me  
Move me, come what may  
Wasting in my lonely manor  
Waiting by an open door~  
I'll fool myself, she'll walk right in  
And be with me for evermore~_

_I rage against the trials of love!  
I curse the fading of the light!  
Though she's already flown so far beyond my reach  
She's never out of sight~_

_Now I know she'll never leave me  
Even as she fades from view~!  
She will still inspire me  
Be a part of everything I do~_

_  
Wasting in my lonely manor!  
Waiting by an open door!_

_  
I'll fool myself, she'll walk right in  
And as the long, long nights begin  
I'll think of all that might have been  
Waiting here for evermore~!_

It was a bitter-sweet song, much like the feelings in his long since empty heart. He knew fully well the Black Fairy was after him and the power sealed inside him. But he also knew the danger the Savior was in, and that it was his duty as an Extraordinary Gentleman to protect not only her, but the rest of the townsfolk and all the realms from the chaos Fiona planned to unleash. Making his decision, and throwing away any regrets he might have had, the first seat of Branch Quartermain steeled himself, grabbed two revolvers, his knife, and most importantly, his riffle, and stormed out the door, ready to begin his hunt.

**OUaT**

Back in the Enchanted Forest, now at Regina’s castle, the small group of what remained of Storybrooke’s forces were trying to devise a plan to fix everything. As the Black Fairy intended, they all saw her conversation with Emma through the magic mirror and had become even more concerned.

“Emma!” Nicholas and Snow shouted at the glass before the image disappeared.

“Oh, that bitch!” Regina hissed, “She’s taunting us.”

“Get her back. It’s your mirror.” Snow desperately pleaded.

“Which she is controlling.” Regina pointed out.

“Why? What is she doing?” Nicholas asked before realization dawned on his sister.

“It’s the Final Battle.” she gasped.

“The Final Battle?” Hook asked, “In a nuthouse?”

“Well, clearly, it wasn’t what we thought it was.” Regina surmised.

“Her soul.” Snow realized, “She’s the Savior. Of course the Final Battle isn’t a war. It’s a battle for her soul, for her belief, her hope.”

“I don’t get it.” Nicholas interjected, “What does she gain if Emma stops believing? Why was David left behind? How is this gonna allow her to become a Djinn?”

“I think I might have answer to your first question, brother dear.” a familiar voice said from the nearest hall. No longer green, and leading a small group of Munchkins with her baby, Zelena reunited with everyone in her wicked clothes and a hat case in her hand.

“Sis!” he said in relief as he and his other sister rushed over to hug her.

“Yes, yes. Here I am, to save the day, again. And I come bearing a gift.” she joked as she opened the case.

“The Mad Hatter’s hat.” Regina gasped, “But wasn’t it destroyed?”

“I can definitely vouch for that.” Nicholas provided.

“Well, he was a hatter. He had multiples. Inside are portals to every realm. I used it to escape Oz.” Zelena explained.

“Why did you need to escape your own realm?” Killian asked.

“If it’s anything like what we saw, she had a very good reason.” Ariel said as she joined them, wearing a shimmering dress with Nemo and a handful of his crew with her.

“Darling!” Killian happily said as he rushed over to pick up his wife and hold her close to his heart.

“We wouldn’t have made it here if it weren’t for her.” Nemo praised, “That makes her the second mermaid I owe my life to.”

“Where’s Ursula? Your children?” Nicholas asked his friend in concern.

“Safe.” Nemo assured with a raised hand, “Poseidon brought them to Olympus just before they were taken with the rest of Atlantica.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked.

“There isn’t much time.” Zelena interrupted, “It’s easier if I show you.”

After they were all sucked into the hat, Zelena strode up to the doorway to Oz as she explained the situation.

“If you want to know what we were all running from, take a gander.” she said before opening the portal’s curtain. However, there was nothing behind it. Literally nothing but a black void.

“There’s nothing there.” Regina stated.

“I can see that.” her sister exhaled in shock, “When I left Oz, it was falling apart; apocalyptic, but now…”

“It’s erased.” Snow finished, “Like it never existed.”

“What the bloody hell does this have to do with Emma?” Killian asked. Before anyone could answer, the sound of hooves clopping and a rider shouting could be heard from a doorway that was made of swinging saloon panels.

“Yah! Yah!” they all heard as the sound grew louder and louder. Just then, a familiar looking cowboy riding a horse burst through the panels, skidding to a stop across the marble floor. “Whoa! Whoa, boy!”

“Tom?!” Nicholas exclaimed as he clutched his chest. As he did, Sawyer got off the horse and kissed it straight on the mouth in thanks.

“Oh! Oh, you magnificent, beautiful creature! Mwah!” he said in utter relief, “I will never badmouth horses for the rest of my days!”

“Jesus, Sawyer! You scared the crap out of us!” Nicholas exclaimed, “What the hell happened?”

“You wouldn’t believe it unless you saw it.” Sawyer panted, “There I was, standing on top of Granny’s with the rest of y’all. Next thing I know, I’m waking up in the middle of a barren valley in the Wildlands, all alone before some black-clad riders try to kill me! Luckily, I had my revolvers and plenty of ammo, so I killed them, took one of their horses and tried to find a way back to Storybrooke. Then, out of nowhere like a dust-storm, this cloud of magic starts to engulf the entire realm and everyone in it!”

“How did you get here, though?” Snow asked.

“Well, I guess those riders must’ve been more of Fiona’s followers, cause there was a bean in the saddle. I think she sent some groups to each of the realms she sent us to to dispose of us.”

“Run faster than the wind itself!” a cockney accent shouted from simple, gray door. As that door flew open, everyone could see three colorless people run through it, regaining their color as they crossed the threshold. While they were all doubled over, panting, everyone else noticed it was the three agents native to the Land Without Color.

“What the hell was that?” Mina cried out as she caught her breath. Hers and Gilles outfits were much like what they normally wore in Storybrooke. However, Skinner was the only one who was dressed differently.

“Are you all alright?” Nemo asked in concern as he and the other two came over to them.

“Define alright.” Skinner panted.

“Skinner, what the hell are you wearing?” Nicholas asked. Instead of just his hat, sunglasses, face cream, trench coat and shoes, skinner was wearing clothes similar to Jekyll’s with an old, white lab coat over it all. He also had nothing to cover his face or hands, so he just looked like floating clothes.

“Well,” he said as he took a moment to catch his breath, “Apparently, the old bird did her homework on me. She sent me to the old, abandoned laboratory where the scientist who made me formula use to live; naked. This was all that was left of his things that wasn’t riddled with moth holes.”

“Thank the lord, we were all able to find each other rather quickly.” Gilles panted, “As soon as we did, we were ambushed by the Black Fairy’s worshipers, those sacrilegious heathens. We killed them, and then found a bean on their person. Just in time, too. The Land Without Color was being devoured by some unholy storm.”

“We barely made it out alive.” Mina added just as Jekyll sprinted through his realm’s doorway.

“Why do I get the feeling we all just experienced the same thing?” he asked as he struggled to catch his breath, “What’s going on?”

“This is what she’s doing.” Regina said to them all, “This is why the Black Fairy wants Emma to destroy the book.”

As soon as she said this, the three realms just abandoned vanished from existence.

“As the Savior’s belief fades, so do all the realms of story.” Snow said.

“No,” Nicholas said as the room continued to shake, “Not the realms of _story_. The realms of light, and all their denizens. This is all part of her plans to bring about her age of darkness.”

“What do you mean?” Ariel asked.

“She’s doing exactly what all you guys have been afraid I would do.” he replied, “She’s destroying the realms so she can rebuild them in her own image! If we don’t stop the Black Fairy, we’ll all become denizens of darkness. Just like her!”

**OUaT**

Back in Storybrooke, the town’s newly appointed mayor, and her deputy, strode up to a slightly changed pawn shop. Rather than just saying, “Mr. Gold’s Pawn Shop,” the sign now read, “Gold & Son’s Pawn Shop.” However, just before they entered, Gideon literally bumped into David as they both rounded the corner.

“Deputy Mayor Gold, sorry, I didn’t see you there.” David apologized.

“It’s alright, Sheriff Nolan.” Fiona said before her grandson could lash out, “How are you, by the way? I know it’s been difficult for you recently.”

“…I’m getting by.” David bitterly nodded.

“Again, I am so sorry for your loss.” she lied, “Has there been any leads on your family’s killer?”

“Not yet. But I have to stay positive and hope something new will come up. The ballistics came back as rounds from a hunting rifle, but not much else.” he said.

“I’m sure something will.” she said in false sympathy, “To lose both your wife and son so suddenly. If there’s anything I can do to help, please, let me know.”

“Thank you, Madam Mayor.” he sadly nodded before pressing on, unaware of the deviant smirks the pair was giving him behind his back. With no further reason, they continued their way into the pawn shop. After pushing past the curtains, they both saw the two people they had hoped to see.

“Mother.” Rumple greeted with a nod as he and Belle were maintaining their shop, “To what do we owe the pleasure?”

“Just checking everything is as it should be.” she said with a genuine smile at the sight of her family together, “I also brought the two of you lunch. Before I forget, how did you like your tea house, my dear?”

“It was lovely. Thank you.” Belle said with a small smile.

“Good.” Fiona said with her own smile, “There was another matter I wanted to discuss with you. It would appear the last remaining member of our family is running about trying to awaken the Savior.”

“Henry.” Rumple nodded in understanding, “Old habits certainly do die hard for that boy. Belle was just telling me about her encounter with the boy. Knowing my grandson as well as I do, he’ll resort to the same tricks he pulled during the first curse to make the Savior believe.”

“My thoughts exactly.” Fiona said, “Which is why I’ve decided the use some of my own _tricks_.”

“Just say the word, Grandmother, and I’ll dispose of him.” Gideon eagerly offered.

“Tut-tut, my dear. Henry is family. We don’t want to dispose of him. Simply encourage him to see our side of his family is the one he should be fighting for.”

“How?” Belle asked, “Even for a fifteen-year-old, Henry’s incredibly stubborn.”

“Oh, my dear daughter.” Fiona said, gently stroking and cupping Belle’s cheek as she looked nervous, “Manipulating people is but one of my many specialties. Our preparations for the Final Battle and unleashing Algmata Tier are nearly complete. All that remains is to crush the Savior’s belief, draw out Quartermain, and end them both.”

“About that.” Rumple interrupted, “This beast you’re after. Algmata Tier. You really think you can contain it?”

“I appreciate your concerns, my son. But do not worry. I’ve been training and preparing myself for this day for centuries. I’ve sculpted my body and powers to be able to not only withstand the power of Algmata Tier, but contain it within me, as well. It will work. And by the time night has fallen over Storybrooke, I will have fulfilled my destiny and become the Djinn I am meant to be. Come, Gideon. We must begin the next phase.”

“Yes, Grandmother.” he darkly smiled as he followed her out with his parents left behind. As they were outside, Fiona headed into the library and its secret elevator. After the pair rode down to the depths of Storybrooke, now filled with all her remaining, unused followers, Fiona began to draw forth the dark magic she needed to begin the next part of her plan.

“Grandmother, are you sure it’s wise to let the boy run free?” Gideon asked, “He could become a problem.”

“It’s as I said,” she said with a forced, fake smile, “It’s better to bring him to our side. And in order to do that, we need to change his mind; either with words, or magic. And now that he’s getting inside the Savior’s head, we also need to weaken her resolve, as well. And since that walking container of Algmata Tier’s isn’t where the curse should’ve put him, we may also need to weaken him! Do you understand, now?”

“Yes. Forgive me.” he said, bowing his head, “I meant no disrespect. It’s just that I’ve been sensing an unusual source of light magic mixed into the town since this morning.”

“It’s fairy magic.” Fiona spat in disgust, “It’s a spell the Blue Fairy cast before the first curse was cast to give strength to the Savior in her battle against me. Little did that traitor know, it can be used by anyone to give them strength; including me. I’m going to use it as well, so my dark purpose will be fulfilled. And I will ensure that the last of the Saviors will die!”

**(Cue “In the Dark of the Night” from Anastasia)**

_[Fiona]_

_In the dark of the night I was tossing and turning  
And the nightmare I had was as bad as can be   
It scared me out of my wits   
A life falling to bits!  
Then I opened my eyes  
And the nightmare was me!_

_I was once the golden fairy before black!  
When light’s denizens betrayed me they made a mistake!  
My curse made each of them pay  
But one little girl got away!_

_  
Little Emma, beware  
Fiona is back~!_

Feeling their dark mother’s magic fill them, the rest of her worshipers joined in as they followed her deep into the caverns.

_[Fiona’s Worshipers]_

_In the dark of the night evil will find her~  
In the dark of the night just before dawn!_

_[Fiona]_

_Revenge will be sweet  
When the curse is complete~!_

_[Fiona’s Worshipers]  
In the dark of the night~_

_[Fiona]_

_She'll be gone!_

_  
I can feel that my powers are growing stronger  
Fetch my wand, and that sword, as well!_

_  
As the Pieces fall into place  
I'll see her crawl into place  
Sayonara, Emma, Your Grace!  
Farewell~_

_[Fiona’s Worshipers]_

_In the dark of the night terror will find her!_

_[Fiona]  
Terror's the least, I tell you!_

_[Fiona’s Worshipers]  
In the dark of the night evil will brew~_

_[Fiona]_

_Soon she will feel  
That her nightmares are real_

_[Fiona’s Worshipers]_

_In the dark of the night~_

_[Fiona]  
She'll be through!_

_[Fiona’s Worshipers]_

_In the dark of the night  
Evil will find her~_

_(Hector)  
(Find her!)_

_[Fiona’s Worshipers]  
In the dark of the night   
Terrors will soon~_

_(Hector)  
(Doom her!)_

_[Fiona]_

_My dears, here's a sign  
It's the end of the line~!_

_[Fiona’s Worshipers]_

_In the dark of the night  
In the dark of the night~_

Using her own magic and her wand, Fiona stood before a large caldron as she created a horde or dark creatures to do her bidding. All of them flying within the tunnels creating powerful winds as they waited for their orders.

_[Fiona]_

_Come my minions  
Rise for your mistress  
Let your evil shine!  
Find them now  
Yes, fly ever faster!_

_[Fiona’s Worshipers]_

_In the dark of the night  
In the dark of the night  
In the dark of the night!_

_[Fiona]  
They’ll be mine!_

With their sole purpose given, the small, dark creatures flew to the surface, making themselves invisible, ready to inflict dark thoughts and shatter hope within their mistress’s targets.

**OUaT**

Back inside the hat, more and more people were coming in from the other realms before they vanished. Despite everything they had all been through, even the LXG agents were starting to worry. If anything, they all felt like they were just delaying the inevitable while waiting in the last remaining corner to hide in.

“This is crazy!” Sawyer said to his comrades, “I’ve heard of realms fading. But this?”

“Yeah.” Nicholas nodded, “This is some next level shit.”

“I wonder if the Land of Untold Stories or Shamballa is being affected by all of this?” Mina asked in concern.

“We mustn’t worry about that.” Nemo coached, “We need to figure out a way to stop this madness before we, too, are engulfed by it. We need a portal. One that will actually take us to Storybrooke.”

“And just where the hell are we going to find one of those?” Skinner asked, “We only found one bean on each of the groups sent to kill us, and we each used them to get here! And I can only imagine the Nautilus is out of kraken’s blood, yes?”

“Yes.” Nemo reluctantly nodded as Regina came over to them.

“Nicholas,” she said, “I just saw some people come in from Arendelle. I think you’ll want to see who.”

“Oh, I hope they all made it.” he said to himself as he followed his sister to the snow-covered newcomers. Sure enough, he saw Elsa, Anna, Kristoff and what was left of their people looking around in worry.

“Elsa! Anna!” he called out to them.

“Nicholas?” Elsa asked, not sure if he was real or a cruel trick. But, not even caring, the young queen rushed over to the alchemist and threw her arms around him. “I-I don’t understand. What are you all doing here?”

“What’s going on?” Anna asked, “We barely got our people away from whatever that was. What’s happening to Arendelle?”

“It’s not just Arendelle.” Nicholas said as his first love let go, “It’s all the realms. They’re all being engulfed by the dark magic of someone called the Black Fairy.”

“I don’t understand. I thought fairies were good?” Kristoff asked.

“Not this one.” he said, “This fairy is dead set on basically turning herself into a god of magic and turning all the realms as dark as she is.”

“Dear gods.” Elsa gasped.

“Not exactly the words I’d use, but whatever.” Nicholas muttered.

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Anna asked.

“That depends, any of you have an extra bean or portal on you?” he asked only to see shaking heads, “Thought not.”

“Where’s Emma?” Elsa asked.

“…She’s back in Storybrooke under the Black Fairy’s newest curse. Technically, we’re all in my sister’s castle in the Enchanted Forest. The Black Fairy wants to kill Emma in a fight called the Final Battle. And if we don’t find a way back home soon, in her current condition, Emma’s gonna lose. She’s attacking Emma’s belief. That’s why all this is happening. The more she loses faith, the realms of light will weaken enough for the Black Fairy to destroy and rebuild them in her own image. If you have any ideas, I suggest you give them to my sisters.”

“Sisters?” Anna asked.

“It’s a long and very complicated story. Just look for the two women in black with the permanent scowls on their faces.” Nicholas waved off in a tired tone. As her sister and brother-in-law left, Elsa kept her eyes on the man she once loved take a seat on the floor and tuck his head in exhaustion. Seeing that he needed someone to talk to, she sat down next to him on his left.

“So,” she began trying to break the ice, “You and Emma, huh?”

“Hmm?” he asked before seeing her nod to his wedding ring, “Oh. Yeah, me and Emma.”

“Congratulations.” she smiled, “For how long?”

“Literally just yesterday.” he sighed, “Not even a full twenty-four hours. What about you? Find anyone yet?”

“Nope.” she said wistfully, “Not too many men want a woman who could freeze them in the heat of passion. Plus, you set the bar pretty high.”

“Oh.” he said in realization, “Look, Elsa. You will always have a place in my heart, but-”

“I’m not trying to steal you away, Nicholas.” Elsa scoffed before laughing at his expression and blush, “Honestly, I really am happy for you. Both of you.”

“Oh, phew!” he exhaled in relief.

“Well, don’t look too relieved.” she joked causing him to join in laughing, “I won’t lie, though. A part of me did hope you would choose me back when we reunited in Storybrooke.”

“That would’ve been bad timing on your part considering Emma had no control over her magic back then.” he reminded.

“Yeah. But if you hadn’t been with Emma, would you have given us another chance?” Elsa asked hypothetically, but with a smidge of hope.

“…I don’t know.” he confessed after taking a moment, “I’ve put Emma through a lot since the day we met. I didn’t want to. I didn’t want to bring anyone into the messes I was dealing with. I won’t lie, before she and I began our relationship, there were times when I thought about how different my life would’ve been if I had stayed in Arendelle with you. You can’t imagine the things I’ve been though. I don’t want you to. Who knows? Maybe if I had stayed, I never would’ve joined the LXG. I might have never reunited with my family. I might have spared myself a lot of pain. Or, maybe, despite my disbelief in the whole thing, destiny would have willed it to be all the same. And then I would’ve made you suffer through all the burdens I tried to bear alone a hell of a lot longer than I made Emma.”

Looking at the first woman he ever loved, Nicholas gave her a sad smile before he continued. “It never would’ve worked out between us, Elsa. I couldn’t have brought myself to put you through all that.”

“You did with Emma.” she softly reminded, a small tear forming in her eye.

“Not by choice. I was living a lie for so many years, I don’t know how I was able to juggle it all. Who knows? Maybe things would’ve turned out the same in Storybrooke had I stayed with you. Maybe I’ve not made as big an impact on the town as I’ve always thought. But, even with all the painful ordeals I’ve been through, there were plenty of good times that outweigh the bad. Not just for me, but for you, too. I love my wife, Elsa. And I’m grateful for the life I have. I know you feel the same.”

“I do.” she nodded with a smile, “And like I said, I am happy for the two of you. If it hadn’t been for my aunt’s curse, I might have had enough time to convince the two of you to share.”

“Yeah.” he nodded before processing what she just said and jerking his head in her direction, “Wait, what?!”

Instead of verbally responding, Elsa gently smiled with a blush before getting up to join her sister. Before she walked away, she uncharacteristically gave him a playful wink, leaving him even more dumbfounded.

“Elsa?” he asked himself as he thought about what she said, and the images that would have entailed had he and Emma heard her off and accepted. Of course, he quickly dismissed those thoughts.

“No! Now’s not the time for that!” he scolded himself in his mind, “You’re a married man now, Flamel! Even if you weren’t, you never would have pulled stunt like that in the old days!”

“Wait a minute.” he whispered, “The old days. That’s it! Guys!”

“What is it, Nicholas?” Nemo asked as the alchemist raced over to him and all the others.

“I think I figured out a way to get us home!” he exclaimed in a rush.

“What? How?” Snow asked.

“This is the real Enchanted Forest, right? And everything in it was how we all left things when the first curse took us, yeah?” he asked.

“Aside from twenty-nine years of a lack of maintenance, yes.” Regina nodded.

“Then we might have a shot.” he said before speaking directly to the team, “If everything was left behind, that means the old tavern is still standing, too!”

“Of course!” Nemo shouted as he and the others made the connection to Nicholas’ point.

“What tavern?” Snow asked, “The dwarf tavern?”

“No, no, no. Our old tavern. The one we used to run before the curse.” Nicholas corrected in excitement, “We used it as a front for our base here in this realm before the mansion in Storybrooke.”

“Yeah,” Sawyer laughed in nostalgia, “If it hadn’t been for headquarters providing us a budget for that place, we would have gone out of business in the first year. We were bad at that.”

“Not my point.” Nicholas said, “My point is, there may be a bean that got left behind in that old dump. If there is, we can get back to Storybrooke before the Black Fairy kills Emma and becomes a Djinn!”

“There’s just one little problem with that, Nicholas.” Skinner reasoned, “The tavern’s in the dead center of the Enchanted Forest. And, if our encounters with that bug’s worshipers were any indication, there might be even more of them out there waiting for us. And even if we do get to the tavern, there’s no guarantee there is, in fact, a bean there to begin with.”

“Not that you’re wrong, Skinner, but what else can we do?” Sawyer asked with a shrug, “My money’s on the Black Fairy’s gonna save this realm for last. And the way these realms are fading out, that’s gonna happen by the end of the day. So, we can either stay here, hiding away in some top hat, or we can actually do something. Personally, I’ve always wanted to die out in a blaze of glory over just hiding and waiting to die.”

“So, are we doing this, or not?” Snow asked, mostly to remind them of hers and the others’ presences.

“It would appear so.” Mina nodded, “Right then, if move now, we should be able to get there and back just before sun down.”

“Actually, I was thinking it’d be a good idea for the rest of you to stay here.” Nicholas said, “If the Black Fairy did send any of her followers to this realm, and they find out everyone is gathering here, these people will need protection. Besides, with my speed, I can get there and back much faster than you guys.”

“Can’t you just transmute yourself there?” Ariel asked.

“There’s too much magic flowing through the ground. Half of me might end up left behind if I try it. I can actually break the sound barrier, I’m that fast. I just don’t really use that ability because I can’t steer myself very well. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

With no other option available, Regina reluctantly nodded and poofed everyone out of the hat, back to the castle. After exiting the once intimidating structure, Nicholas mentally mapped out the path to his old base, assumed a sprinter’s running stance, and used his rarely used super-speed to dash away in a sound-breaking blur.

**OUaT**

Walking the streets of Storybrooke, not even bothering to conceal the riffle on his back, Quartermain was on the prowl for any of the Black Fairy’s worshipers as he made his way to the hospital. Fully aware of the looks and whispers directed towards him from the streets to the hospital, the old hunter paid none of them any mind. Once he was inside, the cursed civilians either left the room or took cover when they saw the armed man wearing a duster coat.

“I’m here to see Emma Swan.” he gruffly said to the receptionist. Although it wasn’t Isabelle, this person was one of the many worshipers Fiona appointed to running the town in her name.

“Name?” the young man asked without even bothering to look up from his clipboard.

“Allan Quartermain.” he flatly replied with a menacing glare. As soon as he said this, the fake receptionist immediately halted. He had been told by the woman he worshiped that Allan Quartermain was going to be cursed like the rest of the town with another name. This was entirely unexpected.

“Uh-huh. There must be some mistake.” he said trying to play dumb.

“You made it.” Quartermain nodded. Even though he wasn’t breaking eye contact, he was aware of the other worshipers getting ready to attack. “Where is the Savior?”

“Well, that depends.” he said with an arrogant smirk.

“On?”

“You. See, my memory’s a little fuzzy, and this record system is completely unorganized. Maybe if you give me a little incentive to jog my memory, I can tell you.” he offered greedily, “Do you have any gold?”

“No.” Quartermain replied.

“Silver?” the twerp asked.

“Just lead.” Quartermain replied before drawing his revolver and shooting the man in the chest, killing him instantly.

Before the other followers of the Black Fairy could engage him, the old man killed them, as well, with remarkable accuracy and marksmanship. After shooting five of the remaining seven, leaving him without any bullets remaining in that revolver, he strode over to the last two, snapped one’s neck, and grabbed the last one by the head.

“Where is the Savior?” Quartermain growled as he applied pressure to the follower’s temple, making him cry out in pain, “If you don’t tell me, I’ll crush your face in with my bare hands.”

“Gl-Glory to the Black Fairy!” the follower cried out in defiance, “Praise be to Her Holline-!”

Whatever the unfortunate and misguided soul was going to say, it was cut short by Quartermain, who made good on his threat. After dropping the corpse and wiping his bloody hand across the wall as he walked, the old man decided to follow his instincts to find Emma. Once he made it to her ward, he kicked the metal door in after seeing it was locked. However, when he walked in to find her, he saw that no one was in the room. For a brief moment, his eyes flashed purple before he took a deep breath to calm down. He may not have known where she was, but he had a pretty good idea who helped her escape.

True enough, Henry was leading his cursed mother up to the roof of Granny’s where she had her wedding the previous day. Even though she was giving into her son’s antics, Emma made it abundantly clear that she neither believed him, or even wanted to be there.

“Come on. I’ve got to show you something.” Henry said as he led her across the roof. While neither of them paid any attention to it, it was getting closer and closer to sunset over Storybrooke.

“Okay. Well, unless we’re waiting for a helicopter, I think we went the wrong way.” she sarcastically quipped.

“We’re here because this is the last place you saw your family.” he explained, “The last place you remembered who you really are; the Savior.”

“Henry, you have to accept these things are not real.” Emma stressed, “And bringing me to some rooftop is not gonna convince me that my mother is Snow White.”

“But she is.” he argued, “And this isn’t just some rooftop. This is where you married your true love yesterday.”

“My true love?” Emma asked skeptically, “Sorry, kid. That’s not the way the world works.”

“It does, and it did for you. You married the Immortal Alchemist, Nicholas Flamel, right here.”

“Nicholas Flamel?” she scoffed, “Who officiated; Dumbledore?”

“No. Gilles de Rais.” he smirked.

“The child killer?” she asked, “You’re getting into some darker stuff, aren’t you?”

“It was amazing!” Henry continued, “The aisle was right here where your parents gave you away.”

“The only time they gave me away was when I was a baby.” Emma reminded.

“Mom, stop it.” he snapped, “They walked you to the altar. That’s where you exchanged vows, in front of all your friends and family who love you. This is it. Mom, come on!”

After pulling her over to the alter, as soon as she set foot on it, flashes of the wedding flashed in her mind. But above all else, she remembered being happy and loved. Something Henry immediately noticed.

“What happened? Mom, what did you see?”

“I don’t know.” Emma softly lied, not daring to hope.

“That’s a yes. It worked. I knew it.” Henry said in excitement.

“Henry, I don’t know what I saw. I’ve been in a mental hospital for years. It’s not like my brain is really trustworthy right now.” Emma sighed in exhaustion.

“This is the curse. She wants you to doubt yourself. But you can’t give in. You have to fight.” he urged as they sat on the alter.

“I don’t want to fight.” she weakly said, “I want to go home to Boston.”

“Storybrooke is your home. You can’t leave.”

“It’s not for forever. I’ll come back, I promise.” she gently assured, “I just need to get out of here for a while and lay low.”

Just as Henry was about to continuing arguing with his cursed mother, his eyes widened in panic when he saw the swarm of Fiona’s dark creatures fly towards them.

“Mom, we need to move. Now.” he firmly said as he pulled her up.

“What, why?” she asked.

“You don’t see that?!” he asked as he looked at the incoming swarm of mini-demons.

“Henry, all I see is the sky. You’re really starting to worry me, kid.” Emma sighed as the enemy drew closer.

“Get down!” he shouted as he pulled her down to the floor, just before the swarm could engulf them.

“Henry!” Emma groaned in irritation as she tried to get up, “Stop it!”

“Stay down! Look out!” Henry ordered as he pushed her head down. This time, it wasn’t because of the swarm, but because of the locked and loaded riffle Quartermain was carrying that he was about to fire.

Not even bothering to give either of them a warning, Quartermain fired his weapon at the swarm flying over the building. With his skills, he was able to pick one off with each shot. But, it wasn’t enough to eliminate the hundreds of creatures sent for them.

“Glad to see I’m not the only one who’s awake.” Henry said with smirk as he watched the Gentleman work. Once Quartermain realized it was taking too long, he drew his dagger, pierced it into the rooftop and erected a barrier of purple flames which only he and Henry could see.

“Henry, stay back. Who the hell are you?!” Emma shouted at the old man. From her perspective, he was some random person with a gun who just shot into the air and stabbed a roof. Since she no longer believed, none of Storybrooke’s magic was visible to her.

“It’s about time I found the two of you.” Quartermain spat as he came over to them, “Where the hell have you been taking her, boy?”

“Well, here, for starters.” Henry shrugged, “What are those things?”

“Obviously, minions of the Black Fairy sent for you and your mother. For what, I don’t know.” Quartermain said.

“Oh, great. Another one.” Emma sighed in annoyance.

“She had no memory, does she?” he asked the teenager.

“That’s what I’ve been trying to fix. How long will that barrier last?” Henry asked.

“Not much longer. You need to get her out of here while I dispose of them.” Quartermain said as the barrier already began to weaken.

“She still doesn’t remember, though.”

“Well, what happened the first time that made her believe?” he gruffly asked.

“The book.” Henry remembered, “She touched the book and that’s what made her understand everything. It made her believe.”

“Then give her the damn thing.” Quartermain barked as the barrier was fading.

“I can’t. The Black Fairy took it and locked it up in her office. I don’t have a key.” Henry said as the barrier was gone and the swarm was about to come at them again.

“Here’s your damn key!” the old man barked as he gave Henry his second revolver.

“Henry, what are you doing?” Emma asked in concern.

“Get the book, give it to her and then we can put an end to this madness!” he yelled over his own gunfire.

“Right.” Henry nodded before running off to the mayor’s office, gun in hand.

“Henry, come back!” Emma called out before running after her son. Seeing this, Quartermain cursed in irritation.

“Dammit!” he spat before slinging his riffle across his back and stretching out his palm. Like in his battle against Wrath, his eyes flashed purple before the sound of bones crunching could be heard. However, instead of the same, small mask he made on the Promised Day, he summoned a new mask to do his bidding.

This mask was slightly larger and resembled a flabby-faced man. Also, instead of stretching open its mouth, this mask began to suck in the air until both its cheeks were filled and its lips puckered; like it was ready to do a very large spit-take.

However, when it unleashed what was in its mouth, it was neither spit nor air. Instead, it was a barrage of purple, energy-like bullets. In this single attack, a large multitude of Fiona’s demons were shot out of the sky before fading away into darkness. But as Quartermain continued his attack, his face winced in pain, as though he was struggling to suppress some inner pain.

“Just ignore it.” he muttered to himself through his gritting teeth.

After making her way down and out of the building, Emma frantically looked around for her armed son. Surprisingly, Henry was much faster than she expected and lost track of him. But just before she was about to call out to him, David drove up to the side of the rode in his patrol car, sirens blaring, and mounted the curb.

“Sheriff Nolan!” she said, thankful for his arrival.

“Ms. Swan? What are you doing out of your cell?” he asked as he took cover behind the front of his car, “Did you let that man out of the psyche ward, too?”

“I don’t know who the hell that old man is! All I know is that he just showed up out of nowhere and started shooting at the sky before giving Henry a gun!” she explained in panic.

“Henry’s got a gun?” David asked in concern. As they had this discussion, a stray minion of the Black Fairy swooped down to between them, completely invisible to them, so it could fill Emma with despair and hopelessness like its mistress ordered.

Catching this out of the corner of his eye, Quartermain swung his riffle around, as his mask fired on its own, and let loose a single round that flew between them. Since they could not see the demon, they both believed the strange, old man was trying to kill them. However, when David saw that he was carrying a hunting rifle, the very weapon he believed his family was killed with, rage consumed him. So much so, that he hopped over the hood of the car and raced up into the building to confront him.

“Sheriff, wait! What about Henry?!” Emma called out in desperation. As for the boy in question, he had managed to sneak into the mayor’s office and began his search for the book.

Everything was left the same as Regina had, so there were not many places for Fiona to hide the book. After searching through the desk and finding nothing, Henry went straight to the filing cabinet, which had a locked drawer. Taking a few steps back, and covering one ear, the teen was about to squeeze the trigger of Quartermain’s gun before a soft, but dark, voice stopped him.

“Careful, Henry. We don’t want you getting hurt.” Fiona said from behind, startling him.

“You know, I really don’t believe that.” he said as he aimed his trembling, gun-carrying hand at the fairy.

“How could you say that? We’re family.” Fiona said with her dark smile, “Don’t forget, biologically, you are my great-grandson. My blood flows in your veins; diluted though it may be from your maternal family.”

“So, what then? You gonna put me in the crazy house, too?” he asked.

“Of course not. You’re much more useful to me out here. You’ve already spent the day carrying out my will, whether you’ve realized it, or not.”

“What do you mean useful?” he asked. After he asked, Fiona summoned the book to her hand with her magic so she could tauntingly examine it in front of him.

“Turns out getting the Savior to give up her belief is a little more difficult than I originally thought. Even if you take everything away from her, which I have, there’s still that one last pesky speck of belief that refuses to die out.”

“And it never will.” he sneered before shoving past her and taking the book.

“Henry,” she smirked, obviously allowing him to take the book.

“Stay away from me.” he demanded, pointing the gun at her.

“Come back.” she calmly ordered as she followed him to the top of the stairs of the floor they were on.

“No. My mom’s strong. She’ll defeat you, and there’s nothing any of you can do to stop that.” Henry declared in defiance.

“Perhaps. But there is something you can do.” she whispered before gently pushing him down the stairs with her magic.

As this happened, as soon as David kicked open the roof’s door, with his weapon drawn, he looked for his target only to find himself alone on the roof, just having missed the old man vanish via a transport rock.

“Dammit!” he shouted.

**OUaT**

Out in the wilderness of the Enchanted Forest, Nicholas had to stop using his super-speed when the terrain became too narrow for him to speed through. He knew the area and knew he was still about a mile out from his destination. It surprised him how much he was able to keep going. Ever since he had woken up that day, hope had been leaving him with each passing moment. Even with the connection his soul had with Emma’s, he could barely feel her. He was becoming more and more scared that she would not survive the Final Battle.

Sensing this somehow, the magic of Snow’s musical wish began to fill him in order to restore his fading hope. And since he was returning to the place he once considered home, a familiar song began to swell inside him before he allowed it to fill the air.

**(Cue “The Song of Hope (Duet)” from The Lord of the Rings Musical, s.t. #14)**

_[Nicholas]_

_At the edge of darkness  
Hope is whispering still  
Tender, honoring, gently stirring_

_Memories unfurling in the mind  
Warm winds from a far forgotten country  
Long left behind~_

_Distant and divided  
Worlds and miles apart  
Dreams of days together  
Broken in my heart_

_Lives we saw before us fade away  
Sweet words we will never whisper  
Words we long to say~_

As if hearing and answering his prayers, the lingering spirit of Emma in his Philosopher’s Stone appeared to him, wearing red robes, and began to sing with him.

_[Emma]_

_Soft now, my love  
And rest your hand in mine  
Feel my love I am here~_

_Always, my love  
Forever by your side  
Love immortal, love undying _

_Wandering the empty world  
In twilight silver shade  
Following the hidden paths  
Slow and unafraid _

_[Nicholas & Emma]_

_Let the sunlight free the heart  
Forever bound to roam~ _

_[Emma (Nicholas)]_

_And let the waking morning  
Find the weary traveler  
Returning home~!  
(At last returning home~!)_

Somehow reaching to their souls across the realms, both Nicholas and the real Emma felt each others’ love. He did not know how, but Nicholas knew he was reaching to her, and her to him, giving each other hope.

_[Nicholas (Emma)]_

_I am yours  
Let your heart trust in mine  
Feel my love I am here  
Evermore will our lives be entwined  
So take my hand and live or die!_

_(Soft now my love  
And fold your heart in mine  
Feel my love I am here  
Always my love our lives will be entwined  
So my love I am here~)_

_[Nicholas & Emma]_

_Let fate eternal lead us home!  
Love undying~! _

_[Nicholas (Emma)]_

_Awaking dawn will find us  
And at last return us home  
(Lead us home)_

_[Nicholas & Emma]_

_Return!  
Return!  
My love!_

_Return~!_

Now, refilled with hope, the Immortal Alchemist was ready to put his faith in the unknown. As he came to a stop in front of the old tavern he once saw as his second home, Nicholas took a moment to take in the nostalgia and oxygen. Memories of what seemed like a past life filled his mind like an ocean before they were interrupted.

“So, this where you would always hide away at?” Snow asked from behind, startling him.

“Cripes!” he shouted, “What the-Snow? How did you get here?”

“I asked your sisters to send me here to help.” she replied, “You really think there’s a magic bean in there?”

“There’s only one way to find out. I’m not just gonna sit idly by at that castle while my wife is all alone during the toughest fight of her life.” Nicholas snapped as he headed toward the battered entrance, “Look, Emma and I may not have been a predestined love story, guaranteed a happy ending. But I’ll be damned if I just do nothing when she needs me. We fought for our love, and we won. You of all people should understand that. But now…you saw into that mirror. She doesn’t even remember who I am. So, yes, I am actually going to put my faith in something I don’t know and I am going to find a way back to my wife. Because I am not going to lose everything I have just because some bitter fairy cast another goddamn curse! Our story began in Storybrooke, but I will not let it end there with her alone.”

“Alright. You’re scared of losing Emma. I understand. But you don’t have to do this alone, either.” Snow gently reminded, “Just take a breath.”

“I’ll take a breath after we’ve won.” he dismissed before entering his old home. As he expected, the place was even more run down than when he and the others were still barely running it.

“You really used this place as your base before the mansion?” Snow asked in disgust, fearing the floor was gonna fall in if she took too strong a step.

“Sawyer wasn’t kidding when he said we were bad at running this joint.” Nicholas replied, even though he was seeing distant memories of himself and the others laughing, drinking, fighting, and even crying in this place. However, when his eyes caught a glimpse of a window showing the view of a long dead garden, a different face and voice filled his mind.

_“Nica!”_ a child’s voice filled his head as he remembered himself, and all the others, playing with a blonde child in the back garden. He hadn’t realized how long he was reminiscing before his new mother-in-law shook him back to reality.

“Nicholas? Are you okay?” she asked as they stood behind the bar.

“…I’m fine. Let’s get that bean.” he dismissed before they rummaged through the shelves and cupboards. As they did, Snow pulled out a small box of old, tattered children’s clothes and toys. As soon as she did, Nicholas snatched it from her and went back to looking.

“What was that?” she asked suspiciously.

“It’s nothing.” he curtly lied.

“Bull crap.” Snow flatly refused, “You think I didn’t notice the toys in that box? Who did those things belong to, Nicholas?”

“No one you need to concern yourself with.” he said over his shoulder.

“Did you have a child?” she asked causing him to stiffen, “Is that what you and Elsa were talking about earlier? Did you have a child together and you never told us?”

“…Snow, there is a very high possibility that I am physically incapable of having children.” he softly, but coldly said, “And even if I knew I could, or did, it wouldn’t matter right now. What matters is finding that bean and getting home to Emma.”

“I’m not accusing you or judging you, Nicholas.” Snow gently said as she placed a hand on his shoulder, “If you do, I think that would wonderful. It would mean we’d have a new addition to the family.”

“That’s not what it is.” Nicholas sighed as he stopped looking, “The team and I…we had a hand in raising an orphaned child a long time ago. And…”

“Oh.” Snow gasped, “A-Are they…”

“No. At least I hope not.” Nicholas softly said, “It’s just been a very…very long time. I can’t tell you any more than that. I shouldn’t even be talking about it at all. Just consider it as League business and leave it at that. And never bring it up again.”

“Okay.” Snow nodded in reluctance, and concern. “So, where exactly would you guys have hidden away your beans?”

“We had a secret greenhouse underground, but we emptied everything out and brought it all with us when the curse hit.” he replied, “Other than that, in case of sudden emergencies, we usually kept a box or something with some transport rocks, and a bean or two under the counter. Here it is!”

Anxious and desperate, Nicholas did not hesitate to open the dust covered box. However, whatever hope filled expression he may have had immediately vanished when he saw the box’s contents. All that was inside were two transport rocks, ironically for the both of them. 

“There’s no bean.” he whispered to Snow in despair.

**OUaT**

Stirring awake, feeling the most painful headache he ever felt, Henry regained consciousness in a private room in the hospital. However, he was able to see that he was not alone.

“Henry? What happened? Are you okay?” she asked in a rush as she dashed to his side.

“Mom?” he groaned in pain.

“He was trying to steal this.” Fiona said as she presented the book, “Then after pointing a gun at me, he had a nasty fall down the stairs.”

“Henry, what were you thinking?” Emma asked, extremely concerned, “How do you even know that person? Are you in some kind of trouble with him?”

“No. You’re the one who’s in trouble. She’s trying to kill you!” Henry struggled to say because of his concussion, “I didn’t fall. She pushed me. She wants to destroy your belief before she kills you and becomes a Djinn!”

“He’s confused, concussed. Isn’t that right, doctor?” Fiona asked Jasper standing in the doorway, now dressed as a doctor instead of his black robes.

“Oh, yes. He really had a bad fall.” the man smirked, causing Henry to panic in fear of what was happening to his town and mother.

“Look.” Fiona said to Emma, showing her security footage of Henry’s fall, “Apart from him being my own son, how could I push him if I wasn’t even touching him?”

“She used magic.”

“Kid, there’s no such thing as magic.” Emma said.

“True belief is believing even if you can’t see it.” he desperately argued, “Just look at the book.”

“Henry.” Emma sighed.

“Just touch it.” he begged.

“Henry, enough.” Emma said, beginning to lose her patience.

“Touch it!”

“Okay, fine.” she relented, grabbing the book and showing him directly to his face, “Alright, Henry, I’m touching the book.”

But unlike the first time she touched it, nothing happened. No wave of magic erupting from her over the town, no flash of light, not even a hint of recollection on her face.

“It-It didn’t work.” he said, not understanding why.

“I’m sorry, but you’re not a kid anymore. This isn’t some daring rescue operation. It’s real life.” Emma lectured, albeit sympathetically.

“Mom…please.” he begged.

“It was just a concussion this time.” Fiona darkly whispered in Emma’s ear, “Next time, what if he breaks his neck? Or worse? This is the apple turnover all over again. He’s hurting himself and getting into trouble to make you believe his delusions.”

“This is all my fault. It has to stop.” Emma said to her son.

“Then you know what you have to do.” Fiona said, speaking like she was the devil on Emma’s shoulder. Hearing this, Henry caught on to her intentions.

“No. Mom, you can’t destroy it. You just have to believe in me.”

“Kid, just ‘cause you believe in something doesn’t make it true.” Emma said in defeat.

“That’s exactly what makes it true. Deep down, you know that.” he said, barely recognizing the woman. 

“What I know, Henry, is that I love you. And that’s why I have to do this.” she sadly said.

“Mom. No.” Henry said helplessly, “Don’t go. This is it. This is the Final Battle.”

“Henry, I’m sorry.” Emma said as Fiona led her to the door, smiling evilly as she did.

As Fiona led Emma to the hospital’s furnace, the ramifications of every step Emma took reached far and wide. Fiona’s power grew stronger with every step, Quartermain could sense the town’s darkness grow stronger by the second, and the realms were depleting faster than ever.

“Go on, dear.” Fiona softly said in her ear as they stood in front of the furnace, “Only you can save our son now, Emma.”

Having not the strength, hope or light to fight, Emma gave in and dropped the book into the fire and watched its pages burn away. As the shell of the Savior stared at the flames, Fiona had backed away, smirking at her nemesis finally drop to her weakest state. While she did this, Jasper came down to witness the ascendency of the soon-to-be god he worshiped.

“Tell Gideon to begin the final phase. Draw out Algmata Tier by any means.” she ordered to her faithful servant.

“Yes, my dark mother.” Jasper bowed before doing as he was ordered and called Gideon on his cell.

“Tell Her Holiness it shall be done.” Gideon darkly smiled in excitement from the pawn shop.

“What’s happening?” Belle asked, concerned at her son’s expression.

“Grandmother has just given the order to begin the final stage of her plan.” he said giddily, “We’re going to lead the town in a mob against Quartermain to draw out Algmata Tier.”

“What?” Belle asked in shock.

“They’d never voluntarily charge against something like that. Even if it was just Quartermain, himself.” Rumple disagreed.

“Oh, they will. Especially, when learn he was the one who killed the sheriff’s wife and son, and then burnt down clock tower.” Gideon grinned.

“What?” Rumple asked, “The clock tower hasn’t been burnt down.”

In response, Gideon wickedly smirked as he created a ball of fire in his hand, and then proceeded to change its color to a flaming purple. “Just wait five minutes.” he said.

“Son-”

“She also wants the two of you to head towards the abandoned barn hidden in the woods. She said you would know it as the spot the Wicked Witch attempted to cast her time spell. Oh, and you’re to bring your dagger with you, Father.” Gideon continued before wrapping them both in a thankful hug, “Thank you. Both of you. I couldn’t have done this without your support. This will all be over soon. And then, oh…the age of darkness will begin!”

As they watched their excited son practically skip out of the pawn shop, Rumple and Belle were left speechless and horrified at what had become of their only child. It wasn’t just concern that was coursing through them; it was fear and regret, too.

“What have we done?” Belle whispered in guilt.

As he strolled down the street of the town his mistress was about to raze, Gideon took in a deep breath of utter joy before he made his next move. Standing in front of the town’s iconic building, Gideon recreated the altered fireball in his hand, and hurled it like a baseball before watching it, and the building explode in purple flames. Then, without the slightest hesitation, Gideon drew a revolver, identical to Quartermain’s, and shot himself in the arm, his smile never breaking.

Before long, a crowd of concerned citizens mixed with Fiona’s followers flooded around the burning clock tower and looked in horror. As Jasper pretended to bandage his wound, having already healed it with magic, David rushed over to Gideon after getting out of his patrol car.

“Deputy Mayor, what happened?” he asked, just as horror struck as the rest.

“It-It was that man from earlier!” Gideon panted in panic, playing the part well, “The-The one who was shooting from the rooftop this afternoon. He did this!”

As it was intended, Gideon’s outburst drew the attention of the gathered citizens. Everyone had heard about the old stranger shooting at the sky that day, but none of them expected this. Still though, their honorable deputy mayor would never lead them astray. At least, that is what they were all cursed to believe.

“I don’t understand. How could he have done this?” David asked, “He’s just an old man.”

“No, he’s not!” Gideon shouted in fear as he grabbed David by the collar, “I saw him! _It_! He-He turned into some kind of monster made of purple flames! And he’s a bigger monster than you know, Sheriff. He was the one who killed your family!”

“What?” David barely said above a whisper, drawing even more attention from the crowd.

“The bullet he fired earlier, the one that hit your car? It was a match to the ones we found at your family’s crime scene. He killed Mary Margaret and little Neal.” Gideon said loud enough for everyone to hear.

“That sick bastard!” Hector snarled in false anger, rousing anger amongst the crowd.

“What kind of man could do such a thing?!” Isabelle cried out in horror.

“He’s not a man!” Gideon shouted to the angry crowd while David was left in shock as he processed the information, “No man could such things! Can a man light himself or a town in purple flames?! No! This is no man, at all. It’s a beast!”

“Yeah!” Fiona’s followers shouted, rousing the mob to join them as the lingering magic began to overwhelm them all.

“That beast will burn our town to cinders!” Gideon warned them, “He’ll devour our children in the night! We’re not safe until we snuff out this flame once and for all. I say we kill the beast!”

“Yah!” they all cried in agreement while David remained silent and immobile.

**(Cue “The Mob Song” from Beauty & The Beast 2017 version)**

_[Fiona’s Worshipers]_

_We're not safe until he's dead  
He'll come stalking us at night  
Set to sacrifice our children to his monstrous appetite  
He'll wreak havoc on our village if we let him wander free!_

_[Gideon]_

_So it's time to take some action, folks  
It's time to follow me~!_

_Through the mist, through the woods  
Through the darkness and the shadows  
It's a nightmare, but it's one exciting ride~_

_Say a prayer, then we're there  
At the footsteps of a mansion  
And there's something truly terrible inside~_

_It's a beast he's got fangs, wreathed in fire  
Massive paws, killer claws for the feast!  
Hear him roar, see him foam  
But we're not coming home 'til he's dead!  
Good and dead!_

_[Mob]_

_Kill the Beast!_

_Light your torch  
Mount your horse!_

_[Gideon]_

_Screw your courage to the sticking place_

_[Mob]_

_We're counting on Gideon to lead the way~_

_[Gideon]_

_Call it war, call it threat  
You can bet they all will follow  
For in times like this, they'll do just as I say~!_

Watching from the pawn shop window, Belle and Rumple looked in horror at what their son had become.

_[Rumplestiltskin]_

_There's a beast running wild, there's no question  
But I fear the wrong monster's released_

_[Mob]_

_Sally forth! tally ho!  
Grab your sword, grab your bow  
Praise the Lord and here we go~!_

As Gideon led them all into the woods, Quartermain was watching them make their way towards the mansion from his window, both prepared and armed for what he had to do next.

_[Mob]_

_We don't like what we don't understand in fact it scares us  
And this monster is mysterious at least  
Bring your guns bring your knives  
Save your children and your wives  
We'll save our village and our lives~_

_We'll kill the Beast!_

Watching in amusement from her crystal ball, Fiona was dressing and preparing herself for the true Final Battle, revealing in the frivolity of the denizens of light marching to their doom as the sun was setting over Storybrooke for the last time. As she did, she used her magic to speak to the remainder of her followers to join her grandson.

“Hear me, my children. The time has come. Draw out the old man from his mansion and bring me my prize!”

Eager to serve and please their dark mistress, Isabelle, Jasper and Hector, who had stayed behind to watch their brother lead the mob away, summoned their weapons and charged ahead to join them.

_[Isabelle, Jasper & Hector]_

_Hearts ablaze, banners high!  
We go marching into battle  
Unafraid although the danger's just increased~_

Coming to the front yard of the mansion, the mob

_[Mob]  
Raise the flag, sing the song  
Here we come, we're fifty strong  
And fifty people can't be wrong  
Let's kill the Beast_

_Kill the Beast  
Kill the Beast!_

At the steps leading to the front door, Gideon smirked wickedly as he thought of how all the people he just brought were going to die because of him and his grandmother. Just before he reached the door, a single mask, with both its eyes and mouth glowing purple, appear before him and spoke with Quartermain’s voice.

“I know why you are here, Dark Spawn.” he said through the mask.

“Do you, now?” he asked arrogantly, “Then make things easier on yourself and just come with us to meet Her Holiness. Any effort of resistance you make will be pointless. The sun has already begun to set. By the time night falls over the town, the Savior will be dead, and Algmata Tier’s power will belong to the Black Fairy.”

“No. By the time night has fallen, all of you shall be dead.” Quartermain’s mask curtly said.

Leaving it at that, the mask vanished before the sound of rapid gunfire filled the air. Instead of the mask used earlier, or any other mask not yet revealed, the sound was coming from a pair of machine guns Nemo had designed as a part of the mansion’s defenses. However, instead of firing actual bullets, they were firing pellets containing a blend of transport rock dust, and poppy dust, designed to transport and incapacitate intruders.

So, with every pellet that made contact, a misguided civilian was returned to their home, fast asleep. All that remained after just a few moments were the gathered worshipers of the would-be-Djinn. Before they had any chance to formulate a new plan, the doors to the mansion flung open, with a purple light nearly blinding them. When the light began to dim, Gideon was able to see the terrifying figure of Allan Quartermain.

Without any warning, for he felt none of them deserved it, Quartermain began the showdown by firing a single round from his riffle through the head of an unknown dark servant. It seemed as though none of the others cared as they readied their own weapons. But there was thing none of them seemed to realize before the fight began; they were under orders not to kill their target, Quartermain had no such orders.

With his hunting knife at the ready, having slung his riffle again, the old man jumped from the porch and tackled a random, female servant of the Black Fairy, stabbing her neck as he made impact. While the others looked at him in shock and fear, Quartermain turned his head, eyes glowing purple, and roared at them like a feral animal.

From there, using speed and agility a person his age would never usually have, Quartermain leapt over them all with a back flip and dashed towards them with his knife at the ready. He came in low before slicing the throat of a large worshiper and stabbing the head of the person next to him. As their bodies dropped, another worshiper charged at Quartermain with a sword, this time another woman.

She tried to attack him with an overhead strike, but Quartermain shoved the side of the blade with his arm as he side-stepped to get around her, grab her tightly by the hair and repeatedly stab her in the upper chest. He then threw her body at an incoming worshiper before spinning on the balls of his feet to quickly slash the man’s chest and neck.

Gideon watched in utter disbelief as the old man made quick work of killing his grandmother’s followers. Like himself, they all had spent their lives training for this very day to ensure that their mistress would be victorious. But the way this container was just effortlessly killing them all, it was baffling. In no time at all, he was able to cut down all but Gideon and his little group.

Jasper just desperately threw his exploding knives, only to watch the old man deflect them off his own blade. However, when Jasper threw his last knife, Quartermain caught it, spun around to redirect its momentum, and threw it right back at Jasper’s shoulder before it exploded and killed him.

Hector fared no better. While Quartermain’s back was turned, he tried to use his monstrous strength to crush him. However, just as his attack was about to land, Quartermain summoned another mask.

This time, the mask was more of a long, ceremonial, voodoo tribal mask with a spear-head-like top. But instead of firing some kind of blast, the bottom of the mask erupted in purple flame and flew in the air like a powerful rocket.

With enough speed and power, to protect its summoner, the mask threw itself directly at Hector’s head, popping it as though it were a balloon and the mask was a needle.

“Bastard!” Isabelle shouted before firing a volley of fireballs. But each attack was deflected by Quartermain’s mask while he just stood there and glared at them, the purple flames dancing in the reflections of his eyes.

Having enough, Quartermain willed the mask behind the deranged young woman and had it fly her over to him where he caught her by the throat and kept just his one hand tight around it.

“Gi-Gideon, help!” she cried out as she struggled to get free. But the man she had affections for just stood there, his eyes never breaking from Quartermain’s. “Don’t just stand there! Do something! He’s going to kill me!”

But Gideon still neither said or did anything.

“M-Mother!” Isabelle cried out, already aware that her patron was watching them somehow, “Help me, Mother! Please!”

“Looks to me like you’re on your own.” Quartermain calmly said to his prey. Once she heard him say this, Isabelle’s eyes widened in realization. She had just been abandoned.

“A-A” she struggled to say, “All hail the Black Fairy!”

Ending it at that, Quartermain crushed her neck with a single squeeze and dropped her corpse with all the others around him.

“Where is the Savior, boy?” he demanded from the last remaining arrogant brat.

“Probably wandering the streets feeling empty and hopeless before Her Holiness kills her.” Gideon shrugged with a smirk, “It’s over, old man. Her belief has been destroyed, just like that damn story book she burnt. If they all haven’t already faded away, the last realm of light should be just moments away from falling into darkness. And when that happens, all that remains is killing Emma Swan and using Algmata Tier’s power to turn the Black Fairy into the god she has always been destined to become.”

“Even if that does happen, I can promise you this,” Quartermain said as he readied his riffle, topped it with his knife, and assumed his unique fighting stance, “You won’t live to see it.”

Rushing up to the man, Quartermain wildly attacked him. Even though he no longer had the magic sword he once wielded, Gideon was still able to summon another sword to defend himself. But because Quartermain was so viciously attacking him, without leaving a single opening, Gideon was forced to remain on the defensive. It didn’t seem to matter how much training he personally received from his grandmother. Quartermain was showing no mercy or restraint in his attacks. Even with how bizarre his attacks were, almost as if he had made them up on his own, Gideon never had a single opening or chance to exploit a counter strike.

After knocking the man-child’s weapon out of his hand with the butt of his rifle, while holding it at both hands, Quartermain began to smack and beat Gideon with the blunt of his weapon. Striking both sides of his rib cage from side to side before up and down to strike his chin and head, Quartermain flipped his riffle several times before knocking Gideon to the ground and impaling his stomach with his bayonet blade.

“Look at me.” he darkly said to the gasping dark spawn, “Look at me!”

Giving into the demand of the man he now feared, Gideon weakly looked at the hunter looming over him; his eyes shooting terror directly into his soul. Instead of saying any kind of speech, or dramatic one-liner, Quartermain just stared into the depths of the depraved soul he had just impaled. Then, not a moment later, Quartermain shot him in the stomach before pulling out his weapon, leaving him to die a slow, painful and shameful death.

As Gideon laid there, surrounded by the bodies of all the people he grew up with and gasping for life, he prayed. Not just to Fiona, but to anyone who had been watching. He prayed for someone to save his life, or to give him the strength he needed to save himself. He didn’t care if there would be a price to pay later. All he wanted was to live so he could see his grandmother become a Djinn and bring an end to the light that caused them all to suffer. 

But just as he was about to lose consciousness, the mask that Quartermain used to speak to him just minutes before hovered above him. It said nothing, but it opened its mouth to release a small shower of magic to heal him. Little did the son of the Dark One know, but this use of magic would cost him a very steep price very soon.

On the other side of town, as the sun’s light was just barely lingering, Emma Swan was now locked up in sheriff’s station because her old hospital ward had been attacked. She had just been sitting on her cot just waiting for the day to end since the sheriff brought her from the hospital. She had no plans or reasons to escape now that her belief had been destroyed. All she wanted to do was leave this prison of a town. But as she sat there, alone and empty inside, she heard someone barge in. It was David, and he looked absolutely enraged.

“David?” she asked, rising from her cot, “What’s going on? I heard an explosion.”

“The whole town’s gone crazy, that’s what’s going on.” he said angrily as he grabbed some spare magazines for his Glock, “That old man who was shooting earlier? The deputy mayor just told everyone he bombed the clock tower. Now Gideon’s leading an angry mob to kill him.”

“Where’s Henry? Is he still at the hospital?” Emma asked in concern.

“Henry left the hospital a little while ago, Ms. Swan, but frankly, that’s not my biggest concern right now. Especially since that was the same man who murdered my wife and son.” David spat as he slammed shut his desk before heading over to her, “But he did ask me to give you this.”

Before leaving to get his revenge, David gave Emma a makeshift story book her son made for her. As she read through the pages and looked at the illustrations, a part of herself Emma had forgotten was beginning to resurface. But this was interrupted by a strange voice in the air.

“ _Emma._ ” it said, somewhat resembling Fiona’s voice. Confused and intrigued, Emma rose from her cot and headed to the cell door to listen for the voice. However, as soon as she grabbed the door’s bars, she noticed that, for some reason, the cell was unlocked.

“ _Come to me, Emma._ ” the voice said again. Almost in a trance, Emma obeyed and left the cell to follow the voice, completely unaware of the danger she was now in.

As this was happening, now fully recovered, Henry stormed into his grandfather’s pawn shop. Seeing that neither Rumple nor Belle were there, Henry grabbed his grandfather’s old cane from a nearby umbrella stand before continuing on his path. Seeing the case he was looking for, Henry smashed the glass with the cane before pulling out the item he was looking for. And just as he expected, his maternal grandfather’s sword was there, sharpened and ready for battle.

The reason why Henry was doing this was out of necessity for both his home, and his family. If Emma was unable to remember and fight the Black Fairy in the Final Battle, then he would do it in her place. He knew there wasn’t much chance, but he absolutely refused to give up hope and do nothing; something his uncle/step-father had succumbed to.

**OUaT**

While Regina, Zelena and the rest of defenders of Storybrooke waited for Snow and Nicholas to return with the bean, the magical storm that had already taken the other realms was coming towards them. It didn’t matter where they were in the castle, the storm could be seen all around, coming closer to them from every corner of what remained of the realm. They had begun to fear the worst until Snow and Nicholas returned in puffs of smoke.

“Thank god, your back.” Regina exhaled, not taking notice of the broken and defeated expression on her brother’s face, “The Black Fairy’s magic is moving in fast. It’s on the outskirts of the forest and closing in. It’s almost here.”

“Almost?” Zelena rhetorically asked as she looked out at the mountain of magic, storm clouds, “That’s a bit of an understatement. It’s already here. We need to get back, now. Give us the bean.”

“Round everyone up in the center of the palace.” Snow ordered the dwarves, trying to avoid eye contact with the others.

“Snow, what’s wrong?” Ariel asked.

“Where’s the bean?” Sawyer asked.

“…There was no bean.” Nicholas said in defeat before sliding down against the wall in defeat.

“What?” Regina gasped as she, and everyone else in the room, looked shocked and horrified.

“Oh, save us.” Gilles whispered as he made the sign of the cross.

“But there’s still hope, isn’t there?” Killian desperately asked, “What about Emma? Henry? They can still stop this somehow, right?”

“How?” Nicholas asked, “There’s no magic left. All we can do now is just huddle up and die together.”

“You’re wrong.” Regina told her brother, “There’s still one last bit of magic left. Can’t you all feel it? The wish.”

“You really think that’s enough to save us from that?” Skinner asked as he pointed to the storm.

“Maybe not that. But, it might be enough to reach Emma and get her to believe again; even just a little.” Regina explained.

“It could work.” Zelena shrugged, “She is the most connected to that magic. Maybe if we all try to reach out to her with it, it’ll reignite her spark of hope.”

“Hope?” Nicholas scoffed in defeat, “What hope is there? It doesn’t matter how loud or hard any of us sing, it won’t save us. The Black Fairy’s won.”

“Get everyone to the center courtyard.” Regina said to the others before she and Zelena went to their brother, “Abba, there is always hope. It’s something that cannot be destroyed; not while there’s at least one person left willing to fight for it. You’re the strongest fighter we know. Don’t give up.”

“She’s right.” Zelena nodded as they kneeled at both his sides, “You just have to believe, little brother. If the two of us can, you can, too.”

“How can the two of you, of all people, cling to hope in a time like this?” Nicholas asked, helplessly, “You two are some of the biggest nay-sayers I know. Emma’s lost hope, Henry can’t help her find it. There’s nothing left to believe in.”

Seeing their beloved little brother so defeated and hopeless made both sisters’ hearts ache. True, they had never been the truest believers in hope until recently. But it was because of him and his wife that they were able to find the strength to believe. And now, when it seemed like the world around them was going to end, they were compelled to share that same strength with him.

**(Cue “When You Believe” from Prince of Egypt)**

_[Regina]_

_Many nights we've prayed  
With no proof anyone could hear  
In our hearts a hopeful song  
We barely understood_

_Now we are not afraid  
Although we know there's much to fear  
We were moving mountains long before we knew we could~_

_There can be miracles when you believe  
Though hope is frail  
It's hard to kill_

_Who knows what miracles you can achieve  
When you believe somehow you will  
You will when you believe~_

_[Zelena]_

_In this time of fear  
When prayers so often proved in vain  
Hope seemed the summer birds  
To swiftly flown away_

_[Zelena (Regina)]_

_Yet now I'm standing here  
(Now I'm standing here)  
With heart so full I can't explain_

_[Regina & Zelena]_

_Seeking faith and speaking words I never thought I'd say~_

As the two sisters were singing, in Storybrooke, the three generations of the Charming family were marching towards their own fights. For David, it was against the man who had taken so much from him. For Emma, it was against the woman who was plotting to rob her of everything. And for Henry, it was the against the source of all the strife caused against his family and all the realms. Even Quartermain was marching off to his own fight against his enemy.

_[Regina & Zelena]_

_There can be miracles when you believe  
Though hope is frail  
It's hard to kill~_

While Regina and Zelena continued to sing, even as they and their brother were led to the courtyard as the apocalyptic storm was closing in, everyone, even Nicholas, was beginning to feel a bit of hope swell inside them.

_[Regina & Zelena]_

_Who knows what miracles you can achieve  
When you believe somehow you will  
You will when you believe~_

As Henry was about to charge into Fiona’s office, sword in hand, he was stopped by the gentle hand of his mother.

“Not so fast.” she said.

“You came back.” he said in relief, “Does that mean you remember?”

“I read the book you made for me, and about this woman you wrote, who was a hero with a family and a Savior who never ran.”

“You.”

“Well, I’m not sure that it’s me, Henry, but it’s who I want to be. I don’t remember all the crazy stuff you told me, but…I believe it.”

Not just as if like magic, but actual magic, the moment Emma said those three words, the storm about to engulf the survivors of the realms suddenly stopped, just before the last piece of the last realm of light. Seeing that, somehow, the sisters’ singing worked, the LXG agents looked to each other and cried out one word.

“Everybody!”

_[Everybody]_

_There can be miracles when you believe~!  
Though hope is frail  
It's hard to kill~_

As everyone sang, a new source of light magic began to engulf them and spread across the void that was once the multiverse

_[Everybody]_

_Who knows what miracles you can achieve  
When you believe somehow you will  
Now you will!  
You will when you believe~!_

In Storybrooke, as the light magic took the others, a wave of magic erupted from Emma, thus restoring her memories, and everyone else’s, too. As soon as it reached every corner of Storybrooke, the residents of the town who had been cursed away were returned, wearing their wedding clothes, on the farthest outskirts of the night-covered town. Using the last bit of the old wish’s magic, Regina and Zelena smiled proudly at each other as their finished their song.

_[Regina & Zelena]_

_You will when you believe~_

“We’re back.” Nicholas whispered in thanks.

“And so is Emma.” Snow said with pride.

Back with Emma, after telling Henry to go someplace safe, the rejuvenated Savior literally kicked in the office door, sword in hand, ready to defeat her mortal enemy. As soon as she did, she saw Fiona, now dressed in the same fairy outfit she wore when she first turned into the Black Fairy, sitting in Regina’s chair.

“Emma! You’re back.” she smiled playfully, “Good morning. Or should I say, ‘goodnight?’ No. I think the most appropriate choice will soon be, ‘goodbye.’”

“You know? I really feel embarrassed for how I acted around you today.” Emma chuckled mockingly, “I mean, curse or no curse, I was afraid of you. You; a bitter woman who wants to make everyone suffer just because you suffered. You’re not terrifying at all. You’re sad, pathetic, and alone. You think just because you raised those people to call you their mother that makes them your family? A really family is when people give you love and support unconditionally because that’s what your heart tells you. I’m not afraid of you, Fiona. I never will be.”

“Hmm. I admire your bravery, Emma. I really do. But bravery alone will never be enough to defeat me.” Fiona smirked, “I’ve spent millennia in preparation for this night. I have strength unlike anything you’ve ever seen. And when I defeat you, take Algmata Tier’s power for my own, and ascend to my true power, there won’t be anything I cannot do. The laws of magic will no longer apply to me. I will have it all; my family will have it all. All the desires we’ve ever had can be ours.”

“I figured you being Rumplestiltskin’s mother would already know that all magic comes with a price. You really think that rule will no longer apply to you?” Emma asked.

“It’s funny that you say that. Because those little scribbles your son made said something similar.” Fiona smiled before holding up Henry’s page, now translated, “Light cannot be defeated by darkness, for darkness shall never be strong enough to extinguish light.”

Scoffing at those words, Fiona lit the page on fire and watched it burn away into nothing.

“I say, to hell with that.” she giggled madly, “I make my own destiny and follow my own rules, Savior. Which is why I have come farther than anyone else has in this pursuit of power. I never wanted you to leave Storybrooke, or permanently forget who you are. I wanted you to experience the same despair and hopelessness I am going to inflict upon everyone you love as they are reborn into my new realms of darkness.”

“That will never happen.” Emma vowed in defiance, “We’ve both waited long enough. Let’s start the Final Battle right now.”

“I never thought you’d ask.” Fiona giggled before poofing them both outside. Once they were on Main Street, in the dark of the night, they both readied their swords before officially beginning the Final Battle.

Not much further away from the street where the Final Battle was being decided, Quartermain was hurrying as fast as he could to find Emma and help her. If what her vision foretold was to be true, then she would have already begun the fight of her life. But he was jogging through the streets, keeping his eyes peeled and rifle ready in case of an ambush, he was stopped by a single bullet hitting the road’s pavement just an inch in front of his foot. Coming to a stop, he saw his attacker; David.

“I’ve been looking for you, old man.” he said menacingly with his gun in one hand, and his spare sword in the other.

“For what reason? The curse is broken; your memories should be restored.” Quartermain stated.

“Yeah, it is, and they are. And that’s exactly why I’m here.” David said, using his gun to gesture at the Gentleman, “You killed my father.”

“That’s your reason?” Quartermain asked in annoyance as he dropped his stance, “Your daughter could be fighting for her life as we speak, and you feel this is more important?”

“Oh, I’m not worried about Emma. She’s stronger than you think. I believe in her.” David retorted.

“Believing in her is not the same as helping her, you fool!” Quartermain barked, “You barely knew the man, and yet you’re going to waste your time engaging me instead of protecting your child?!”

“True, I barely knew him. But he was still my father. And because of you, my mother suffered for years. Our farm barely survived when it was just the two of us. We barely scraped by, and she had to go the rest of her life thinking she married a worthless drunk who couldn’t go a few days without a drink and got himself killed because of it! And from what I understand, you’re that monster from Emma’s vision. So if I kill you, she’s got a better chance at winning than she already has. You already destroyed my family once. I won’t let you do it again.” David vowed as he blocked Quartermain’s path and readied his sword, “Now fight for your life; if you think it’s worth it.”

Seeing that there was no way to change the sheriff’s mind, Quartermain relented and readied his own weapon for attack. Taking the first strike, David charged at the old hunter and began to strike his sword against his riffle. As this fight was going on, Emma struggling to keep up with Fiona’s attacks.

True to her word, the Black Fairy did indeed have years’ worth of training and skills in fighting. While Emma was skilled, in her own right, it just wasn’t enough to make Fiona actually take things seriously, as her arrogant smile was evident. So, when Emma realized swordplay alone wasn’t going to cut it, she decided to use a bit of light magic to help her out.

Creating a ball of light in her hand, Emma threw it at Fiona’s face to blind her. Once it did, Emma took the liberty to swing her sword while Fiona cried out and shielded her eyes. However, Emma quickly noticed that Fiona was still parrying just as good as before as she began to chuckle at her. This made Emma realize that the deranged fairy was still playing games with her. To add insult to injury, Fiona used her magic to knock Emma flat onto her back and hold the tip of her sword just above her throat.

“Just give up, Savior. I’ve waited long enough.” she said before Emma used her own sword to knock the blade away and get back on her feet.

Still trying to get the upper hand, Emma threw another ball of light, but as an attack this time. Not even taking it seriously, Fiona just raised her sword and watched as the ball cut itself in two without touching her. In response, Fiona created multiple balls of black fire, which she hurled at Emma. Emma was able to deflect all but the last ball, which struck her and brought her to her knees.

“That’s right.” Fiona softly said in her state of power-intoxication, “Kneel before your new god!”

“Ngh!” Emma winced as she panted, “Screw you!”

Hearing this caused Fiona’s mad smile to drop into a bitter scowl. “What a foul mouth you have, little girl. You should know better than to speak that way to your elders. Didn’t your mother ever teach you that? Oh, that’s right.”

“Says the woman who wasn’t there for her kid.” Emma retorted with a smirk before being pulled up into the air by the magic grabbing her throat.

“ _That_ was uncalled for.” Fiona warned before throwing Emma to the ground.

Just a few blocks away, David was having a similar one-sided fight with the man who killed his father. However, unlike how he usually fought, David was using more anger and force in his attacks than usual. Clearly, the murderous intent Nicholas halted just a few weeks ago never went away. It had just been suppressed until this exact moment. However, the murderous intent Quartermain had for the worshipers he killed earlier was not there. If anything, it seemed as though the old man was holding back.

As they fought, Quartermain was keeping an open ear for the fight he knew was just around the corner. He did not care one way or the other about the angry shepherd he was fighting; all he cared about was getting to Emma before it was too late.

“Enough!” he shouted before kicking David in the stomach and knocking him on his back. As soon as he landed, David drew his Glock, ready to shoot. However, Quartermain saw this and fired his rifle at the weapon, destroying it and injuring David’s hand before he could fire.

“This fight is over.” he declared before turning on his heels and walking away.

As David laid there on the ground, he watched helplessly as his father’s killer just walked away and dismissed him. Feeling defeated, the former shepherd could not help but think back to the few good memories he had of his late father. From the times he would teach him how to take care of their flock, to the time he branded his father’s arm, and to the last time he ever saw the man before he left to fix their family. It left him enraged. So much so, that while the old man’s back was turned, David reached for his own hunting knife and drew it before getting up and charging at the hunter.

With an angry battle cry, David brought his dagger down from an upward attack, having no specific target aside from just the man’s body. Just before any vital spot could be pierced, Quartermain turned at the last second, but was unable to completely dodge. It wasn’t much, but David was able to drive his double-bladed knife into the old man’s left upper-bicep.

Enraged and in pain, Quartermain firmly stopped himself from staggering to the ground while the angry sheriff kept pushing against him. Having enough, Quartermain used David’s own weight against him, and threw him off, unintentionally ripping his entire left sleeve off his arm as the dagger was jerked out.

Now just barely three feet in front of his enemy, David threw away the bloody sleeve before getting ready for his next attack. However, it never came. Because as soon as David looked at the old man in front of him, he saw something he never expected to see again.

On the top part of Quartermain’s left forearm was the same double diamond brand his father used to brand his family horse, and the very same brand young David once made on the exact same spot on his father’s arm. 

“…Father?” David asked him as he gasped, not sure whether to believe it, or think it was all a cruel, sick joke.

In response, Quartermain said nothing. He said nothing, but he did swiftly deliver a right hook to David’s head, knocking him out before collapsing on the pavement. Not wasting another moment, the old hunter grabbed his rifle and ran as fast as he could to Emma’s fight, his arm healing under the purple flame covering its wound.

Once he arrived, he saw Emma struggling in her fight against the Black Fairy. Without a moment’s hesitation, Quartermain fired a flaming, purple round at the woman trying to kill the young woman. Unfortunately, it just barely nicked her.

“Finally. The last piece has arrived.” whispered in glee.

“Get away from her!” Quartermain snarled in a fury he had never experienced before.

“At last, the Final Battle reaches its conclusion.” Fiona said in excitement as her opponents flanked her at both sides, “The Savior and Algmata Tier. How long have I waited for this moment? I can’t seem to remember.”

“Quartermain, what are you doing here?” Emma asked, not taking her eyes off of Fiona.

“I couldn’t let you do this alone.” he softly said in concern for her, “This ends now, Fiona! It’s over!”

“I couldn’t agree more.” she smirked before blasting him away with a powerful blast that sent him flying into a slab of the ground she made to stop him. While Emma was distracted, Fiona flew over to her and knocked the wind out of her with a powerful knee strike, followed by a superman punch to the head, sending her to the ground in a heap.

“Emma!” Quartermain shouted before Fiona blasted him with a lighting attack. After this, she began to make her way towards the weakened Gentleman, but was stopped when she heard and saw Emma struggling over to them.

There was not anything left to keep her going aside from the sheer will to do her duty as the Savior. Nothing else was left but the determination to keep her home and family safe. It did not matter to her that she was barely conscious, or barely able to stand before falling to her knees. Emma Swan refused to give up. Something Fiona just could not understand.

“But why? Why would you continue to resist?” Fiona asked, both utterly shocked, and a little impressed as Emma weakly grabbed her leg, “No one’s going to save you, Emma. All you can do now is die.”

Just as shocked as the Black Fairy, Quartermain stared at the young woman with his mouth agape as he listened to her last words.

“No one needs to save me. I’m the Savior. I’m fighting for the people I love. I am a hero. I am hope. I am light. I will do what all Saviors must. No matter the cost. Because…” Emma trailed with a weak smile that made Quartermain gasp at its familiarity, “Because that…is my story.”

Moved by the Savior’s fortitude and defiance, Fiona decided to end things, once and for all. Using her wand, the Black Fairy raised Emma into the air before slamming her into the battered, concrete road. Then, just as Quartermain was trying to rush to his feet to save her, Fiona raised her enchanted sword over Emma and drove it down, causing a sickening sound of impact with the Savior’s body.

As soon as this happened, even though they were miles apart, both Quartermain and Nicholas fell to their knees when they felt the Savior’s life force begin to fade.

“The pain you are feeling, the utter despair and heartbreak that is coursing through your being. It was just as I felt when my baby was ripped away from my very arms, by denizens of the light.” Fiona darkly spat in hatred. But her words fell on deaf ears as Quartermain hyperventilated and trembled in shock as he stared at Emma’s form.

“Because of the existence of love, light is born, as well as sacrifice. And when one fails the people they love, one falls into darkness.” she continued as his body racked in devastation.

But when it looked as though he was about to burst into tears, Quartermain’s breathing accelerated into rapid pants of rage. Then, when his breaking point was absolutely shattered, and the sound of possibly his last heartbeat as a man, Allan Quartermain’s eyes completely turned purple as he gave in and unleashed the power inside.

“Yes. Fall into darkness.” Fiona commanded as the final piece of her plan came into effect.

As the massive shockwave that reached over the entire town was unleashed, some of the protectors of Storybrooke were almost knocked to the ground as they saw what happened. No longer was the sky black and starless. Now, just as Emma had described it in her vision, the night sky was lit an ominous shade of purple.

“What is that?” Snow asked in fear.

While it felt like her life was slowly ebbing away, Emma was able to hazily see the mass of purple flames form across from her fallen form. As she was fading away, she could hear one last cry from her enemy.

“Come forth, Algmata Tier!” Fiona shouted at the top of her lungs. 

In response, the four-legged, tiger-like creature wreathed in purple fire gave out a terrifying roar before charging towards their direction, leaping over Emma, just as she saw in her vision.


End file.
